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Saxophonist Asya Fateyeva joins cellist Eckart Runge and accordionist Andreas Borregaard to bring Bach's Goldberg Variations to life on instruments the composer never imagined.
For years, Bach's Goldberg Variations remained a beloved yet seemingly unreachable work for Asya Fateyeva—composed for harpsichord, it became the ultimate challenge for pianists. But how could it work on saxophone?
Around 2017, cellist Eckart Runge brought together Fateyeva and Danish accordionist Andreas Borregaard. After years of experimentation, the trio discovered that their diverse instruments—saxophone, cello, and accordion—trace Bach's polyphonic lines with unexpected clarity.
Staying faithful to Bach's original keys while following their musical instincts, the ensemble has created something both familiar and never-before-heard. A highlight: Variation 25, where Fateyeva's alto saxophone lends the "black pearl" a luminous new timbre.
"We truly lived with the Goldberg Variations," says Runge. What began as an audacious idea proves that some musical dreams don't just endure—they come true and begin to shine.
The new album "Nutcracker Unwrapped" by saxophonist Asya Fateyeva tells the stories of winter and the Christmas season in a brand-new version of Tchaikovsky’s classic "The Nutcracker," arranged by composer Wolf Kerschek. This piece for saxophone and orchestra, featuring Fateyeva accompanied by the Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz, is complemented by further Christmas classics for saxophone and vocal ensemble, recorded together with Niniwe Vocal Art. The album includes works such as: Carol of the Bells, Corpus Christi Carol, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, and Rosu Dejte.
Die Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz
Vilmantas Kaliunas - Conductos
Asya Fateyeva - Saxophone
Niniwe Vocal Art
Thor-Harald Johnson - Lute
Susanne Paul - Cello
Bodek Janke – Percussion
When Asya Fateyeva and the lautten compagney BERLIN combine ABBA's greatest hits with compositions by Jean-Philippe Rameau, you forget that there are around 250 years between baroque and pop. The musical similarities are stronger—from original and catchy melodies to rousing dance rhythms.
Discover with me the diversity of the Land and Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival.Arte documentary 2024
Showing the saxophone as a versatile instrument with classical origins - that is the mission of this year's portrait artist Asya Fateyeva. Born in Crimea in 1990, the saxophonist specializes in music from the baroque, classical, romantic and modern periods. For her SHMF artist portrait, she has put together a multifaceted program with a total of 17 concerts and events. These include symphonic works, chamber music, early and contemporary music and a workshop.
For "To the Muse," Asya Fateyeva has reinterpreted French works by Claude Debussy, Paule Maurice, Henri Tomasi, Bertrand Plé, and the medieval Troubadours. The theme of longing runs through the entire album, and Fateyeva and her fellow musicians use this material as inspiration for free arrangements of the pieces in new orchestrations.
