Overture at the Kleiner Saal: Young Euro Classic Ensemble China – Germany

© Bundesregierung / Denzel

Dr. Ralf Kleindiek (SPD) is known for his poised and unpretentious disposition. Having been appointed Undersecretary of State at the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth by the former Federal Minister of Family Affairs Manuela Schwesig on January 8, 2014, he now serves under the new Minister, Dr. Katarina Barley, and has represented the ministry with speeches on numerous podiums and platforms, winning general sympathy. Born in Hameln, Kleindiek studied law in Gießen and subsequently worked at the Federal Ministry of the Interior, in various positions at the Federal Ministry of Justice, and as a State Councilor at the Hamburg Authority for Justice and Equal Opportunities. His departure was unfortunate for Hamburg, but practical for him: the Undersecretary of State lives in Brandenburg with his family, so his commute became significantly shorter. In an interview with the Foundation for German-Russian Youth Exchange last year, he said: “Youth politics must be international; they depend on the mutual experience of young people in different countries.” Now if that isn’t the perfect attitude for a patron at the festival Young Euro Classic…

After completing her studies at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing and further studies in Graz, the Chinese percussionist Shengnan Hu moved to Berlin, where she completed a performance degree at the Hanns Eisler Academy of Music with distinction in 2011, having studied with Rainer Seegers, Franz Schindlbeck and Li Biao. She then moved on to the Mozarteum in Salzburg, where she was a master student of the percussionist Peter Sadlo. In 2011, Shengnan Hu also founded her own ensemble in Berlin, “Percussion Cycle Berlin”. She has worked with numerous orchestras in Germany, China and Austria, performing at renowned festivals such as the Kissinger Sommer, the Kassel Music Days and the Tollwood Festival in Munich. One highlight of Shengnan Hu’s career was her participation as a percussion soloist in the final ceremony of the Olympic Games in Beijing in the summer of 2008.

Thomas Ludes studied bassoon with Alfred Rinderspacher at the Saarbrücken Academy of Music. After his graduation, he was appointed principal bassoonist at the Wuppertal Symphony Orchestra in 1983. Since 1994 he has held the same position at the Beethoven Orchestra Bonn. Since the winter semester 2006 he has been teaching chamber music at the Folkwang Music Academy in Essen as a professor. He is a docent at various orchestras in Bonn, at the International Summer Academy of Chamber Music in Nordhorn and for the Junge Deutsche Philharmonie. He is also the leader of the wind ensemble at Bonn’s Kreuzkirche and has participate as a docent in numerous intercultural music projects organized by Young Euro Classic in India, China and Brazil.