SOIRÉE ARCADIA: "I dreamed and painted and pondered". Love letters

Love letters are written by practically every member of our society; they are one of the central communicative practices that shape the coming together and coexistence of couples and families. They reveal emotions, personal and intimate feelings, or simply everyday life. Since there is no state mandate to collect these sources from the middle of society, a love letter archive has been established to preserve letters donated by the public. The collection currently comprises over 64,000 letters.

A selection from the love letter archive is presented by Andrea Rapp and Eva Wyss, who jointly maintain and catalogue the love letter archive. In doing so, they are committed to researching marginalised cultural assets from the heart of society and also integrating and testing citizen science approaches. The programme is complemented by musical accents that show an astonishing closeness to the love letters.

PROGRAMME

Claude Debussy (1862–1918)
Sonata in D minor for cello and piano, WVNR, 531
1. Prologue. Lent
2. Sérénade et Finale. Modérément – Animé

Love Letters.
A conversation between Andrea Rapp and Eva Wyss (Part 1)

Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873–1943)
Sonata for Violoncello and Piano in G minor, Op. 19, 3rd movement

Love Letters.
A conversation between Andrea Rapp and Eva Wyss (Part 2)

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827)
Sonata for Violoncello and Piano No. 3 in A major, Op. 69, 3rd and 4th movements

Andrea Rapp, conversation
Eva Wyss, conversation
Carlo Lay, violoncello
Ana Bakradze, piano

Entry is free. If you enjoyed the concert, we would appreciate a donation. The donation box is located to the right of the entrance to the Kalkhof-Rose concert hall.

Registration is required. Admission tickets will be available from 8:00 a.m. on 26 February 2026 at this link.

Invitation flyer

Important note: There is usually a long waiting list for events held by the Academy in the Kalkhof-Rose concert hall. We therefore urge you to cancel in good time if you are unable to attend after confirming your participation. This is the only way we can adequately manage the waiting list. At the same time, we ask for your understanding that if you do not attend without giving prior notice, we will not be able to issue tickets to you in future.