News

To support those, who have been on the frontlines of the pandemic, the artists of the German booking agency Von der Haardt came together to deliver a compilation album with all proceeds being donated to Médecins Sans Frontières, an independent humanitarian non-profit organization that provides medical assistance to people affected by conflict, epidemics, disasters, or exclusion from healthcare.
Being part of the Von der Haardt artist family, Sven delivers the piece "Blurred". It is a rework for string quartet of the original track by Icelandic duo Kiasmos.
The title name “Haingeraide” derives from the Middle Ages, when German farmers established “Haingeraide” as a form of forest and land management cooperative. With unity and collaboration at its core, there couldn’t be a better title for a project like this.

"Blurred" on YouTube
"Blurred" on Spotify

Today is the album release of the Cello Concerto Three Continents with soloist Jan Vogler and the WDR Symphony Orchestra under Cristian Macelaru. Composers Nico Muhly (USA), Zhou Long (China) and Sven Helbig each wrote one movement for the concerto that has been commissioned by Jan Vogler and the Dresden Music Festival. Sven composed the second movement Aria for the work.
“The music on this album deals with the role of artists within our society. Three Continents is a comment on the freedom of music as a global language that is yet passionately influenced by regional and cultural conditions. It is symbolic for everything that characterizes our globalized community.” says Jan Vogler.

SF Classical Voice – Review
The Classic Review
Jan Vogler
Klassik begeistert – Review

Pianist Clemens Christian Poetzsch released a new album with 12 of Sven's compositions for solo piano. The musical fellows started off playing music together in Dresden.
Being label mates at Berlin based brand Neue Meister, Clemens and Sven collaborated on this work, celebrating their common musical taste and their love for piano music.

Neue Meister
Listen on Spotify

Sven is honored to be a faculty member at Canada's Banff Center for Arts and Creativity. Along Sven's master classes during the Choral Art program, the center will stage his work I Eat the Sun and Drink the Rain, calling it one of the most remarkable choir works of the 21st century.
Founded in 1933, the Banff Centre continues its worldwide unique role as a catalyst for knowledge and creativity through the power of its unique environment and facilities in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. The Banff Centre aspires to be the global leader in the development and promotion of creative work in the arts, sciences, business, culture and the environment.

Banff Center
Program

The first single Meernacht from the upcoming album Clemens Christian Poetzsch plays Sven Helbig will be released today. The album will content 12 pieces for piano, played by fellow pianist Clemens Christian Poetzsch, who also contributed a piano adaption of Sven's orchestra composition Eisenhüttenstadt.
Read their diary about the collaboration every Sunday on Instagram.
Watch on You Tube
Listen on Spotify

The ongoing tour of I Eat the Sun and Drink the Rain will reach Belarus this October. The choir work will be staged at renowned Bolshoi Opera in Minsk.
In November, Sven will go on tour in Germany with the famous choir of the opera house, conducted by Wilhelm Keitel. Beside concerts in Berlin, Potsdam and Stuttgart, the project will also stop at Sven's hometown Eisenhüttenstadt.

Sven is performing with acclaimed Manchester Camerata again on October 9th.
This time at impressive 600 years old Manchester Cathedral.
Together with the chamber orchestra, he will interrogate the ghosts of history with electronic improvisations inspired by Mozart's Gran Partita and determine the impact of his legacy in 2019.

Tickets and more info

Sven is nominated for the prestigious price in 6 categories for his work Tres Momentos:
- Composer of the year
- Best recording of 20/21st century's music
- Best premier recording
- Best concert recording
- Best instrumentalist Electronica
- Classic without borders

Opus Klassik

For its 2019 festival commission the Dresden Music Festival had the intriguing idea of commissioning a concerto from not one but three composers, spanning three different continents: Nico Muhly (USA), Zhou Long (China) and Sven.
The premiere perfomance today, with Jan Vogler on solo cello has been enthusiastically recieved.
Jan Vogler made a terrific champion for the piece, acting as the focus for the entire work. Robert Hugill

Review Planet Hugill
Freihe Presse (German)

Sven has been awarded with the Golden Stage Cross of Lithuania.
The prestigious award by the Ministry of Culture of Lithuania is honoring exceptional contributions to the Lithuanian theater and is the highest cultural decoration of the country.
Sven composed the music for the contemporary dance piece My Peter Pan, produced by Seiko Dance Company, choreographed and directed by its founder Agnija Seiko.

World renowned solo cellist Jan Vogler comissioned a new cello concerto to three of his favorite composers. Nico Muhly (USA), Zhou Long (China) and Sven will write one movement each for this piece, spanning three continents. Jan Vogler will premier it with WDR Symphony Orchestra under Cristian Macelaru at Dresden Music Festival on May 18th 2019.

Jan Vogler
Cristian Macelaru
More info and tickets
Planet Hugill

Tres Momentos, Sven's new piece for string orchestra and electronics will be released digitally on August 10th followed by a 10" Vinyl in September.
The live recording of the concert with Deutsches Kammerorchester Berlin will appear on the Neue Meister label.
Colombian puppeteer Omayra Martinez Garzon produced the music video for El Tercer Momento.
With the cover artwork, Sven Helbig quotes the 3,000-year-old Chinese oracle of I Ching.
Cover artwork by Ulrike Heise

Review / A Closer Listen
Review / Drowned in Sound
Listen/Download

Inheritors is a new film installation by British/Canadian artist fimmakers Webb-Ellis. It will feature an immersive soundtrack by Sven. The installation will be shown from today in London at Siobhan Davies Studios, presented as part of the on-going Traces Commission visual arts programme. Inheritors is contemplating coexistence in the contemporary world. Set on the motorways of Britain and Europe, the film takes this ubiquitous landscape as a space from which to question deeply held myths relating to human-beings and evolution.

Trailer
More info

Today sees the premiere of Sven's recent composition for electronics and 4 celli. The work has been a commission by Lithuanian dance company Padi Dapi Fish and is a new production of the fairy tale Peter Pan for contemporary dance, choreographed by Lithuanian artist Agnija Seiko.

Padi Dapi Fish

Sven just premiered new stage music at DNT Deutsches National Theater in Weimar: Gotthold Ephraim Lessing's Nathan the Wise is another collaboration with director Hasko Weber and stage designer Thilo Reuther.
The classic play, more relevant than ever, received enthusiastic reviews after its premiere last week. 

Dates and tickets
Review (German)
Photo by Volker Beinhorn

Sven is invited to be composer in residence in May in Tallin.
He will perform his choir work I Eat the Sun and Drink the Rain, the orchestra cycle Pocket Symphonies and the chamber work Tres Momentos at conductor Kristjan Järvi's festival Practical Spirituality. The festival is part of the festivities for the 100th anniversary of the republic of Estonia.

May 22 – I Eat the Sun and Drink the Rain
May 24 – Pocket Symphonies

Sven is ending this concert season with a performance of I Eat the Sun and Drink the Rain at Munichs renowned Gasteig. The Young Chamber Choir Lucente will join him on stage for the last show of this year after being enthusiastically celebrated all over Europe, the US, Latinamerica and UK.
The concert season 2018 will be announced soon.

Concert info at Gasteig

Sven will play one concert in St. Petersburg at famous Alexandrinsky Theater, as part of the Elektro Mechanika Festival today.
Together with Russian chamber choir Lauda, he performs I Eat the Sun and Drink the Rain under direction of Marina Kireeva.

Interview (Russian)