21st WASBE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS, RIO DE JANEIRO – BRAZIL - MANNEMER RAKETE, Op. 97for Symphonic Wind Orchestra by EVGENI ORKIN (Ukraine, 1977)
[#380] Nov 02, 2026
Ukkraine | 2026 | Wind Band | Grade 5 | 8' | Overture
More info on the piece Universal Music
Donated by Mark Customs, performance available for purchase.
Mannemer Rakete, Op. 97 by Ukranian composer and clarinetist Evgeni Orkin is our Composition of the Week.
Evgeni Orkin’s Mannemer Rakete is a particularly interesting work in the context of WASBE Rio 2026 because it connects the historical legacy of Mannheim with contemporary wind-band composition. The work received its world premiere on 24 July 2026 at the Teatro Municipal in Rio de Janeiro, during the 21st WASBE Conference, and was performed by the Mannheimer Bläserphilharmonie under Miguel Ercolino.
Mannemer Rakete was written in 2025 and has a duration of approximately 7 minutes.
The work is scored for large wind orchestra setting, including soprano saxophone, harp, piano, cello, double bass as well as timpani and 7 percussionists.
Evgeni Orkin, born in Lviv in 1977, is a composer of Ukrainian origin based in Germany. Since the 2025/26 season, he has been Composer in Residence of the Jewish Chamber Orchestra Munich. His works are published by Universal Edition Vienna, Accolade Musikverlag, Konsid Musikverlag and Are Musikverlag.
Orkin studied clarinet and composition at the National Music Academy of Ukraine in Kyiv, including composition with Yevhen Stankovych, and continued his studies in clarinet, conducting and composition at the universities of music in Utrecht and Mannheim. His composition teachers included Ulrich Leyendecker and Ernst Bechert.
His œuvre comprises seven symphonies, twelve chamber symphonies, solo concertos, orchestral and chamber music, vocal works and music theatre. His compositions have been performed by ensembles including the Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Odense Symphony Orchestra, Kyiv Symphony Orchestra and Jewish Chamber Orchestra Munich. Performers of his music include Oksana Lyniv, Daniel Grossmann, Cornelius Meister, Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Sol Gabetta, Andrii Murza and Alexey Semenenko. In 2023, he received the European Composition Award in Berlin for “Odesa Rhapsody”.
As a clarinetist, Orkin is active in both contemporary music and historically informed performance. He performs on modern and historical instruments, has released numerous recordings, and is the author of a specialist book on the historical clarinet published in three languages. He teaches clarinet at the University of Music and Performing Arts Mannheim.
Other works for winds include:
· Quintet for Draughts Op.2, for Wind Quintet
· Entirely in the Spirit of Tango, Op.49 for Saxophone quartet or clarinet quartet.
· Hommage à Astor Piazzolla Op.51a, for five clarinets
· Vosaduli, Op.52 for Brass Quintet
More on Evgeni Orkin
