ROTTERDAM - 8 July 2021 - After openings in Prague, Istanbul, Los Angeles and Vienna, among others, JOHN REED Fitness Music Club opens its first branch in the Netherlands today, in Rotterdam city centre (Lijnbaan 101-105). According to the gym, sports enthusiasts can now look forward to a completely new workout experience. JOHN REED aims to do this by offering a combination of diverse workouts, street art, music with live DJs and remarkable design. It is also the 38th club worldwide to open JOHN REED Fitness Music Club.

 

The blend of fitness, music, art and design creates a club atmosphere during training that is quite unique to JOHN REED. Moreover, the newly opened Rotterdam club has a luxury spa with a sauna exclusively for women and one for men, a relaxation room, two Jacuzzis and a bistro. 

  

The massive new gym in Rotterdam covers more than 2,200 square metres, spread over four floors. Members have access to a large functional area, two classrooms, an area with various weights and fitness equipment, a personal trainer area and a boxing ring. With CYBEROBICS' virtual classes spread over two areas, there are more than 100 different classes available to members every day. The classes are aimed at different levels and goals of both women and men. 

 

 

Perhaps the most interesting thing about the JOHN REED concept, is that its studio design goes far beyond the functional level of a pure fitness studio and is based on a modern interior with a club atmosphere. Athletes can expect a mix of colours, shapes and materials. National and international street artists also design various spaces in the club. In Rotterdam, these include international artists ALE Senso, Dr Molrok and Ron Miller, but also artists from the Netherlands such as Loutje Hoekstra, Dopie Kot and Tim Sake. They have contributed with writings, classic graffiti, material art and murals.

 

JOHN REED combines music, design and fitness in a unique way. Raquel Buckley, club manager in Rotterdam, says: 'What makes JOHN REED Fitness Music Club so special are the live DJ workouts for which we book well-known local and national DJs. We think very carefully about what music fits well with the workout so members get an extra boost during their workout.' 

 

In addition to the DJs, the club's own JOHN REED Radio ensures that there is something for everyone in terms of music. The playlists are tailored to the moment of the day, from electro to pop and hip-hop, and can be tuned into digitally from anywhere via the JOHN REED Radio app.

 

 

Star pianist Yuja Wang joins the orchestra as Artist in Residence and Martha Argerich will also return. There is once again room for great repertoire: Mahler, Pijper and Rachmaninov led by chief conductor Lahav Shani, Sibelius' epic Kullervo with an eighty-strong Finnish male choir and a concertante Wagner opera with world soloists led by honorary conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin. Ticket sales will start on 17 August via the orchestra's website.

  

George Wiegel, general director: "Soon, the doors to our hall will finally open for real, the rows of seats will fill up and the whole stage will be filled with orchestral musicians. That moment is the beginning of the most beautiful, precious, meaningful concert season for a very long time."

 

Lahav Shani, chief conductor: "Even though we have enjoyed playing the smaller repertoire over the past year, the Rotterdam Philharmonic is primed for the big symphonic works. I am looking forward to playing the big pieces again, that is where you can really see and feel the full power of the orchestra."

 

Yuja Wang, renowned for her virtuosity and musicality, is the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra's Artist in Residence this coming season. She will be soloing in three concert programmes, starting in September with Shostakovich's Second Piano Concerto conducted by chief conductor Lahav Shani. In December, she returns with Rachmaninov's Second Piano Concerto, to close the season in May in a concert conducted by the honorary conductor Valery Gergiev. In that season finale, she will perform two solo works: Strauss' Burleske for piano and orchestra, followed by Liszt's First Piano Concerto. A tour of Europe, to Hamburg, Munich and Vienna, among other places, with the orchestra is also part of Yuja Wang's year as Artist in Residence.

 

Apart from Yuja Wang, the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra welcomes a host of other star soloists in 2021-2022. Martha Argerich plays Ravel's Piano Concerto in G, Simone Lamsma solos in Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto and with Nicolas Altstaedt, Truls Mørk and Sol Gabetta the orchestra welcomes three of the greatest cellists of our time. Among the vocal soloists are world stars such as Karen Cargill, Tommi Hakala, Christiane Karg, Mikhail Petrenko and Michael Volle. There are also two soloists from our own ranks: bassoonist Pieter Nuytten and flutist Joséphine Olech, who will play the public premiere of the Flute Concerto by Thierry Escaich, which was composed especially for her.

