Anna Rothschild Ensemble Wien

About US

The Anna Rothschild Ensemble Wien is a new and devoted performer of the classical music repertoire from the 18th to the 21st century. With a strong commitment to transforming the grandeur of Vienna’s famous orchestral sound for a smaller and more intimate setting, we are also a platform for new music, young and upcoming conductors, and musical collaborators.

Our debut performance at the Musikverein in Vienna is a dedication to the unique works of the extraordinary composer Kurt Weill. The program will include The Little Threepenny Music and the rarely performed Violin Concerto interpreted by concertmaster Orsolya Korcsolan.

The Anna Rothschild Ensemble Wien was formed in 2020 by horn-player and conductor Gergely Sugar with fellow members of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra. Its mission is to break down boundaries between audience and composer.

ABOUT HER

Anna Rothschild was born in 1914 in the small Hungarian city of Szentes. Her father, physician and violinist, used his wealth to create and found an ensemble. It grew, and quickly its fame reached beyond the little town to the capital city of Budapest.

At the peak of this time the orchestra world was small, and renowned musicians like violin virtuoso Joseph Szigeti, pianist and composer Ernst Dohnanyi, and violinist Bronislaw Huberman, who was also the founder of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, came to Szentes to perform at the Rothschild family mansion.It all ended abruptly in 1937.

Anna Rothschild escaped together with her husband and newborn baby to then Palestine and was forced to build an entirely different life. After the war she found her home in Vienna. An avid opera and concert lover, she told her nephew Gergely Sugar stories of the once flourishing music life of their family in the 1920s and 1930s, accompanied by sounds of her wonderful recording collection.

The Anna Rothschild Ensemble Wien pays tribute to her, and to all the exceptional and pioneering musicians of Szentes who created something unique.