Roberto Domeniconi and Der Grosse Bär
- Carovana091
- Nov 28
- 2 min read
Updated: Dec 2
Finesse. Depth. Collective strength.
The pianist, composer, and initiator of Der Grosse Bär (The Great Bear) leads his ensemble with sensitivity and musical clarity, setting impulses through listening and creating spaces in which every voice matters.
Roberto Domeniconi is a quiet, versatile contemporary—someone whose musical openness is inseparable from his openness toward people. His artistic curiosity is directed not only toward sounds, but toward encounters. His work stretches far beyond genre boundaries and thrives on collaborations in which he naturally steps back. Domeniconi’s playing is full of expressive power, yet never intrusive; his virtuosity is never displayed for its own sake, but unfolds in service of the collective. He belongs to that rare kind of musicians who create depth through restraint, give direction through listening, and, through sensitivity, make complex group processes possible at a high level. In his artistic thinking, hierarchies are obstacles, because real exchange arises only where all voices are allowed to sound as equals.
From this stance, Der Grosse Bär was born in 2011. What began in the legendary “Bazillus,” continued for years in the “Klubi,” and has now found its home in the “Institut,” has grown into a vibrant Zurich cultural institution. Almost every month, Der Grosse Bär hosts a concert with musicians from the Collective—an ensemble of experienced and young artists who embody mutual exchange.
Der Grosse Bär is not a big band in the traditional sense but an open cosmos: a test tube for musicians of diverse backgrounds, in which self-determination is desired and allowed. Domeniconi’s non-demanding, seeking approach allows answers to emerge long before anyone has posed the question. From individual voices, a web arises—one that grows and glows anew each time, a music that is greater than the sum of its parts.
Roberto Domeniconi acts as a pianist who gives impulses, as a listener, as an initiator—sometimes in the middle of the action, sometimes in counterpoint, but always in the place where the collective can thrive. Der Grosse Bär is the expression of this attitude: a musical constellation in which individuality and community strengthen one another and form a distinctive language.
For Carovana091, it is a great gift that Roberto Domeniconi, together with Der Grosse Bär, stands behind We See You. The musicians play inspired by the composition Sound the Alarm—freely, improvising, and as an immediate response to the urgency of empathy, attention, and acts of solidarity.
Der Grosse Bär, you are so welcome!
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