 

The Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra welcomes major specialists: composer-conductor John Adams will be conducting his own work, maestro Jukka-Pekka Saraste is coming for a continuation of the Sibelius Festival and will be taking the epic scores of the Kullervo and Lemminkäinen with him, and baroque specialist Jonathan Cohen will be performing the Messiah, which will be performed by the Rotterdam Philharmonic for the first time in 50 years. Han-na Chang makes her debut with a complete Prokofiev programme.

 

Former chief conductor Edo de Waart will conduct a concert in honour of his 80th birthday, in which the wind section will play a starring role, and honorary conductor Valery Gergiev will conduct the closing concert of the season with Yuja Wang. Honorary conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin will perform Mahler 4 and follow up the acclaimed success of Die Frau Ohne Schatten with another concertante opera: Wagner's Das Rheingold.

 

Chief conductor Lahav Shani will conduct seven different programmes. As a conducting soloist, he can be heard in Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 23. The great works are represented in his concerts by Rachmaninov's Symphonic Dances and Mahler's First. Much attention is paid to new and little-performed repertoire: commissioned works by Thierry Escaich and Mathilde Wantenaar, the rarely heard Second Symphony by Willem Pijper for colossal orchestra, plus the First Symphony by Paul Ben-Haim and the Violin Concerto by Kareem Roustom, two Dutch premieres as part of a Remembrance Concert. With Lahav Shani, the orchestra concludes the season with a tour of Asia.

 

Ticket sales for the 2021-22 season of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra will start on 17 August via their website.

 

 

Uncomfortable subjects, naked truths and unconventional perspectives: that's what Counterbodies is all about. The unique pop-up exhibition presents the work of twelve (international) female artists and can be admired in De Achtertuin in Kralingen during Art Rotterdam 2021. The body is a theme that continues to fascinate, and which has inspired each of the artists in their work. Counterbodies seeks out boundaries and breaks taboos. Curators Marth van Loeben and Vladimir Radujkov deliver both a fresh look and a high quality standard by offering established and young artists a stage. 

  

The body: an often visited and researched theme in art. It also appears to be the common denominator of Counterbodies: all art is a strong artistic interpretation of the human body - both thematically and visually. The work of twelve contemporary female artists confronts uncomfortable truths and explores unspoken subjects that have often been left untouched in the past. With this premise Counterbodies draws attention to this still controversial subject.

 

Counterbodies presents the work of twelve female artists from the Netherlands, Italy, Germany and the Crimea: Alice Lucchinelli (IT), Daleen Bloemers (NL), Guda Koster (NL), Jessica Strixner (DE), Karin Arink (NL), Kim Van Erven (NL), Kira Fröse (DE), Lizan Freijsen (NL), Margiet van Breevort (NL), Natalia Grezina (CR), Rachel de Joode (NL) and Silvia B (NL). The selected works - ranging from sculpture, photography and embroidery to various media forms - highlight different perspectives on the theme of the body.

 

Counterbodies is the brainchild of curators Marth van Loeben (connected to Chrysalid Gallery) and Vladimir Radujkov (connected to the NEON foundation). From the beginning, the cooperation was organic and unforced, both from a conceptual and aesthetic point of view. Almost immediately Marth and Vladimir recognised a common curatorial vision. This vision focuses on curating artists for whom the human body is a subject for research and experimentation. Although the intention was not there from the beginning, the choice for exclusively female artists has become an important foundation of Counterbodies.

 

Chrysalid Gallery in Rotterdam is a non-profit art foundation that aims to diversify art in the broad sense of the word - how art is created, produced, distributed and consumed. The gallery was founded by Alexey Shifman in 2016 (then called Raw Streetphoto Gallery). In the early 2020s, the gallery was transformed into Chrysalid Gallery to provide a sharper focus on conceptual and radical art. The gallery represents young and daring artists from all over Europe and gives them the space to experiment and grow. In this way the gallery strives - together with its artists - to reshape and broaden contemporary art.

