A major commitment of the delian::quartett is its work with children and young people. We all know how important a positive first experience with classical music — or even just attending a concert — can be. When we succeed in breaking down inhibitions, creating closeness, and sparking enthusiasm for this genuinely “cool” area of life, it acts like a door-opener to new audiences — and not merely to our audience of tomorrow, but, as experience shows, often to that very same evening’s audience.

How boring are children’s and youth concerts with the delian::quartett?

The declared goal of the delian::quartett’s engagement with children and young people is by no means to tell overly academic, textbook-style narratives or to impart knowledge. Let's Get Classical! is indeed a concert format for young people. In these concerts, you will hear no work analyses, nor experience a lecture on composers or instruments. Rather, the Delians take great pleasure in dismantling the traditional expectations attached to “serious music.” As audiences and press repeatedly confirm, they demonstrate with resounding success that classical music is fun and by no means dusty — and, not least, that the performers themselves, who are, after all, meant to take on an essential role-model function, are genuine figures the audience can identify with.

The need to respond flexibly to the young audience and to let them, almost unconsciously, “help shape” the concert requires forgoing any rigid concept for the performances. The only thing fixed in advance is a program sequence that is as colorful and varied as possible, made up of relatively short elements, which forms the framework of the performance. Amusing off-the-cuff commentary — “pulled from the pocket” — links the individual program points together.

Out of the moment itself, something special and unrepeatable emerges for every single listener. Through this positive first encounter with classical music, the delian::quartett establishes a lasting closeness to this wonderful realm of cultural life — one that encourages young people to later attend concerts on their own initiative, in order to renew that original experience.