A Great Musician’s Dream Comes True

Gidon Kremer and Kremerata Baltica Play Three Works by the Czech Composer Viktor Kalabis

The international harpsichordist Zuzana Ruzickova once said that she had a dream that Gidon Kremer and his Kremerata Baltica orchestra would record works by her late husband, the Czech composer Viktor Kalabis. That dream has come true.

The release by Hyperion (click for complete album details) of Kremer’s recordings of important works by Kalabis underscores this composer’s importance in 20th century classical music. These new recordings, available Friday May 2, 2025, come at a time when the world confronts rising authoritarianism and the undermining of freedom form tens of millions of people. The lives of Zuzana and Viktor, in their times, were immeasurably impacted by the ruthless regimes that governed their country for 50 years, first the Nazis and then the Communists. The experiences are evident in the three compositions that Gidon Kremer and his colleagues play.

Yet, Kalabis was a romantic with a passionate love for the place where he was born and where he did so much of his work, Bohemia. He and Zuzana had the opportunity to flee Prague as the Russian army invaded to crush the “Prague Spring” in 1968, but Viktor simply could not imagine being able to compose anywhere else than in his beautiful Bohemia. This passion also is evident at times in these wonderful recordings.

Viktor and Zuzana both refused to join the Czech Communist Party and they suffered for it. Viktor could travel only rarely and could not secure a prominent position as a teacher or conductor, while his music could not secure the international prominence that it deserved. Viktor died in 2006 and thereafterZuzana dedicated herself to ensuring that his compositions attained international attention. There have been several wonderful recordings of Viktor’s works in recent years and indeed this new set by Gidon Kremer would as surely have Zuzana crying for joy.

Latvian Magdalena Ceple is the solo cellist of the Kremerata Baltica orchestra. She is a member of the ASAM Baroque Academy at the Hofkapelle Munich under the baton of Rüdiger Lotter. As a member of the Zerkalo Quartet string quartet in Brussels she has premiered many compositions of new music, playing it in experimental programs mixing up classical quartet repertoire and contemporary music and expanding the boundaries of classical music.

Fuad Ibrahimov is the chief conductor of the Neue Philharmonie München. In 2024, he is appointed music director of the State Symphony Orchestra of Azerbaijan. Fuad Ibrahimov performed with many orchestras across the world, such as the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (England), North Czech Philharmonic, MDR Symphony Orchestra Leipzig, the Staatskapelle Halle, the Göttingen and the Nuremberg Symphony Orchestra, the Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Sinfonia Varsovia, and Kremerata Baltica.

For more information about the recording and the artists download the CD booklet published by Hyperion.

Listen to a selection from the new album, Viktor Kalabis, Kremerata Baltica Kalabis: Diptych for Strings, Op. 66: I. Andante, here.