Paradigm Shift

They are perfectly in tune with one another and aim to revolutionise our perception of Beethoven: Jan Caeyers and Kit Armstrong have big plans. In a series of 3×3 concerts, they will juxtapose all of Beethoven’s symphonies and solo concertos – with Le Concert Olympique, a highly specialised orchestra. Their ‘Beethoven27’ cycle begins at the 2026 festival and concludes in the 200th anniversary year of the Bonn-born composer’s death. We asked what drives them to undertake this marathon.

How and when did you meet?

Jan: The Vienna Konzerthaus wanted to bring us together for a joint concert in June 2022. Unfortunately, that didn’t work out due to the pandemic. It wasn’t until the following year that we were able to perform in Belgium.

Kit: I was already familiar with the name Jan Caeyers from his Beethoven biography. When I received the invitation to perform with Le Concert Olympique and him, I accepted immediately. Not only because I had great admiration for him as a conductor and musicologist, but simply because I wanted to learn something – about Beethoven.

Jan: For me, it was very interesting to perform Beethoven’s piano concertos with Kit. He is not only a pianist but also a composer – and he is also a fine improviser. He is very close to Beethoven’s language. For him, virtuosity is merely a means to an end that takes place here (he taps his head).

So who came up with the idea for such a massive project as Beethoven27?

Kit: After we’d played our first concerts, we really got talking. Musically speaking, we’d already hit it off.

Jan: I remember it very well: after the second concert, we drove for an hour and a half; my wife was at the wheel. We hardly knew each other yet. To this day, I regret that our conversation wasn’t recorded back then. Because it was a profound discussion about what music is, what laws it follows, and how we approach it. Undertaking a joint project spanning several years was then actually a natural consequence.

What is the overarching idea behind the project?

Jan: At the outset of our planning, we wanted to do something fundamental together: a Beethoven cycle. However, that in itself is nothing new. Many orchestras have recorded all the symphonies. Our concert series is characterised by a special journey – through nine stages of Beethoven’s life. Each stage consists of a combination of a symphony and one of the nine concertos (the five piano concertos, the »Triple Concerto«, the Violin Concerto, the piano version of the Violin Concerto and the »Choral Fantasy«). These are complemented by either a chamber music work or a piano sonata that relates thematically and chronologically to the symphonic compositions.

Kit: Each concert programme represents a creative phase in Beethoven’s life. We get a sense of what it was like to be Beethoven at a particular point in his life.

The combination of symphonic works, a solo concerto, chamber music and even a solo piano sonata is unusual. What are the benefits of this?

Kit: For me, this kind of concert programme is particularly exciting, as it allows me to perform as a solo pianist, a chamber musician and as part of the orchestra all in a single evening. It also offers plenty of variety for the audience.

Jan: With Beethoven, the interplay between genres is very important. If you want to understand the language of the symphonies, you must first and foremost understand the language of the piano sonatas – and vice versa. Hearing both side by side in a concert is enlightening. We believe that, overall, through this work we are bringing about a paradigm shift in the interpretation of Beethoven.

What does this paradigm shift consist of?

Jan: It is almost impossible to explain in words. Our interpretation provides answers to the connections between detail and overall architecture. Every single detail, every orchestral part, is determined by a directed process. I can really only achieve this with Le Concert Olympique, because this orchestra has a completely different, freer way of working than is usually the case.

Kit: One principle shapes our collaboration and the orchestra itself: a humble attitude. We don’t ask ourselves what the music can do for us, but what we can do for the music. That sets us apart from many performers. For this, we need a fundamental trust, both amongst ourselves and towards the audience.

What is your collaboration like during rehearsals?

Jan: When we rehearse, even the slightest prompts and hints are enough. I’m constantly amazed at what Kit makes of my ideas.

Kit: Yes, this interplay between us is very intense. When we spend two hours together in the car, we talk seriously the whole time: not just about music, but about the whole fabric of life. For us, everything outside of rehearsals and concerts is also part of the work – though »work« is actually a poor word for it. 

Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier opens every concert. How does one’s impression of Beethoven change when one also hears Bach alongside it?

Kit: Beethoven studied the Well-Tempered Clavier whilst composing, to find inspiration. We recreate that in the concert. We always select the preludes and fugues in the key that matches the piece that follows. The effect is astonishing.

Jan: A concert is a clash between different worlds, our modern one and the past. Bach’s extremely pure music helps us shape this break – so that we can then listen to Beethoven with the right mindset.

Give us a preview of the three concerts from your cycle that await us at the 2026 Festival.

Jan: In Bonn, we will perform the first three programmes of the cycle within 26 hours for the first time. Each represents a stage in the development of Beethoven’s heroic style. Each piece represents a stage in the development of Beethoven’s heroic style. The works were composed before, during and after the Heiligenstadt crisis, around the year 1802. One can sense how the intensity and scope grow. Performing these stages in succession will transform both the audience and us musicians.