ensemble mini • Bartók Beyond Borders / CAFe Budapest 2016

Artistic leader: Joolz Gale

Established in 2010, this “mini orchestra” is the brainchild of British conductor Joolz Gale. He invited such young musicians from Germany’s leading symphonic orchestras to join who felt ready to try their hands at the arrangements of compositions most of which were originally written for symphonic orchestras.

The ensemble mini considers itself the spiritual heir of the Society for Private Musical Performances (Verein für musikalische Privataufführungen, 1918–21), which Arnold Schoenberg founded in Vienna, and they believe playing the arrangements also facilitates a deeper understanding of the originals. They caused a great sensation with Mahler’s Symphony No. 9, a part of the “mini-Mahler” project dedicated to the composer, which they performed at the Berlin Philharmonie, and the Radyalsystem V, an iconic Berlin venue of alternative art. In 2016, they perform the works of Prokofiev and Shostakovich in their “From Russia, with Love” programme, while “Bartók Beyond Borders” is dedicated to the Hungarian composer’s orchestral pieces.