 

NEON Foundation is a non-profit art and culture foundation founded in 2013 and based in Rotterdam. At the helm is artist and curator Vladimir Radujkov, who is known for co-curating projects in unconventional spaces, Living Pool, Living Pool 2.0, The Garden Project and Tropicana Fest. The goal of the NEON foundation is to generate a dialogue between artists and their audience in a visually engaging environment.

 

 

From today, brewery guests can taste the beers and order a matching dish. The menu features honest and sustainable (local) products, and the kitchen staff use three different preparation techniques: the stone oven, smoker and BBQ. In the Gastropub, the in-house brewed craft beers, innovative beer and (fruit) food combinations and beer cocktails are served and the beers can be tapped at the self-service tap tables. Guided tours and beer tastings are also organised. 

 

"I am very proud that today we can finally show our complete concept to the public. We have worked hard recently to come to this result and it is great to see that people are making plenty of reservations. The guests can experience the magic of the brewing process themselves during the brewery tour and then drink the beers and tap them themselves for an optimal experience. The beer in our brewery comes straight from the kettles and is therefore super fresh. The catering section is a real eye-catcher where we hope many people will enjoy our various food combinations. With Stadshaven Brouwerij, we have created a unique setting for the Netherlands around beer and today my dream has come true. Because something like Stadshaven Brouwerij is something I have only seen abroad. Harm van Deuren, initiator and director of the Stadshavens Brouwerij, says: "From now on, it will be in Rotterdam too."

 

Stadshaven Brouwerij is an extensive craft beer brewery, of which there are only a few in the Netherlands. With brew kettles of 4,000 litres and storage tanks of up to 12,000 litres, no less than 2 million litres of beer can be brewed per year. In terms of capacity, this places the Stadshaven brewery directly in the top 3 of the largest craft beer breweries in the Netherlands. The beers are inspired by the location of Stadshaven Brouwerij, in a 100 year old fruit warehouse, and the history of Rotterdam Fruit Port, once Europe's largest fruit port.

 

 

Over the past few months, the brewing team has developed three Fearless Fruit beers: the Kraken Blond with kiwi berry and blood orange, the Great White with grapefruit and orange and the Piranha Tripel with kumquat and mango. The design of the beers is characterised by the adventures that take place under water, which one will taste through the exotic fruit combinations. In addition, three classic Fearless Crew beers are brewed: the Pilsner, the India Pale Ale and the Tripel. All beers are bottled, canned and cask conditioned and can now be enjoyed at the brewery itself as well as at other food service establishments throughout the Netherlands. The beers are also available for sale in the Stadshaven Brouwerij shop.

 

 

The arrival of the Stadshaven brewery in the redeveloped Rotterdam Makers District contributes to the liveability, circular economy and social dynamics of the area. The Gastropub and the terrace will have room for a total of 650 guests. In the catering section, people can taste the beers brewed a few metres away and order hearty dishes. In Stadshaven Brouwerij's own words, this is a place 'where people come together and where meat and fish lovers as well as vegans get their money's worth.' The Gastropub is divided into four spaces that reflect the themes of the Fearless adventures. At the entrance, there is 'The Kraken Pub', where guests can sample the brews at the bar. There are also five 'Brew Tables' where guests can play bartender. After dinner, at 22:00, the space is transformed into 'The club' where live music is played and people can dance while enjoying a beer cocktail. 

 

 

Circularity and sustainability are also on the agenda. There are no less than 1,700 solar panels on the roof. The Stadshaven Brewery is also working together with Rainmaker, an innovative company in the field of water making, which will collect and purify the waste water so that it can be reused as brewing water. The residual waste from the brewing process, the brewers' dregs, are also put to good use. It is donated to the cows of the famous Floating Farm, the world's first floating dairy farm located less than 200 metres from the brewery. Because the cows eat the beer malt, they produce 2.5 litres more milk per day. The brewery then uses the milk again in the catering area to make cappuccinos, for example.