The Foundation celebrated its 20th anniversary!

The Foundation celebrated its 20th anniversary with concerts at Berlin’s Matthäuskirche (Berliner Chansonnier), at Berlin’s Heilig-Kreuz-Kirche, at the Leipzig A Cappella Festival (Josquin’s Immortality) and as part of the ReRenaissance series in Basel (Berliner Chansonnier)!

In December 2003, the Goldberg Foundation was established in Berlin by the cellist, musicologist, radio writer and presenter Dr Clemens Goldberg. Through numerous projects, we have since become an integral part of cultural life not only in Berlin but also internationally. Thanks to our intensive editorial work, we have forged diverse links with key figures in 15th-century music. Further projects are planned for the coming years, which will also lead to close collaboration with other foundations.

In recent years, the dialogue between art and nature has emerged as a new area of focus. The highlight of this was our ‘Music-Voices-Nature’ project.

Then as now, the founder’s conviction remains that “capital should not merely serve one’s own consumption, but can open doors to new, shared spaces. In this sense, foundations represent the antithesis to the ideology of blind, purely quantitative growth. They counter unproductive competition with the model of the network.”

The objectives of this foundation are:

1. The Internet Academy

Since the beginning of our work, the Internet Academy, with its extensive editions of 15th-century music and its publications in this field, has become a leading global institution. Its editions are widely used as reference material by both musicians and academics. Now that a large proportion of secular music has been made accessible with additional links to facsimiles of the sources, further sources of sacred music are also being re-edited. Many of these sources were scattered, subject to problematic editorial practices, and often only partially available. An extensive collection of online resources and research materials complements this aspect of the Academy.

Another important component was intended to be an interdisciplinary academic forum modelled on the 15th-century Florentine Academy. Although a considerable number of articles and contributions were posted during the initial phase, the opportunity to comment on and exchange ideas regarding these articles was not taken up at all. The structures of publication in the humanities remain as rigid as concrete, just as they were in the last century. Even young researchers apparently have no desire to engage in public debate. The humanities as a whole are in danger of rendering themselves superfluous within the now purely utilitarian structures of universities. Perhaps only then will the time come when initiatives such as those offered by our foundation are embraced.

2. Establishment and support of ensembles specialising in 15th-century music

The 15th century saw revolutionary new experiences in the ways of seeing (including through the development of spatial representation in painting) and hearing. Composers such as Dufay, Ockeghem and Busnois developed music in which they pushed the tension between harmonic cohesion and the individual freedom of the separate parts to the very limits of what is possible. This music opens up fascinating new auditory experiences. Existing ensembles, or those yet to be founded, should sing not from modern scores, but from original sheet music with its separate parts. The unique experience of rehearsing from these sources is to be brought to life in innovative concerts, in which the works are first performed in individual parts, individual passages are linked to texts, and pieces are also repeated in order to develop ever-changing perspectives. In particular, the concerts are also intended to convey the intellectual and cultural dimensions of this music. The Foundation has now realised several major projects with the ensembles Amarcord, Penalosa and Musica Universalis, the latter being the first ensemble founded on the Foundation’s initiative.

The ‘Tempus fugit’ project gave rise to the ensemble L’ultima parola, which has since been awarded the German Record Critics’ Prize and invited to the ‘Laus Polyphoniae’ festival in Antwerp.

The Foundation also supports the viola da gamba consort Voix et Violes, which collaborates with singers.

Precisely because this innovative form of concert has remained unique, the elaborate and costly documentation of our projects was of the utmost importance. It can be found in the ‘Projects’ section.

Unfortunately, it must also be noted here that the nature of these projects did not have a lasting influence on the music scene and its festivals.

3. Slow Listening

Much like the Slow Food movement (as a counterpoint to fast food), the foundation supports new forms of concert that enable a particularly intense and mindful musical experience. As with 15th-century music, these concerts are intended to bring the cultural and intellectual contexts of the works to the fore through their dramaturgy and presentation.