Grand autumn concert in the Audimax AkaBlas performs the opening concert to mark the start of the semester

The Lord of the Rings and Nena: The Technische Universität Braunschweig’s academic wind ensemble, AkaBlas, kicks off the coming semester with its autumn concert. In keeping with this year’s motto, ‘Let’s set off on an adventure!’, they will take their audience on an adventurous journey. The programme features not only epic soundtracks from the Shire but also well-known pop and rock classics. The concert on 24 October is open to anyone interested and warmly welcomes first-year students in particular. The autumn concert begins at 4 pm in the Audimax at Technische Universität Braunschweig; admission is free.

AkaBlas has prepared something very special for its biggest concert of the year. As part of a train journey, they will take their audience on a musical journey from Europe to distant galaxies. They will play not only classical wind music, but also pop and film music. As well as a Nena medley, AkaBlas will also travel to the Shire and perform a piece from ‘The Lord of the Rings’. The audience can also look forward to a diverse range of instruments. Alongside traditional wind instruments such as the clarinet, oboe, bassoon and trumpets, there’s also an anvil and even an alpenhorn. During the concert, the instrumental sections take turns leading the melody, creating an extraordinary sound experience.

A colourful programme of surprises

The orchestra has also put together a programme of surprises featuring choreography, drama and costumes. Even the musicians themselves do not yet know exactly how the evening will unfold: every member has prepared their own surprises. In addition, two pieces will be premiering at the autumn concert: “We need a large orchestra for these, which is why we don’t play them very often,” says Annkathrin Heinrich, who has been a member of AkaBlas since 2017. At this year’s autumn concert, 90 out of 95 active musicians will be on stage on the night of the concert.

The theme ‘Let’s set off on an adventure!’ was inspired by the start of the semester: “Since the concert is taking place in the first week of lectures, we wanted to do something involving an adventure,” says Florian Scholdei, the chair of AkaBlas. “The start of the semester is, so to speak, the start of a new adventure.”

Planning for the concert began as early as the start of the year: “A new AkaBlas year begins for us after the Christmas period,” explains Annkathrin Heinrich. A rehearsal weekend in the spring and two summer trips to the seaside served as preparation.

New members welcome

AkaBlas has been in existence for over 60 years. The orchestra was founded in 1964 as the ‘Academic Wind Ensemble at Technische Hochschule Braunschweig’ by a small group of academic staff members. Today, the group has 95 active and over 400 associate members and is always on the lookout for new members who are passionate about music. “Anyone who plays a wind instrument and enjoys brass band music is welcome to come along,” says Scholdei. The musicians meet every Tuesday from 7.30 pm to 10 pm for rehearsals in the Mensa 2.