André Raphel to make his Berlin Debut Leading Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin in 2024-2025 Season

New York, NY (April 30, 2024) – Conductor André Raphel will make his Berlin debut conducting the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin on June 15, 2025 at the Philharmonie Berlin.  The program will focus on the hymn as a religious song form and American history.  It will include 2024 GRAMMY Award winner Jessie Montgomery’s Hymn for Everyone, Felix Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 5 “Reformation” and the European Premiere of Uri Caine’s The Passion of Octavius Catto.  A champion of Uri Caine’s “Passion”, Raphel conducted the world premiere as well as an acclaimed recording of the work. Soloists for the piece will include Barbara Walker, vocalist; the Uri Caine Trio made up of Uri Caine, piano; Mike Boone. bass and Clarence Penn, drums; as well as the Bundesjugendchor and A Song For You Choir with Anne Kohler and Noah Slee, choirmasters.

  Uri Caine’s Passion of Octavius Catto, is an oratorio about Catto’s life.  It tells the story of the Reconstruction-era civil rights activist, orator, teacher, and professional baseball player who was murdered in Election Day violence in Philadelphia 1871.  A recording of The Passion of Octavius Catto conducted by André Raphel, with the Uri Caine Trio and Barbara Walker, was released on August 30, 2019, on 816Music.  The recording is available on all streaming platforms, as well as a specially re-mastered vinyl edition from Winter & Winter GmbH.

 André Raphel states “The Passion of Octavius Catto is a piece of music unlike anything I have ever conducted given its historical significance.  Uri’s work fuses together different musical styles and does it in the framework of telling Catto’s story.  Catto wasn’t just an important figure in Philadelphia history; he was an forgotten figure in American history.”

About André Raphel

Acclaimed for his creative programming and versatility, conductor André Raphel is renowned for his compelling musical performances.  A dynamic podium presence, he has also developed a reputation as a skilled communicator.  Raphel has led critically acclaimed festivals, world premieres and commissioned works by Richard Danielpour, Jennifer Higdon, Kenneth Fuchs, Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, Uri Caine and Hannibal Lokumbe.

            Conductor of the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra, André Raphel led the orchestra as Music Director for 15 years.  Other key positions have included Assistant Conductor to Kurt Masur at the New York Philharmonic for two years.  He was Assistant Conductor of The Philadelphia Orchestra for six years.  Raphel served for three years as Assistant Conductor of the Saint Louis Symphony.

            Raphel enjoys a busy career as a guest conductor.  During the 2023/24 season, André Raphel appears with the Delaware Symphony and Wichita Symphony among others.  Last season, Raphel made his subscription series debut with the Boston Symphony Orchestra.  He conducted the Minnesota Orchestra in its first-ever presentation of a Juneteenth program.  Raphel has appeared with most of the major American orchestras including Boston Symphony, Chicago Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, and New York Philharmonic.  He has led the orchestras of Atlanta, Baltimore, Detroit, Houston, Milwaukee, Oregon, Pittsburgh, Saint Louis, Seattle, the National Symphony, and Minnesota Orchestra.

He made his Los Angeles debut conducting at the gala opening of The Broad Museum.  A recording of Uri Caine’s Passion of Octavius Catto with Raphel conducting has garnered acclaim.  He made his Carnegie Hall debut leading Robert Shaw and the Orchestra of St. Luke’s in a concert celebrating the centennial of mezzo-soprano Marion Anderson.

            André Raphel made his European debut with the Neubrandenburger Philharmonie and has also led the Moravska Philharmonie. He has led Germany’s Bamberg Symphony in two recordings for Bavarian Broadcasting.  Raphel’s international engagements have further included appearances with the Auckland Philharmonia, Orquesta Sinfonica Nacional de Costa Rica. 

A guest conductor at major music festivals, Raphel has led concerts at the Blossom Music Festival and Tanglewood Music Center.  He has appeared at the Mann Center, Grant Park Music Festival, Brevard Music Festival, and the Camos do Jordao Festival in Brazil.

Raphel has a strong commitment to education and community engagement.  His commitment to education is reflected in his work at leading conservatories and training programs.  He has led the Juilliard Orchestra, New World Symphony, Kennedy Center Summer Music Institute and National Orchestral Institute.  During his tenure with the Saint Louis Symphony, he served as Music Director of the orchestra’s “In Unison” program, a partnership between the orchestra and local churches.

Born André Raphel Smith in Durham, North Carolina he began formal music lessons at age 11.  He received his Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Miami, and pursued further study at Yale University where he earned his master’s degree.  While at Yale, he began conducting studies with Otto-Werner Mueller.  He continued studies with Mueller at the Curtis Institute of Music earning a Diploma in conducting and at The Juilliard School, where he was awarded the Bruno Walter Memorial Scholarship and received an Advance Certificate in orchestral conducting.

            Raphel is the recipient of numerous honors and awards which attest to his artistry.  He was awarded the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Miami.  The Philadelphia Orchestra issued a special commemorative CD featuring William Grant Still’s Symphony No. 1 with Raphel conducting.  He received the Distinguished Service Award from Yale University.  Raphel is the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate from West Liberty University.  The North Carolina Senate awarded Raphel the “Order of the Long Leaf Pine.”  The award presented annually is the state’s highest honor for a civilian.

The Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin (DSO) comes to the world from the Philharmonie Berlin, while remaining societally relevant at all times, close to people and keeping pace with the times. It has been called the “Think Tank” among the capital city’s orchestras by the Süddeitsche Zeitung.  It was founded as RIAS Symphony Orchestra in 1946 in the wake of the US-American re-education.  From the outset the DSO successfully championed the revival of works by composers who had been stigmatized as “degenerate” by the National Socialists.  The orchestra – which was renamed Radio Symphonie-Orchester Berlin in 1956 and received its current name in 1993 – has at all times dedicated itself to disrupting the established canon.

            Since 1994, the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin is one of four ensembles of the Rundfunk Orchester und Chöre gGmbH (ROC), which is supported by Deutschlandradio, the Federal Republic of Germany, the state of Berlin, and Radio Berlin-Brandenburg.