Anna Carewe & Oli Bott Duo
Cello meets Vibraphone

Anna Carewe and Oli Bott present music without boundaries: Classical, Popular, Baroque, Contemporary, new compositions and improvisations. They break down the barriers between genres and epochs and tempt the public to relish in new sounds and to experience familiar ones from an unfamiliar perspective.

Anna Carewe: Violoncello
Oli Bott: Vibraphone

The duo played at festivals such as Beethovenfest Bonn and Musikfest Stuttgart and in venues such as Philharmonie Berlin and Concertgebouw Amsterdam.
2019 they released their debut CD "Timescapes" on GLM Music.

"An effortless leap through the centuries: the combination of vibes and cello harmonizes marvellously." Kölnische Rundschau

"The enthusiastic audience heard a great concert, unique due to the exotic instrumentation, created by excellent musicians." Fränkischer Tag

"The contrast between the cello's sonority and the vibaphone's sparkling lightness is utterly delightful. At times the cello provides the harmonies and the vibraphone the melodies; sometimes exactly the opposite is true - nothing is ever missing. This miniatur orchestra's twelve songs blur the boundaries between genres and eras and convince in every way. Outstanding *****" Münchner Merkur

"Even well-worn hits such as Bach's "Air", Erik Satie's "Gnossienne No. 1" or the Beatles' "Michelle" reveal new facets due to the magical interaction of these duo partners, who react to each other not only with energy but also in finely-tuned improvisation. Carewe's varied and expressive tone, which even manages to illustrate the temprament of a psychotic camel, and Bott's rhythmically and harmonically engaging style make it possible. A perfect interweaving of violoncello and vibraphone." Jazz thing

"Both know how to improvise, to transform and atmospherically embed the music. The flow and mood of pieces from the Renaissance to the present gain a whole new dimension without ever suggesting kitsch. Rhythmic urgency has rarely been presented as gently and subtly as with this duo. Timescapes offers soft music throughout - but an irresistible spell develops from the first note onwards." Jazzthetik

"Exuberant and stylistically limitless - where Anna Carewe and Oli Bott are concerned, violoncello and vibraphone are simply a dream combination" Starkenburger Echo October 2019

 

The Berlin-based English cellist Anna Carewe, is well-known as a cellist of remarkable versatility. Whether directing and performing her own projects, which encompass music from Baroque to Contemporary, Jazz and Improvisation, or acting as continuo cellist on period instruments in one of several European groups, Anna wins the praise of the audience and critics alike for her total commitment to what she does. As a soloist, chamber and ensemble musician she has appeared at numerous international festivals on both historical as well as modern instruments. She has recorded for the BBC and ABC (Australia) as well as for radio stations throughout Germany and has several CD recordings as chamber musician to her name.

Anna became a well-known figure in Berlin during her more than twenty years as principal cellist of the Ensemble Oriol (now Kammerakademie Potsdam), one of Germany’s leading chamber orchestras and has regularly played as guest in the cello section of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.

In her home country, Anna first came to national attention at the age of 16 when she was a finalist in the Strings Section of the BBC’s “Young Musician of the Year” competition. In the same year, she performed Elgar’s Cello Concerto at London’s Royal Festival Hall, made her debut recording for Frankfurt Radio and began her studies at the Royal Academy of Music, studying with Florence Hooton and David Strange. Graduating at the age of 20, Anna moved to Berlin to further her studies with Wolfgang Boettcher and subsequently at the Berlin Philharmonic’s Orchestral Academy.

Her strong belief that good music of almost any genre can and should coexist on the concert platform has lead to some unusual and innovative collaborations and programmes. The Sheridan Ensemble, which she founded in 2007, has presented concerts combining Schoenberg’s “Pierrot Lunaire” with Berlin Cabaret; Monteverdi and Purcell with rock and pop; or linking 14th and 15th Century compositions with Bartók and Ligeti.
In May 2018 Anna Carewe curated the "Open Day" at the Pierre Boulez Saal in Berlin focusing on Anton Webern.

www.annacarewe.com

 

Oli Bott studied vibraphone and composition at the Berklee College of Music in Boston with teachers such as Gary Burton and Bob Brookmeyer, graduating 'summa cum laude'. After completing his studies, he moved to Berlin where he now works as a freelance vibraphonist and composer. The Arts Council of Berlin has been a regular supporter, awarding him both scholarships as a vibraphonist and commissions as a composer for his own jazz orchestra, which he also conducts. Oli Bott has been awarded many prizes, including the 'NDR-Musikpreis' for bigband conductors, 1st prize at the Leipzig Improvisation Competition and the Wayne Shorter Award, USA. His concerts throughout Europe have been broadcast by TV and radio.

Oli loves to interpret good music of all styles and feels comfortable improvising his own stories on works of classical, jazz, rock and world music. His portfolio thus ranges from the Romanian rock band ZMEI3 to the collaboration with cellist Anna Carewe and the Sheridan Ensemble (cross-genre ensemble from baroque and classical to jazz, rock and improvisation) to his jazz trio with the fantasy stories CHRONICLES OF JAZZ, in which compositional giants from classical music, jazz and more come together, and his jazz quartet with his miniatures CONTENT, from which narratives are knitted in large improvisations. He played at festivals like WOMAD Festival, Electric Castle Festival, Schwetzinger SWR Festspiele, Schleswig Holstein Musik Festival, Niedersächsische Musiktage, Beethovenfest Bonn, WDR Jazz Festival Köln, Händel Festspiele Halle, Musikfest Stuttgart und Kurt Weill Fest Dessau.

Since 2001 Oli has been teaching improvisation to classically trained musicians in Berlin and gives workshops for the education programme of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, the Berlin University of Popular Arts, the Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus and the Landesmusikakademie Berlin.

In 2022, he was commissioned by the German Bundestag to compose a 60-minute homage to Haydn's work to mark the 100th anniversary of Germany's anthem, which he produced with Anna Carewe, Markus Stockhausen, Oliver Potratz and Eric Schaefer and which is published on www.dasdeutschlandlied.de.

www.olibott.com

Contact: Oli Bott, Thiesstr. 26, 13086 Berlin, +49 30 41724848, oli@olibott.com, last update: 19.06.2019, all photos: David Beecroft, disclaimer