Humanity in War
25% – Under 30
10% – Over 65
Cartão Gulbenkian:
50% – Under 30
20% – Over 65
10% – 30 to 64
Truly breathtaking, unbuttoned at full voltage, storm and passion to the fore. With a meticulous ear for colours and nuances, which brought the music’s inventions into sharp focus,” wrote British magazine The Strad about a performance of AMATIS. Founded in 2014 and based in Salzburg, AMATIS rapidly earned a place at the forefront of the international chamber music scene with their extraordinary energy, artistic freedom, and distinctive sound. Early recognition as BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artists in 2016 and ECHO Rising Stars in 2018 was soon followed by prestigious prizes such as the Dutch Kersjesprijs and the Borletti Buitoni Trust Award.
But AMATIS is more than a classical piano trio. German violinist Lea, British cellist Sam and Dutch pianist Mengjie are passionate about building bridges: between tradition and the present, between music and other art forms, and between stage and audience. Their concerts invite audiences into new worlds, where music becomes storytelling, the familiar meets the unexpected- and programmes unfold like carefully crafted journeys.
Driven by curiosity and creativity, AMATIS constantly explores new ways of connecting new audiences with classical music. The three musicians develop specially curated concerts for children and present interdisciplinary projects, such as Humanity in War with Thomas Quasthoff and AMATIS Journeys. With genre crossing programmes such as “Catch- As- Catch- Can” with jazz pianist Michael Wollny and “Clouds”with clarinettist Ib Hausmann, AMATIS continues to push the boundaries of traditional concert formats.
The ensemble is also deeply committed to contemporary music, having commissioned 15 new works to date, including Andrea Tarrodi’s triple concerto Moorlands and Beyond, premiered in Edinburgh in 2024.
Their festival appearances include the BBC Proms, Verbier Festival, Salzburg Mozartwoche and the Edinburgh International Festival. AMATIS regularly appears at venues such as Wigmore Hall in London, the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, and Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie. As sought after soloists, they have also performed with renowned orchestras, including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London, the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and the Museumsorchester Frankfurt.
With an extensive touring schedule having taken them to 50 countries worldwide, 2025/2026 marked AMATIS’s debut tours in Japan and China. Other highlights of 2026 included a return to the Salzburg Mozartwoche, tours throughout Europe, and the launch of the very first AMATIS Festival in Bad Reichenhall, Germany: the realisation of a long held dream.
The 2026/27 season will see AMATIS touring extensively across Europe and Asia. In 2027, AMATIS returns to China with an all- Beethoven- programme at Shanghai Concert Hall. Beethoven will also take AMATIS beyond the traditional chamber music stage, with performances of his Triple Concerto throughout the UK. Further highlights include their return to Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Liederhalle Stuttgart, the second edition of the AMATIS Festival, performances of “Humanity in War” with Thomas Quasthoff, and a return to Japan.
Their debut album, released in 2018 on cAvi/Deutsche Grammophon, features works by Britten, Enescu, and Ravel. A second recording, Olivier Messiaen’s Quatuor pour la fin du temps with clarinettist Ib Hausmann, was nominated for the Opus Klassik and hailed by the Aachener Zeitung as “one of the most important chamber music releases of recent times.
Shaped by musicians such as Lukas Hagen, Rainer Schmidt, Wolfgang Redik, Hatto Beyerle, Claus Christian Schuster, Ferenc Rados and Menahem Pressler, the members of AMATIS are alumni of the European Chamber Music Academy, the Hanns Eisler University in Berlin, Conservatorium van Amsterdam and the Mozarteum Salzburg.
As guest professors at the University of Cambridge, AMATIS is devoted to sharing its knowledge and experience with the next generation of musicians. The musicians frequently teach masterclasses at universities worldwide and collaborate with institutions such as the Mehli Mehta Foundation in India, bringing classical music to children and young musicians there.
For AMATIS, every concert is unique. Lea, Sam and Mengjie believe music comes most fully alive when there is space for the unexpected: to listen, react and create in the moment. More than a decade after coming together, that philosophy remains at the heart of their music making.
Lea Hausmann plays a violin by Jean Baptiste Vuillaume, generously loaned by the Beares International Violin Society, whilst Samuel continues his search for the cello of his dreams.
Até aos 50 anos, Thomas Quasthoff estabeleceu-se internacionalmente como um cantor clássico de referência, mas em janeiro de 2012 decidiu terminar a sua incomparável carreira. No entanto, manteve-se intimamente ligado ao canto e às artes como professor, recitador e narrador. Atualmente, apresenta-se também como cantor de jazz, em colaboração com Wolfgang Haffner (bateria), Dieter Ilg (contrabaixo) e Simon Oslender (teclados) e com o Duo Shawn and the Wolf.
Ao longo da sua extensa carreira, Thomas Quasthoff apresentou-se com as principais orquestras do mundo, bem como em recitais de canção de câmara, nas mais importantes salas e festivais. Inúmeras vezes, demonstrou o quanto aprecia novos desafios. Nos últimos anos, apresentou vários programas de jazz no Konzerthaus de Viena, na Ópera Estadual de Berlim, na Philharmonie de Colónia, no Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, no Prinzregententheater de Munique e em Dresden, Leverkusen, Heidelberg e Rheingau.
Em 2024, Thomas Quasthoff celebrou 50 anos de carreira. Para assinalar a ocasião, apresentou-se em diversos espetáculos de jazz no Konzerthaus de Dortmund, na Elbphilharmonie de Hamburgo, no Festival de Jazz de Bona, no Wigmore Hall de Londres, no Festival de Rheingau, no Festival de Verbier, no Festival Internacional de Edimburgo, no Konzerthaus de Viena, na Ópera de Frankfurt, na Philharmonie de Colónia, no Festspielhaus de Baden-Baden, no Die Glocke de Bremen e no Admiralspalast de Berlim. Há vários anos que atua durante o período natalício no clube de jazz Atrane, em Berlim. Em dezembro de 2025, Quasthoff e o seu trio apresentaram também um programa de Natal a Nuremberga. No outono de 2026, atua em Lisboa, Barcelona, Leer e Arnhem.
Thomas Quasthoff recebeu inúmeras distinções nacionais e internacionais, incluindo a Ordem de Mérito da República Federal da Alemanha. Três das suas gravações foram premiadas com um Grammy e seis receberam o prémio Echo. De 1996 a 2004, foi professor na Universidade de Música de Detmold. Desde então, leciona na Escola de Música Hanns Eisler, em Berlim, e orienta regularmente masterclasses na Universidade de Detmold, no Festival de Verbier e na Schubertiade de Schwarzenberg. A sua dedicação apaixonada a jovens cantores levou-o a fundar, em 2009, o concurso internacional "Das Lied", um evento que se realiza de dois em dois anos no âmbito do Festival de Heidelberg.
Humanity in War is a project by Trio Amatis that intersperses performances of musical works with readings of wartime letters, drawing attention to the people behind the statistics of the armed conflicts that continue to afflict humanity. Based on a collection of letters and diaries from the period of the First World War, narrated by the legendary singer Thomas Quasthoff, Trio Amatis creates a moving concert experience that transcends musical performance and proposes a profound connection between art and the desire for tolerance, respect and dignity among peoples.
Photo © Foppe Schut
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