Christian Funke (born 1949) is a German violinist,

concertmaster The concertmaster (from the German language, German ''Konzertmeister''), first chair (U.S.) or leader (UK) is the principal first violin player in an orchestra (clarinet or oboe in a concert band). After the Conducting, conductor, the concertma ...

and

Professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other tertiary education, post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin ...

for violin. Since 1987 he has been the conductor of the Bachorchester zu Leipzig.

Career

Funke, born in

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

in 1949, studied at the

Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber The Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber (or Dresden University of Music Carl Maria von Weber; also/formerly known as Dresden Conservatory or Dresden Royal Conservatory) is a university school of music, university of music in Dresden, ...

from 1959 to 1966 and then continued his studies at the

Moscow Conservatory The Moscow Conservatory, also officially Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory () is a higher musical educational institution located in Moscow, Russia. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in musical performance and musical research. Th ...

with Igor Bezrodnyi. After his ''

Staatsexamen The ("state examination" or "exam by state"; pl.: ''Staatsexamina'') is a German government licensing examination that future physicians, dentists, physical therapists, teachers, research librarians, archivists, pharmacists, food chemists, psyc ...

'' in 1972, he was engaged as 1st

at the

Staatskapelle Dresden The Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden (), or Saxon State Orchestra Dresden, is one of the oldest orchestras in the world, created by order of Maurice, Elector of Saxony in 1548. Under communist East Germany and until 1992 it was called Staatskap ...

. Since 1979, he was 1st concertmaster of the

Gewandhausorchester The Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra (Gewandhausorchester; also previously known in German as the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig) is a German symphony orchestra based in Leipzig, Germany. The orchestra is named after the concert hall in which it is bas ...

Leipzig. As soloist, he has played many violin concertos, among others by

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popular ...

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

Brahms Johannes Brahms (; ; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor of the mid- Romantic period. His music is noted for its rhythmic vitality and freer treatment of dissonance, often set within studied ye ...

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

Sibelius Jean Sibelius (; ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius; 8 December 186520 September 1957) was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic and early modern periods. He is widely regarded as his country's greatest composer, and his music is often ...

Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his Symphony No. 1 (Shostakovich), First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded ...

and

Stravinski Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ( – 6 April 1971) was a Russian composer and conductor with French citizenship (from 1934) and American citizenship (from 1945). He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century c ...

with the Gewandhaus Orchestra. Funke won numerous prizes in national and international competitions, including a second prize in the violin category at the 1968 edition of the

International Johann Sebastian Bach Competition The International Johann Sebastian Bach Competition () is a music competition in Leipzig, Germany, held by the Bach-Archiv Leipzig. It was founded in 1950 and was held every four years from 1964 to 1996 with five subjects and is now held every two ...

. In 1986, he was appointed

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other tertiary education, post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin ...

for violin at the

Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt, Weimar The University of Music Franz Liszt Weimar (in German: Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt Weimar) is an institution of music in Weimar, Germany. The Hochschule Franz Liszt, who spent a great deal of his life in Weimar, encouraged the founding o ...

. He also holds an

Honorary Professor Honorary titles (professor, president, reader, lecturer) in academia may be conferred on persons in recognition of contributions by a non-employee or by an employee beyond regular duties. This practice primarily exists in the UK and Germany, as ...

ship at the

University of Music and Theatre Leipzig The University of Music and Theatre "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" Leipzig () is a public university in Leipzig, Saxony, Germany. Founded in 1843 by Felix Mendelssohn as the Conservatorium der Musik (Conservatory of Music), it is the oldest univ ...

. He has played several times Bach's ''Concerto for Two Violins'' together with

Igor Oistrakh Igor Davidovich Oistrakh (; April 1931 – 14 August 2021) was a Soviet and Russian violinist. He was described by ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' as "noted for his lean, modernist interpretations". Life and career Oistrakh was born in Odessa, to ...

and

Maxim Vengerov Maxim Alexandrovich Vengerov (; born 20 August 1974) is a Soviet-born Israeli violinist, violist, and conductor. Classic FM has called him "one of the greatest violinists in the world". Vengerov was born in Novosibirsk, the only child of Al ...

