The Theophil Ensemble Wien was founded in 2008 by Matthias Schorn, principal clarinet with the Vienna State Opera/Vienna Philharmonic. It is named after the Danish-Austrian architect and builder Theophil von Hansen (1813-1891), the most prominent proponent of the Neo-renaissance (Viennese) style and builder of the Vienna “Musikverein”.

The ensemble consists of section leaders and principal musicians of the Vienna State Opera/Vienna Philharmonic, the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Vienna “Volksoper “.

The main ensemble takes the instrumentation of a Classical octet (clarinet, bassoon, horn, two violins, viola, cello and double bass) and is able to expand or reduce as the repertoire requires. This provides great flexibility in programming, enabling various configurations from small string and wind groups to septet, octet and nonet. Chamber orchestra works and solo concertos can also be accommodated.

In addition to Classical and Romantic works, the repertoire encompasses numerous lesser-known pieces for various instrumentations, which of course includes the wonderful music of the Strauss dynasty and their contemporaries. Stylistically, the musicians of the Theophil Ensemble Wien are as at home with classic Viennese music as with the contemporary music of the twenty-first century. In their interpretations, the Theophil Ensemble Wien aims to follow Gustav Mahler's words of wisdom: “The most important part of music is not written in the notes”.

Celebrated performances include the Mecklenburg- Vorpommern festival (Germany), Jeunesse Austria, Festival “Inntrada” in St. Martin / Innkreis, “PalmKlang” Festival in Oberalm, Musiktagen Kremmsegg, in the Glassy Hall of the Vienna Musikverein, the Liechtenstein Museum Vienna, the State Theater Hallein. They have collaborated with such artists as Erwin Steinhauer, Karl Markovics, Sandra Pires and Frank Hoffman as well as in several radio productions for the Austrian Radio Station Ö1. The ensemble has an intensive concert program both within Austria and abroad.

 

Matthias Schorn - clarinet

“Charming, witty ideas, a magnificent sound, top-notch virtuosity – a musician entirely at ease with himself and his music”, a critic wrote on the occasion of Matthias Schorn’s solo clarinet debut with the Vienna Philharmonic conducted by Gustavo Dudamel in December 2011. Nordkurier, the German daily, describes him as “the most exciting clarinet newcomer since Sabine Meyer”, and the Washington Post praised his “technically brilliant” playing in May 2012.

Matthias Schorn was born in Salzburg, where he studied under Alois Brandhofer at the Mozarteum University of the Arts, then with Johann Hindler at the Vienna University of Music, where he concluded his studies with a Masters thesis in ethnomusicology. Schorn began his professional career as a clarinettist at Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra. After further stints at the Deutsches Symphonie Orchester (Berlin) and at the Munich Philharmonic he was engaged in 2007 by the Vienna Philharmonic as Principal Clarinettist.

He gives concerts with the Vienna Philharmonic, the London Mozart Players, the RSO Berlin, DSO Berlin, MDR Leipzig, Bruckner Orchester Linz or Munich Chamber Orchestra, working with conductors such as G. Dudamel, D.R. Davies, R. Frühbeck de Burgos, M. Sanderling, A. Liebreich, A. Zukerman, K. Järvi, L. Foster, A. Shelley, N. Milton, L. Maazel. Matthias Schorn is an enthusiastic chamber musician: having performed with the likes of Christoph Eschenbach, Daniel Hope, Benjamin Schmid, Martin Grubinger, Annette Dasch, Viviane Hagner, Veronika Eberle, Daniel Müller-Schott, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Sky du Mont, Julia Stemberger, Karlheinz Hackl, the Faurè Quartet, the Minetti Quartet, Quatuor Ebene, the Danish String Quartet and the Apollon Musagete Quartet).

Ever in search of his musical ideal, Schorn has founded the PalmKlang Festival in Oberalm (Salzburg) and has founded a series of chamber music ensembles: the Marc Chagall Trio, the Theophil Ensemble Vienna, and the world music ensemble Faltenradio. Ever since 2007, Schorn has taught at the Vienna Private Conservatory, and gives masterclasses world-wide.