Iveta Apkalna - NOSPR

Latvian organist Iveta Apkalna is considered one of the leading instrumentalists in the world. Since 2017 she has served as the titular organist of the Klais organ at the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, Germany.

For the January 2017 opening of the hall she took part in the two world premieres of Wolfgang Rihm’s Triptychon und Spruch in memoriam Hans Henny Jahnn and Jörg Widmann’s ARCHE.

Since Iveta Apkalna’s debut with the Berlin Philharmonic under the baton of Claudio Abbado in 2007 she has performed with a number of the world’s top orchestras including the Bavarian Radio Symphony, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, the Cleveland Orchestra and the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia. She has collaborated with renowned conductors such as the late Mariss Jansons, Marek Janowski, Kent Nagano, Thomas Hengelbrock, Gustavo Dudamel, Sir Antonio Pappano and Andris Nelsons and frequently appeared at the Lucerne Festival, Rheingau Musik Festival, Ludwigsburg Castle Festival and Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival.

Iveta Apkalna is “Organist in Residence” at the Konzerthaus Berlin and since 2019 “Artist in Residence” of the Konzertkirche Neubrandenburg, whose instrument was developed in 2017 by the Berlin organ manufacturer Karl Schuke and Johannes Klais Orgelbau Bonn in collaboration with Iveta Apkalna and inaugurated by her. At the Konzertkirche Neubrandenburg she recorded her most recent CD “Triptychon” with works by Vasks, Bach and Liszt for Berlin Classics.

In the second year of her residency at the Konzerthaus Berlin, Iveta Apkalna will present the Jehmlich organ in various solo formats as well as with the Konzerthausorchester Berlin in Copland’s Symphony for organ and orchestra in the 2022/2023 season. Recitals this season include performances at the Konzerthaus Dortmund, the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, the Royal Festival Hall London, the Konzerthaus Vienna, in Montréal and Lyon, among others.

In 2018 and in 2020 she was awarded the “Latvian Grand Music Award”, the most prestigious award in music in Latvia, in the category “Concert of the Year”. On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Republic of Latvia, Iveta Apkalna was awarded the “Order of the Three Stars”, the highest civilian order awarded for meritorious service to Latvia by the state president. Iveta Apkalna became the first organist to receive the title of “Best Performing Artist” award at the 2005 ECHO Klassik.