. Furthermore, he was able to win soloists like

Sergei Nakariakov Sergei Mikhailovich Nakariakov (; ; born May 10, 1977, in Gorky) is a Russian-Israeli virtuoso trumpeter residing in Paris, France, who came to prominence in the late 1990s. He released his first CD recording (including works by Ravel, Gersh ...

for the ensemble. As a soloist, he is a frequent guest with renowned orchestras and

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of Musical instrument, instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a Great chamber, palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music ...

evenings or at

music festival A music festival is a festival, community event with music, performances of singing and instrument playing that is often presented with a theme such as musical genre (e.g., rock music, rock, blues, folk music, folk, jazz, classical music), nation ...

s like the Walkenrieder Kreuzgangkonzerte. Funke plays a violin from the famous Italian

luthier A luthier ( ; ) is a craftsperson who builds or repairs string instruments. Etymology The word ' is originally French and comes from ''luth'', the French word for "lute". The term was originally used for makers of lutes, but it came to be ...

Gagliano.Apple Music – Christian Funke
/ref> Numerous vinyl and

CDs CDS, CDs, Cds, etc. may refer to: Finance * Canadian Depository for Securities, Canadian post-trade financial services company * Certificate of deposit (CDs) * Counterfeit Deterrence System, developed by the Central Bank Counterfeit Deterrence ...

recordings are available.

Recordings

Georg Frideric Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel ( ; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concerti. Born in Halle, Germany, Han ...

: ''Feuerwerksmusik'' (Deutsche Schallplatten, Berlin 1978 / 1980) *

Claude Debussy Achille Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionism in music, Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influe ...

: ''Späte Sonaten'' (Deutsche Schallplatten, Berlin 1980 / 1981) *

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popula ...

: ''Virtuose Violinsonaten'' (Deutsche Schallplatten, Berlin 1983) * Tchaikovsky: ''Konzert für Violine und Orchester D-Dur op. 35'' (Deutsche Schallplatten, Berlin 1983) *

Robert Schumann Robert Schumann (; ; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and music critic of the early Romantic music, Romantic era. He composed in all the main musical genres of the time, writing for solo piano, voice and piano, chamber ...

: ''Violinsonate Nr. 2 d-moll op. 121'' (Deutsche Schallplatten, Berlin 1985) *

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

: ''Tripelkonzert'' (Delta Music, Frechen 1987) * Cantabile. (Deutsche Schallplatten, Berlin 1988) * Tchaikovsky: ''Konzert für Violine und Orchester D-Dur op. 35'' (Magna-Tonträger, Berlin 1989) *

Franz Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; ; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. Despite his short life, Schubert left behind a List of compositions ...

: ''Traummusik Vol. 1'' (Magna-Tonträger, Berlin 1990) * Krebs – Kirnberger – Scheinpflug – Stamitz. (Pilz Media Group, 1990) * Tchaikovsky: ''Konzert für Klavier und Orchester no. 1 b-Moll op. 23'' (Magna-Tonträger, Berlin 1990) * Berühmte Konzertzugaben. (Magna-Tonträger, Berlin 1992) *

Antonio Vivaldi Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist, impresario of Baroque music and Roman Catholic priest. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lif ...

: ''Le quattro stagioni'' (Image Concert, Herzberg / Harz 1994) *

: ''Sonaten für Violine und Klavier Nr. 1 & 2'' (Edel, Hamburg 1996) * Virtuose Violinsonaten. (Edel, Hamburg 1997) * Tchaikovsky: ''Konzert für Violine und Orchester D-Dur'' (Edel, Hamburg 1998) * Cantabile. (Edel, Hamburg 1998) * Claude Debussy: ''Kammermusik'' (Edel, Hamburg 1999) * Tchaikovsky: ''Konzert für Violine und Orchester D-Dur'' (Edel, Hamburg 2003) * After work hour / 4. (Edel, Hamburg 2004) * Tchaikovsky: ''Romeo und Julia'' (Edel Germany, Berlin 2006) * Moments of peace. (Edel Classics, Hamburg 2007) * Gute Nacht, schlafe sacht. (Edel Entertainment, Hamburg 2012) * Tchaikovsky: ''Konzert für Violine und Orchester D-Dur op. 35''. (DNB, Leipzig/Frankfurt, 2018)

References

External links

*
Christian Funke
auf

Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek The ''Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek'' (German Digital Library) or DDB is a virtual library in the German language which networks 30,000 cultural and research institutions and aims to make them freely accessible to the public using a common platfo ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Funke, Christian German classical violinists German performers of early music Concertmasters of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra German music educators Academic staff of the Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt, Weimar Academic staff of the University of Music and Theatre Leipzig 1949 births Living people Musicians from Dresden Moscow Conservatory alumni