Stathis Karapanos, flute

Jörg Widmann, clarinet
Stephan Schweigert, bassoon
Céline Moinet, oboe
Marie-Pierre Langlamet, harp

Christopher Park & Fil Liotis, piano

Philippe Bernold, flute
David Aaron Carpenter, viola

Konzerthaus Berlin Chamber Orchestra

Schleswig-Holstein Festival Orchestra

Sayako Kusaka, lead and director

Christoph Eschenbach, conductor

This new album by flutist Stathis Karapanos represents Paul Hindemith’s (1895–1963) complete works for flute featuring an impressive roster of accompanying artists. This selection, which also includes one world première recording, shows the unexpected versatility of Hindemith, one of the major names in 20th Century music, as a composer.

Paul Hindemith wrote a sonata for almost every instrument of the orchestra as well as solo concertos for some of them. Here he succeeded in optimally exploiting the qualities typical of each instrument both in sound and technique. Along with compositions for professional flutists, Hindemith also wrote works for children and adult amateurs in which the flute assumes a leading role. Among the highlights of this album include Hindemith’s Concerto for Woodwinds, Harp and Orchestra comissioned by the Columbia University of New York in 1948, as well as his fascinating Flute Sonata, which was premiered in Washington on 10 April 1937. Enthusiasm for Flute and Viola, which is here recorded for the first time, was written during a composition class at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Hindemith wrote the piece on the blackboard while his students looked on.

Stathis Karapanos studied at the National Conservatory in Athens and the University of Music in Karlsruhe, which he completed with distinction in 2018. During his studies, he was often invited to perform with the Cologne Chamber Orchestra, the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France and others. During these years, he had teachers and mentors such as Mathieu Dufour, Vangelis Papathanassiou, Petra Müllejans, Henrick Wiese, Peter Lukas Graf, as well as Prof. Philippe Bernold at the Conservatoire National Superieur in Paris. After his graduation, he was appointed principal flute of the Athens State Symphony Orchestra. Since 2018, Stathis Karapanos has been invited to perform with renowned conductors such as Zubin Mehta, Christoph Eschenbach, Valery Gergiev and Yutaka Sado. As a chamber musician, he has performed with artists such as Vilde Frang, Matthias Goerne, Nicolas Altstaedt, Daniel Hope, Chen Reiss and Marisol Montalvo. Stathis Karapanos has received several awards for his musical skills, such as the ‘Bernstein Award’ of the Schleswig Holstein Music Festival (2020), the ‘Lotto Prize’ of the Rheingau Festival (2019), and numerous prizes at international competitions. Past and upcoming highlights include his London debut with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, a tour with Maestro Yutaka Sado and the Tonkunstler Orchestra as well as several world premiere performances.