MARIA PALATINE

© 2012 Photo Cover : Eleonore Dumont ~ Design : www.oliviersmeesters.com ~ Writing : Maria Palatine 

CONCERT 

MARIA PALATINE

www.mariapalatine.com 

Presents


1. She 

A coproduction of : 

HARP CENTER BRUSSELS: Maria Palatine 

ADASONG PRODUCTIONS: André d’Anjou 

ASBL DU BANC PUBLIC: Bernard Tirtiaux 

Line up: 

Maria Palatine: Harp, voice 

Anne Sophie Maier: Backing vocals 

Stefan Pougin : Percussions 

Manu Hermia : Saxophone, bansuri, flute 

Klaus Zimmermann: Live-electronic 

~ 

Contact 

ADASONG PRODUCTIONS 

Management André d’Anjou: 

62, Avenue Jean Palfyn 

1020 Bruxelles ~ Belgique 

Tel/ Fax : 0032 (0) 2-742 92 22 

adasong@skynet.be 

MARIA PALATINE 

3.


1. She 

A concert on twelve musical portraits of women 

by Maria Palatine in which the press says : 

Maria Palatine, the angel with the harp. Beautiful and wild, possessing a divine talent. 

Together with her ensemble, she presents a potpourri of jazz, classic and chansons. 

Jazzy, poetic songs with Maria Palatines voice that get under your skin. 

Concert harp, song, saxophone and percussion combine into a pure sound sensation 

which simultaneously surprises and fascinates. 

Mike Thulke, European culture projects 

~ 

Maria Palatine lets the lyrics resound on the strings of her harp, this senusal and majestic instrument. 

This gifted harpist strikes up a pure and powerful singing that seems to catch the light like a living cristal. 

Le Soir, Bruxelles 

~ 

Maria Palatine and her ensemble excited the auditory with expressive compositions. 

Mannheimer Morgen 

~ 

A gripping presentation, exciting and attractive. 

Sounds of extraordinary brilliance. 

Frankfurter Rundschau 


4.


1. She 

This concert program came into being through women in the public sphere, like Aung San Suu Kyi 

or Parvin Fahimi, through women that surround me, like my mother or my daughters, 

or by personalities I invented like in the song “Coming from the Black Mountains”. 

The feeling and drive all these wonderful women I appreciate throughout this CD have in common 

is their love for life, which led them on to the political, social and artistic arena in exceptional ways. 

The selection of women is purely subjective as well as my view on their lives. 

Thus, every song is a prism of what I feel, is essential and remarkable. 

~ 

Nowadays the harp, which is one of the most feminine and sensual instruments, 

frees herself of the nostalgic clichés, like sorting out an old dress that became too tight. 

The harp is a means of expression to a generation of women who want to choose emancipation 

without giving up their femininity, which is multifaceted, colorful and autonomous. 

© 2012 Photo : Volker Wasserthal 


5.


1. She 

1.Living in St. Gilles 

(Lyrics and composition: Maria Palatine) 

I am living in St. Gilles, which is a very 

cosmopolitan and vibrant neighborhood 

in Brussels. 

The songs of the concert 

This song describes my feeling for the 

quality of life there as a female musician in 

a neighborhood that combines occident and 

orient 

“ I am a woman living in St.Gilles; 

if I make it there I make it 

everywhere….” 

2.The other side 


I composed this song for a friend who 

is combating cancer, who prefers to stay 

anonymous 


6.


1. She 

3.For Aung San su kyi 


Aung San Suu Kyi is a Burmese politician 

who was born in 1945 in Rangoon, Burma. 

She is the symbol for the non-violent 

opposition to the military dictatorship 

in her country. 

During the time she was held in house arrest by 

the military dictatorship she gained tremendous 

international support against the military junta 

(among others from nine Nobel Prize winners). 

She came free on the 13 th November 2010! 

“ She who keeps alive the power 

of belief until the dawning 

of freedom…” 

4.None of beauty’s daughters 

(Lyrics: Lord Byron; composition: Maria Palatine) 

For my daughter Luise-Marie, who is studying 

Psychology in Germany, and who loves and 

practices all the things that render life beautiful: 

dance, music, poetry and theatre 


7.


