Nils Mönkemeyer

A scene in deep blue is captured in the painting “Evening at the Window” by Marc Chagall. A pair of lovers nestle at the edge of the picture, observed by the pale moon and a dancing rooster. The work of art inspired Konstantia Gourzi to write a composition for solo viola and bells, which the player has to control by foot.
With her music, the Greek composer, who lives in Germany, carries us off into magical worlds that sound colourful and imaginative. This is also the case with the piece “Sängerin der Komischen Oper” inspired by a Paul Klee painting – the first of several pieces she wrote for Nils Mönkemeyer.
In this concert, the violist combines the works of Gourzi with sensuous, baroque sonatas and fantasies; by the virtuoso violinists Arcangelo Corelli and Nicola Matteis, and by the music collector William Flackton. And of course Handel: his famous sonatas for recorder are heard here in an arrangement for viola and baroque ensemble.