About
The contemporary music ensemble TRIO vis-à-vis was founded in 2012 at the music conservatory in Stuttgart, Germany by Marie Louise Lind (violoncello), Sabine Beisswenger (flute) and Natasha López (voice) during intensive rehearsals for Helmut Lachenmann’s composition temA. From 2017 to 2020 Maria Kalesnikava (flute), Hugo Rannou (violoncello) and Natasha López (voice) formed the trio. Due to the imprisonment of the flautist and politician Maria Kalesnikava in September 2020, the trio was compelled to make another change and Guillermo González took on the role of the flautist until 2022 and Petra Arman from 2022. Since then, the trio has been committed to supporting its friend and musician Maria Kalesnikava by dedicating concerts and events to her political activity.
As the name implies, the ensemble works very closely with composers. The trio regularly commissions new compositions for its distinctive instrumentation and is dedicated to experimenting with new ideas. The three musicians combine the love of the unknown and an enthusiasm for contemporary music, leading them to creative, interdisciplinary and highly topical projects that deal with social and human issues in connection with music. The trio regularly works with artists from other fields such as dance, fine arts, puppet theatre, new media, theatre, etc. in order to intensify the musical and artistic experience. Extraordinary projects and venues give these musicians a distinctive identity that shapes them and is characterized by their originality and creativity both as an ensemble and as soloists.
The repertoire of TRIO vis-à-vis includes classical modern works as well as contemporary and experimental works. The trio has worked personally with Lachenmann and has performed many premieres dedicated to it by composers such as Claudio Ambrosini, Jesse Broekman, Ulrich Kreppein, Sophie Pope, Remmy Canedo, Huihui Cheng, Alberto Hortigüela, Koka Nikoladze, Silvia Rosani, Alberto Bernal, Nicolai Worsaae, and Helena Cánovas i Parés, among others.
TRIO vis-à-vis has played at the most important festivals and concert series for contemporary music, for instance at the TonArt Festival Esslingen, the Neue Töne Open (Stuttgart), the concert series Südseite Nachts and Der Sommer in Stuttgart of the Musik der Jahrhunderte in the Theaterhaus Stuttgart, the Lachenmann PERSPEKTIVEN Festival, the lecture recital at the Royal Danish Academy of Music (Denmark), the concert series in the Dunkers Kulturhus (Helsingborg, Sweden), the Suså Festival (Denmark), the ECLAT Festival and various concert series of the S-K-A-M e. V. (Stuttgarter Kollektiv für Aktuelle Musik).
They have received the support and funding of institutions and foundations such as the Baden-Württemberg Ministry for Science, Research and Art, LBBW BANK Stiftung, Musikfonds e. V., State Capital Cultural Office Stuttgart, Deutscher Komponistenverband (DKV), Stuttgarter Kollektiv für Aktuelle Musik e. V. and Musik der Jahrhunderte e. V.
TRIO vis-à-vis is currently funded by Inszene, a program of the Podium Gegenwart of the Deutscher Musikrat.
Natasha López
Natasha sings, laughs loud and could eat chorizo every day
Natasha López
Natasha was born in Johannesburg, South Africa. She was awarded a degree in violin and later singing at the Provincial Conservatory of Music in Guadalajara, Spain. She has studied with María Ángeles Chamorro, Lani Poulson, Barbara Ebel, Angelika Luz, Frank Wörner and Frédérique Friess. She graduated in 2011 with a distinction in singing at the Hochschule für Musik FRANZ LISZT
Weimar and in 2013 achieved the master of contemporary music with honors in the specialization of singing at the Stuttgart State University of Music and Performing Arts, for which she obtained the postgraduate scholarship of the Spanish foundation Fundación Caja Madrid. She has received grants and scholarships from various institutions such as the Scholarship Comunidad de Madrid, Gesellschaft der Freunde und Förderer der Hochschule für Musik FRANZ LISZT Weimar, Goethe Institut, Ministerium für Wissenschaft, Forschung und Kunst Baden-Württemberg.
She has performed in many theatres and opera houses including the Opera Stuttgart, Landestheater Eisenach, Goethe Theater Bad Lauchstädt, E-Werk-Deutsches Nationaltheater Weimar and has worked with orchestra, choir and stage conductors such as Giuliano Carella, Carlos Domínguez-Nieto, Wolfgang Katschner, Johannes Knecht, Giancarlo de Lorenzo, Joan Pagès, Lucas Vis and Karsten Wiegand.