1. She 

5.Her eyes are as blue 


For my oldest daughter Anne-Sophie who is 

currently doing her Masters in International 

Politics and Human Rights in London. 

When time allows her, she accompanies me 

for my concerts with her beautiful mezzo voice. 

She was the youngest choir member of the state 

opera in Karlsruhe, Germany 

6.My mother’s garden 


For my mother, who fulfills the traditional role 

of a woman with dignity and tenderness in our 

large family living in Palatine 


8.


1. She 

7.Ave Maria 


This song is part of my film music for the 

documentary on the Virgin Mary of Banneux. 

In that song a character of the Virgin Mary 

is created that is not letting herself be tamed 

by the dogmas of the church, who is driven by the 

forces of the elements water, wind and earth 

10.I am a woman 

( Lyrics: Jouama Haddad, music: Maria Palatine) 

This piece is filled by the fierce 

independent mind of Jouama Haddad, 

a Jordanian writer who founded the first 

erotic magazine in the Arab world. 

Invited to Belgium in 2011, she gave a 

conference at the Brussels’ book fair 

8.And God made me a woman 

(Lyrics: Gioconda Belli, composition: Maria Palatine) 

Gioconda Belli was an activist of the Sardinian 

movement against the dictator Somoza. 

Persona non grata, she was forced to exile to 

Mexico. At the moment she is living between 

Managua and Los Angeles. Her literary 

creations are a blend of eroticism and political 

engagement. Her remarkable work is known 

world-wide however, her work has been subject 

to various criticisms in her native country: 

the catholic Nicaragua 

9.First lady of the Vatican 


What would change in this world if the pope 

were to marry? Would the influence of a 

woman’s opinion not open up the catholic 

universe towards a greater flexibility and 

humanity about questions such as contraception 

and the celibacy of priests? 

This song is an attempt to give a humorous 

answer to these essential questions 


9.


1. She 

11.Parvin Fahimi’s Lamento 


Parvin Fahimi is Iranian and the mother of Sohrob 

Araabi’s, a student that was assassinated during the 

protests following the elections in June 2009. 

He was, like so many other students, part of 

the Iranian Green Movement that questions 

the legitimacy of the presidency of Mahmud 

Ahmadinejad. Parvin Fahimi, who publicly 

expresses her indignation and revolt against a 

regime that tortures and assassinates peaceful 

protestors, became the voice for mothers whose 

sons have sacrificed their lives for more democracy. 

In this song you hear a man’s voice that stands 

for Parvin Fahami’s son, speaking to his mother 

in Persian 

12.Miss Tibet 


Miss Tibet is the prize winner of an annual 

beauty competition, which takes place in 

Dharamsala, India. 

Today the laureate of Miss Tibet is also taking 

part in the Miss Earth beauty contest. 

The beauty competition Miss Tibet is one of 

most acclaimed events taking place in Tibet. 

During the last contest the Chinese government 

interfered and put pressure on the organizers 

for the prize winner to be renamed as Miss 

Tibet-China. 

In my song I depict Miss Tibet as a spokes-person 

for a generation of Tibetans who are conscious 

of their Buddhist roots and confront the 

persecutions prevailing in their countries with a 

pacific spirit. I also portray her as the defender 

of those who crave for a more modern and open 

world. What responsibility for the beautiful 

Miss Tibet! 


10.


II. Press 

As a dynamic and adventurous musician performance artist, Maria Palatine pushes her concert harp 

to its limits, delivering charged classical, jazz and avant-garde performances. 

Gregg Stevens, Phoenix, New York 

~ 

The ethereal harp of Maria Palain’ She dances with the harp and she sings divine. 

Nouvelle Gazette, Belgium 

~ 

Dancing with harp 

Pforzheimer Zeitung 


11.


II. Press 

© 2012 Photo : Eléonore Dumont 

Maria Palatine, the angel with the harp. Beautiful and wild, possessing a divine talent. 

Together with her ensemble, she presents a potpourri of jazz, classic and chansons. 

Jazzy, poetic songs with Maria Palatines voice that get under your skin. 

Concert harp, song, saxophone and percussion combine into a pure sound sensation 

which simultaneously surprises and fascinates. 

