Jan Vogler in an interview

"Music must have social relevance."

Jan Vogler, who now lives in Dresden and New York with his wife and two daughters, began his career as first concertmaster of cello in the Staatskapelle Dresden at the age of 20. He relinquished this position in 1997 to concentrate fully on his successful career as a soloist. Jan Vogler is also artistic director of the Moritzburg Festival near Dresden and, since October 2008, general manager of the Dresden Music Festival.

Classicpoint.ch: You were already principal cellist with the Staatskapelle Dresden at the age of 20 and gave up this position in 1997 to embark on a solo career. Isn't it particularly difficult to become a soloist after being an orchestral musician?
Becoming a soloist can't be planned. It's a reciprocal reaction and fascination between player and audience. I simply wanted to try it. It was an old dream from my childhood to travel the world with my cello and play for people from all sorts of backgrounds.
I grew up in East Germany. There, such a life was impossible simply because of the lack of freedom to travel. So I became principal cellist. In retrospect, it was a stroke of luck for me; in the orchestra, I played a wide range of repertoire and had time to organize my thoughts.

Do you sometimes miss playing in the orchestra?
No, that was suddenly over in an instant. From 1997 onward, I was caught up in this whirlwind of my own projects, concerts, and CD recordings, and I increasingly focused on my chamber music festival in Moritzburg. A new circle of friends and colleagues developed, and a completely new lifestyle fascinated and challenged me. It's been almost 20 years since I left the orchestra; time has flown by incredibly fast!

You live with your family in Dresden and New York. What's that like?
New York is our home base; it's my haven. There, I prepare my tours and projects and draw inspiration from this musical metropolis. We're very rarely in Dresden with my family. But this location allows me to manage my festivals and also serves as a stopover between my various concerts in Europe. Moving between continents has a refreshing aspect for me. The different mentalities in the US and Europe help me put things into perspective and maintain a certain flexibility.

They have two daughters. Do they also practice an instrument diligently?
They both play the violin and take it seriously. Even if they probably won't become musicians, it's a part of their lives. I see them overcoming difficulties and experiencing small successes. They're learning to work on something consistently over years, to concentrate, and to express their feelings. Only now do I truly understand how important it is for children to learn instruments.

You are the artistic director of the Moritzburg Festival near Dresden. What is so special about this festival?
It's paradise on earth, for both the musicians and the audience! Imagine an idyllic landscape with fantastic musician friends from all over the world. We live in one place, work intensively on great music, eat together, and in our free time play table tennis or table football. All the works we perform at the festival—and there are about 25 each year—are also developed together in Moritzburg. We have a lot of fun, and that's contagious for the audience.

You are also the artistic director of the Dresden Music Festival. What are your priorities there?
I'm driven by a vision: What should a modern classical music festival look like in the 21st century?
The city of Dresden asked me in 2008 to completely revamp the festival, making it more international and broadening its reach. It was clear to me that this required a message. I was fascinated by Dresden's history: its enormous musical tradition, but also the destruction of World War II and its reconstruction. At the time, I felt the festival should stand for cosmopolitanism, understanding, and tolerance. The festival has developed splendidly, and many visitors come to Dresden from all over the world.
But it couldn't prevent us from seeing thousands of demonstrators on the streets of Dresden this winter, protesting against a supposed 'Islamization of the West.'
For me, this confirms that music must have social relevance and that we need to work even harder to reach and raise awareness among people.

You have already received three Echo Klassik awards. Do these three awards have different meanings for you?
The first ECHO was very important to me. In 2000, my solo career was still quite young, and the award, for my recording of the cello concertos by Schumann and Widmann, was a great support. The second ECHO was for a Moritzburg recording of Mozart, and that motivated all the festival's supporters to continue working intensively on this project. The third ECHO was a complete surprise: I was so skeptical for a long time about whether I should even attempt a recording of Bach's Colloquia. Once it was finished, I never listened to it again, even though I was very happy working on it in the studio. After its release, I completely 'let go' of the recording; it took on a life of its own, and I continued on my own path with Bach.

In October 2014, before the Echo Awards ceremony, you called for tolerance and humanity. What is particularly important to you in this regard?
It's painful to see how different the artistic world is from the real world. We have friends and colleagues all over the world; there is complete tolerance and acceptance of lifestyles, religions, and sexual orientations. We also have open dialogues about music, the environment, and politics. And what does the current reality look like? Hatred and intolerance are increasing everywhere; confrontation and aggression are increasingly dominating the tone of discourse, even in Europe. So it was important to me to use the brief period of attention surrounding the Echo Awards to make a start. An attempt to formulate a voice for fundamental democratic values ​​from within the artistic community.

Do you also see a need for action in the classical music world?
Less so in the classical music world. Beethoven, Bach, and Brahms are conquering Asia and India; classical music is spreading to almost every part of the world. But we must try to convey values ​​through music, to speak to people emotionally as directly as possible; only then will we change our listeners, and only then will music find its true purpose.

Could you imagine becoming politically active at some point?
No, that would be a mistake. But the tradition of musicians advocating for humanism must be revived. This was stronger in the 19th and 20th centuries; there is a wide field for social engagement there, very close to our work as musicians, but far removed from politics—we must take advantage of that.

What are your next projects?
At the moment, I'm working on a recording of Tchaikovsky's works. I'm particularly interested in the Rococo Variations for Cello and Orchestra, as well as two violin pieces: the Serenade Melancholique and the Meditation. For me, Tchaikovsky is a great dramatist and poet, like Dostoevsky or Tolstoy in literature. I also want to continue experimenting with gut strings. In 2014, I strung gut strings on my Stradivarius for 'Concerti di Venezia'. That was a fantastic experience and also changed my playing on steel strings. Now I'd like to perform 19th-century works on gut strings; this summer, I'll be performing Beethoven's Triple Concerto and Schumann's Cello Concerto.

Interview by Florian Schär | Classicpoint.ch | May 4, 2015 |
Photo: Jim Rakete

Next concerts

September 11, 2026 - Summer Festival: Amanda Gorman & Jan Vogler