She has also acted in performances and premieres of concerts, operas, and contemporary music festivals, such as the summer courses of the Stockhausen Foundation in Kürten (2013), Festival Mixtur (Barcelona, Spain), the 47th and 48th International Summer Course of Contemporary Music Darmstadt, Novalis art + music Festival (Croatia), Lachenmann Perspektiven Festival, Festival Suså (Denmark), Festival ECLAT, 3. International Musikfest Hamburg, Festival Mostra Sonora (Valencia) and Sampler Sèriesat L’Auditori Barcelona.
She works with composers such as Helmut Lachenmann, Stefan Prins, Gerhard Stäbler, Charlotte Seither, Klaus Lang, Silvia Rosani, Huihui Cheng, Nicolai Worsaae, Laure Hiendl, Remmy Canedo, Sophie Pope, among others.
Natasha López has been artistic director and soprano of TRIO vis-à-vis since 2012. Since 2016 she has led various interdisciplinary music projects and has received funding from institutions and foundations such as the Goethe Institute, the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Science, Research, and the Arts, the LBBW Bank Foundation, Musikfonds e. V., Landeshauptstadt Kulturamt Stuttgart, Deutscher Komponistenverband e. V. (DKV), S-K-A-M e. V. and Musik der Jahrhunderte e. V. She was a scholarship holder of the “10 qm/Katalyse” program of the state capital Stuttgart from June to November 2021.
She began a PhD in musicology and linguistics in October 2021 at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain.
Hugo Rannou
Hugo plays violoncello, or is he an actor after all?
Hugo Rannou
HUGO RANNOU is a northern French cellist based in Stuttgart. In his hometown of Amiens, he graduated from the local conservatory with Michel Poulet and continued his studies with Veronique Marin in Rueil-Malmaison. In 2009 he began his studies at the Freiburg University of Music with Adriana Contino and Daniel Grosgurin and in 2012 he switched to Conradin Brotbek at the Stuttgart State University of Music and Performing Arts. He completed his studies in 2018 in the class of David Eggert in Bern.
In 2015 he won 1st prize at the international button competition in Düsseldorf and 2nd prize at the international competition Julio Cardona in Covilha (Portugal).
Hugo Rannou is active in various areas: In addition to collaborating with well-known composers such as Helmut Lachenmann, Wolfgang Rihm and Marco Stroppa, he plays early music, chamber music, jazz and chanson.
As an orchestral musician, he played with the Stuttgart State Opera, the Stuttgart Philharmonic and the Württemberg Chamber Orchestra Heilbronn and was the principal cellist of the Badische Philharmonie Pforzheim until 2024. As a soloist, he performs regularly as a soloist with the Orchester de Picardie, among others.
He has played with the contemporary music ensembles Ensemble Ascolta, Suono Mobile and Tempus Konnex. Hugo Rannou has been a cellist with TRIO vis-à-vis since 2016 and with the “Christopher James Hall Trio”. Since 2018 he has been a lecturer at the State University for Music and Performing Arts Stuttgart for the subjects cello and pedagogy.
Petra Arman
Petra plays flute, cioè does she really come from Italy?
Petra Arman
Petra Arman graduated in flute with full marks at the age of 18 in Trento, her hometown in Italy.
In 2018 she graduated in flute (Master of Arts) with full marks and honor at the Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana in Lugano (CH) under the guidance of Andrea Oliva and in 2021 at the Musikhochschule in Chamber Music (Master) under the guidance of Davide Formisano in Stuttgart (DE).
In 2015 she won the first prize at the Emanuele Krakamp competition in Benevento, in 2016 the second prize at the Premio Köhler competition in Florence, in 2018 second prize at the S. Zampetti international competition in Saronno and in 2019 the second prize at the F. Cilea competition in Palmi.
In Italy she collaborated with Orchestra JFutura, Orchestra La Verdi, Orchestra Kleutrom, Orchestra Giovanile Cherubini and Orchestra Giovanile Trentina, with which she performed as soloist the Bach’s “Orchestral suite n.2” and Vivaldi’s “Cardellino”.
In 2017 she was chosen as flutist in the Italian Youth Orchestra and won a scholarship at the end of the year.
In the last few years she has been collaborating as flutist or piccolist with the RTÉ Orchestra (Radio Orchestra in Dublin), the Badische Philharmonie Pforzheim (DE) and the Südwestdeutsches Kammerorchester Pforzheim (DE).
Since November 2022 she is part of the TRIO vis-à-vis and since September 2023 she works as flutist in the Landespolizeiorchester in Stuttgart, where she now lives.