Mike Thulke, European culture projects 

~ 

Maria Palatine lets the lyrics resound on the strings of her harp, this senusal and majestic instrument. 

This gifted harpist strikes up a pure and powerful singing that seems to catch the light like a living cristal. 

Le Soir, Bruxelles 

~ 

Maria Palatine and her ensemble excited the auditory with expressive compositions. 

Mannheimer Morgen 

~ 

A gripping presentation, exciting and attractive. 

Sounds of extraordinary brilliance. 

Frankfurter Rundschau 

~ 


12.


II. Press 

A conquered public, accomplished artists, organizers in seventh heaven,… the third 

“Researchers’ Night” organized on September 28 in Louvain-la-Neuve was a great success. 

Beyond the mob success, it should above all be retained the breath which animated this magic night, 

from the beginning to the end, thanks to the very beautiful spectacle proposed by the harpist 

Maria Palatine and the poet Bernard Tirtiaux. 

A spectacle from which one will particularly remember the music composed by the young 

German composer and interpreted by a unique musical ensemble and by the Chorus “La Badinerie”, 

under the direction of Daniel Lipnik. A music at the same time simple and very original, drawing its 

inspiration as well in the classical music as in the jazz and in the world’s music. 

The composition of Maria Palatine’s ensemble itself (harp, piano, saxophone/flute and two percussionists) 

gave to the music a single sonority. Add to it an obvious pleasure to play and the vibrating presence 

of Maria Palatine, and you will have the explanation of the passion of a public which, 

at the end of the spectacle, rose as one man to offer to the artists a long ovation. 

Pierre Escoyez - Service Presse et communication U.C.L. Magical Night 

~ 

Whirlwind brushes the instrument of king the “wrong” way - passionate, sensible, 

vigorous, she leads a new dimension to the harp. 

Each moment of her progressive playing is a pleasure for one’s ears and, last but not least, for the eyes. 

Baden-Baden Tagblatt 

Un CD qui est plein de merveilles : 

Une voix si féline et romantique, des sensations de voyages... les compositions sont fortes. 

C’est un album homogène mais avec plein de petites bulles qui étonnent. 

Comme les manières dont elle utilise les quatuors : rythmés, scandés... 

Quant à la harpe, elle en joue mieux que n’importe qui. 

On oublie que c’est de la harpe...J’entends de la guitare ou du piano… 

Line Adam, composer, Belgium, january 2010 

~ 

with Evan Parker and Ornette Coleman: Boston, December 2009 

~ 

With Spindrift, Maria Palatine has made a wonderful new CD. She really draws you into her world. 

I especially liked the beautifully lyrical song “Deep as the ocean blue” and the original and urgent “Melting point of eternity”. 

Brenda Dor -Groot,International Jazz Harp Foundation: 

Rotterdam, December 2009 


13.


III. Biography 

T 

he story of my life could also have the 

title: “My home is where my harp is”. 

Playing harp, however, does not only 

cause highest delights, but sometimes quite 

prosy dragging. Therefore, in former times, 

when I came back home from a concert at 

night, my father - while helping me getting 

out my multi-string monster out of the car 

- used to sigh: “Couldn’t you have learned 

playing flute instead?” 

But the fact that there was a harp in my family 

was due to my grand-uncle, a painter who, 

during the National Socialist dictature in 

Germany, was a deserter and hided in the Alps 

for several years. Although he never was legal 

resident during this time he had access to the 

regional civilisation and learned playing the 

popular harp. The war being over, he came 

back to his homeland, the Palatinate in South 

Western Germany, and passed on his knowledge, 

as well as his harp, to my mother. It was 

from her I learned the basics of playing harp 

as well as singing. My paternal grandmother, 

who directed a travelling theatre all her life, 

brought the love for theatre into my family. 

This may be why already during my studies, 

and despite of a foreign scholarship and 

the beginning of my career as a chamber 

musician, I missed an essential element: 

The landscape of the Pfalz (in english, Palatinat) 

is characterized by forests and ancient castles. 

the creative combination of singing, playing, 

dancing, and composing. After my final examination 

as an orchestra harpist and a half 

year stay in Venezuela I founded my own ensemble 

with saxophone and percussions. 

