Founded in 1980 by English musicians in memory of the great German conductor, the Rudolf Kempe Society – under the Artistic Directorship of his widow, Cordula, and with the encouragement of many eminent fellow artists – supported young musicians for more than thirty years through master classes and workshops, and by affording them opportunities for concerts and radio recordings both in the UK and in Germany.
These activities also involved the general public by giving them insight into the process of artistic creation and interpretation, thus enhancing their enjoyment and understanding of music and of those who devote their lives to performing it. The results were palpable both on and off stage.
A unique contribution in this context were the word and music programmes, addressing as they did the widest possible range of interest in the arts, and so many issues, big or small, of our lives as reflected in them.
SONGS OF APOLLO are known to have converted ‘unmusical’ people to music, and drawn ‘philistines’ to the theatre who would never have dreamed of setting foot in one. The Society was always keen to break new ground and reach wider audiences, especially young people, and those who are underprivileged or feel too shy to take the initiative of venturing into the arts.
Its own unique venue, the KEMPE STUDIO AT THE MUSES in Stratford-upon-Avon, was home to a series of intimate recitals, poetry readings and workshops – listed in the events archive.
Founding the Society
Rudolf Kempe died in May 1976. Within a few years English musicians founded the Rudolf Kempe Society in London in 1980, to continue the care for young musicians that had become so important to him in his last years. A German Branch followed in Munich in 1982, the city of the Munich Philharmonic and the Bavarian State Opera, where Kempe had also worked. The two charities worked independently as well as through an exchange scheme between the two countries.
Under Cordula Kempe
Cordula Kempe, Rudolf Kempe’s widow, was the Society’s Artistic Director for four decades. A violinist and writer, she played first violin in the Bergonzi Quartet, devised every Songs of Apollo programme and drew on friendships across the worlds of music and theatre to bring leading actors and musicians to the Society’s platform, alongside the young artists it existed to support.
Stratford-upon-Avon
The Society’s UK base was The Muses at 58 Waterside, Stratford-upon-Avon, between the theatres of the Royal Shakespeare Company and the River Avon. In 2008 Rudolf Kempe’s archive was transferred there from Munich, and his remains were laid to rest in the garden. The Kempe Studio at The Muses became the home of the Society’s recitals, word and music programmes, master classes and summer garden concerts.
The last years
From 2014 to 2020 the Society’s Word and Music seasons at The Muses brought Lenten programmes, birthday concerts, the Festival of Young Voices, poetry evenings and master classes – more than forty events in all, recorded in the events archive. When the Covid-19 pandemic closed concert halls in 2020, the Society shared its programme But there is Mozart! online. It never recovered from the pandemic: the Society closed in 2021 and was removed from the Charity Commission register, and Rudolf Kempe’s archive passed to the Staatskapelle in Dresden. Cordula Kempe died in November 2024.
Timeline
- 1980 – The Rudolf Kempe Society is founded in London by English musicians.
- 1982 – The German Branch is launched in Munich.
- 2008 – Rudolf Kempe’s archive moves from Munich to the Society’s UK base, The Muses in Stratford-upon-Avon, where his remains are laid to rest in the garden.
- 2012 – Dame Judi Dench succeeds Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau as Patron.
- 2014–2020 – Songs of Apollo, young artists’ concerts and master classes at the Kempe Studio at The Muses (see the events archive).
- 2016 – A celebration in Dresden marks the 40th anniversary of Rudolf Kempe’s death.
- 2020 – The online film of But there is Mozart! is released during the pandemic.
- 2021 – The Society closes; Kempe’s archive passes to the Staatskapelle Dresden.
- 2024 – Cordula Kempe, Artistic Director of the Society, dies.