Challem

During In The Round in LantarenVenster you will experience live music up close. The band plays in a different setting than you are used to: in the middle of the hall among the audience. This literally draws you into the world of the band. Before and after the concert a DJ plays in the hall. Dutch pianist and composer Joachim Challem, born in 1994, started playing the piano at the age of 8. While he is constantly on a quest to explore life, Challem's music appeals to many for its honesty; it feels like his music can be read like a diary. His emotions, voice, movement and reactions are conveyed through his piano. It is an instinctive stage where thoughts reach out and guide him clearly.

Joachim was born in the Netherlands, where he grew up with his two mothers and his brother. After years of studying piano, he noticed that there is more to life than just music. He strongly believes that nature is the greatest teacher for all complex thoughts that a human can acquire. That's why he lives part of his life in the unknown mountains of northern Spain, looking for his own home. And that is also why he composes his music on different pianos in different countries, environments and moods.

In 2022, Challem started releasing his first works, with great success. His music reached number one on the classical charts and has been streamed more than 15 million times across platforms. Challem was a regular guest on Radio 1 and NPO Klassiek. He gave many concerts (including in the Amsterdam Concertgebouw) and made bicycle tours through the Scandinavian countries to reduce his ecological footprint, something that did not go unnoticed in the media. He comes to Rotterdam to present the music from his new album The Road.