Our concerts and CD productions took us 

from Europe to the United States, as well as 

to Siberia, which was a short but unforgettable 

journey for us. During our work, which 

also included multimedia projects, we collaborated 

with renowned artists like Lokua 

Kanza, Markus Lüpertz, Bernard Tirtiaux, 

Galileo, Chiha, and many others. 

My concerts, as well as my life in private, take 

me abroad quite often. As a consequence of 

this way of life, singing in different languages 

seems quite natural to me. The texture and 

timbre of any language are elements I regard 

as an additional level of communication, beyond 

the real language, and I pursue an adequate 

integration of these elements into my 

compositions and songs. 

It seems amusing to me that the audience in my 

concerts not infrequently fail to guess my nationality, 

often taking me for a Russian. This 

made me adopt the stage-name of Maria Palatine, 

as a tribute to my homeland, the South 

Western German region of the Palatinate 


14.


III. Biography 

CAREER : 

In 1999, composition of film music for “Es lebe die Freiheit 

- Das Leben des Götz von Berlichingen”, a film directed 

by Martina Klug that told the story of one of the 

most interesting characters of medieval Germany. In the 

same year, the South West German television SWR presented 

a program about “The harpist and composer Maria 

Palatine”. 

In June 2000, the première of “Der blaue Strahl” (Blue 

Ray) took place at the grand-ducal castle in Karlsruhe; 

and in November 2001, the compositions “Veiled Woman” 

and “The sands of Afghanistan” were played for the 

first time. 

In May 2003, at the castle of Honhardt, première of 

“Rilke in Concert” with harp and voice that also featured 

Wolfram Spyra - bow-chimes and life electronic. This 

project made come true a dream: translating the poetry 

of Rainer Maria Rilke into sounds and music. 

In July 2005 music-award for young song-poets of the 

“Hanns-Seidl-Stiftung” and the «Bayrischer Rundfunk” 

(German Radio). The open-air-concert, which 

was given at the occasion of the awarding, was internationally 

broadcasted by radio and TV. Among others, 

Giora Feidmann played at this concert. 

In August 2005 moving to Belgium,Brussles 

In March 2006, at the International Day of Water, at Bari, 

Italy, excerpts are played of the opera “ Le chant de Neptune 

- composition: M. Palatine, Libretto: B. Tirtiaux. 

Soundtracks 

• “Götz von Berlichingen” 

Documentary (Martina Klug, Allemagne) 

• “Where the surface meets the depths” 

One of the winner of the underwater film festival Antibes, 

France 

• “Kosovo” 

Documentary (Udo Dreutlinger, Allemagne) 

• “La Cordillère de Bonne Espérance” 

Documentary (Bernard Gillain, Imagine 

Productions, Belgium) 

In June 2007, the premiere of “Midnight Rose” consisted 

in a musical extraction of perfume, the experiment to 

catch the essential of a flower by sounds and rhythms, an 

extravagant and innovative performance for harp, voice, 

percussions and lights. 

In September 2007, I performed the première of “Water 

celebration”, a concert for big choir, solo instruments 

and percussions that I composed. Lyrics by Bernard Tirtiaux, 

with the participation of Ricardo Petrella. 

In July 2008, I represent the kingdom of Belgium at 

the Expo, Saragossa, Spain, with her new project “Water 

Celebration”, a composition for mixed choir and Jazz- 

Ensemble. 

In May 2009 I found the BRUSSELS HARP CENTER, 

including a harp school, a show room for harps and a 

beautiful concert hall where regularly are given events 

and work shops. 

In November 2009 my new concert program and CD 

“spindrift” come out and are broadcasted by the Belgian 

TV and radio. 

In April 2010 “spindrift tour” in Germany and Brazil. 

In April 2011 “spindrift tour” in Georgoa, Europe 

In July 2011 Concert au World Harp Congress, 

Vancouver, Canada 

In March 2012 release of the CD “SHE” 

Discograpy 

• Life in the Wind 

• Silver Fountains 

• The Sound of Glass and Light 

• Refugee 

• Reflets 

• Spindrift 

• Prélude de cristal 

• She 


15.


© 2012 Photo : Volker Wasserthal

MARIA PALATINE

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?