Academy of St Martin in the Fields

Now that's what you call a well-rehearsed team! Joshua Bell has been Music Director of the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields since 2011 and sees himself as primus inter pares. The star violinist enjoys conducting the traditional orchestra even when he has to play the solo part himself.

When Johannes Brahms's Violin Concerto is on the podium, this isn't a given! This demanding work usually requires a conductor alongside the soloist – just like Robert Schumann's Romantic First Symphony. But Joshua Bell and his Academy appreciate the direct contact: »This orchestra knows me so well that they can interpret all my gestures. They know what I mean when I raise my eyebrows or bend my knees.« Moreover, the highly virtuosic Brahms Concerto is considered a musical symbol of the indissoluble bond between soloist and orchestra: the first violin concerto in music history of a symphonic nature.