Rudolf Buchbinder counts as one of the legendary musicians of our time. He is frequently invited to perform with the world’s leading orchestras and at some of its greatest festivals. Tradition and innovation, fidelity to the work and freedom, authenticity and global openness in equal measure merge in Buchbinder’s interpretations of the great piano works. His repertoire is as extensive as it is diverse and has been impressively documented in over 100 recordings. In particular, Buchbinder’s performances of works by Ludwig van Beethoven are considered a benchmark. On the occasion of Beethoven’s 150th anniversary, the Wiener Musikverein gave a single pianist – Rudolf Buchbinder – the honour of performing all five Beethoven piano concertos in a specially-produced series – a first in the history of this world famous hall.

As a contribution to the 2020 Beethoven Year and following the genesis of Beethoven’s epochal Diabelli Variations op. 120, Rudolf Buchbinder commissioned a cycle of new Diabelli Variations from the pen of eleven leading contemporary composers including Auerbach, Dean, Hosokawa, Staud and Widmann. He has so far performed this new work in 20 cities around the world.

Rudolf Buchbinder is also an honorary member of the Wiener Philharmoniker, the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Vienna, the Wiener Konzerthausgesellschaft, the Wiener Symphoniker and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. He is the first soloist to have been awarded the Golden Badge of Honour by the Staatskapelle Dresden (Saxony). As Artistic Director, this pianist is responsible for the Grafenegg Festival which has been one of the most influential orchestral festivals in Europe since its inception in 2007.

Estonian conductor and Grammy Award winner Paavo Järvi has been Artistic Director of the Deutsche Kammer­philharmonie Bremen since 2004. One of the many highlights of this collaboration has been the acclaimed, globally celebrated performances of the Beethoven cycle, for which Järvi received numerous awards including the ›Echo Klassik Conductor of the Year‹ award and the prestigious annual ›German Record Critics‹’ award. Their Beethoven project was followed by an intensive exploration of the symphonic works of Schumann and Brahms; both cycles also received numerous awards. Since autumn 2021, the focus has been on Joseph Haydn’s twelve London symphonies, and since 2024, an intensive exploration of Franz Schubert’s symphonies.

Paavo Järvi has been Music Director of the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich since the start of the 2019/2020 season. He is also the founder and Artistic Director of the Estonian Festival Orchestra and the Pärnu Music Festival, which he established in 2011. He regularly appears as a guest conductor with major orchestras such as the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam, the London Philharmonia Orchestra, the Berliner Philharmoniker, the Staatskapelle Dresden, the New York and Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestras and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. In 2015, he was named ›Artist of the Year‹ by both the British magazine Gramophone and the French magazine Diapason. This was followed in 2019 by the Opus Klassik award for ›Conductor of the Year‹. Other awards include a Grammy Award for his recording of Sibelius’ Cantatas with the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra and the title ›Commandeur de L’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres‹, awarded by the French Ministry of Culture. In 2015, Paavo Järvi also received the Sibelius Medal in recognition of his work in bringing this Finnish composer’s music to a wider audience, and in 2012 he received the Hindemith Prize for Art and Humanity. As a committed supporter of Estonian culture, Paavo Järvi was awarded the Order of the White Star by the President of Estonia in 2013.