It will inaugurate the ensemble’s fourth international tour, whose itinerary includes Wrocław, in south-western Poland, Lucerne in Switzerland, the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius, Jūrmala in Latvia, Romania’s capital Bucharest, Amsterdam and London.
The tour’s repertoire comprises two works by Ukrainian composers: the Suite from the opera The Mothers of Kherson by Maxim Kolomiiets, a Metropolitan Opera commission inspired by the accounts of mothers whose children were taken during the war, and Bucha. Lacrimosa by Victoria Poleva, a piece commemorating the victims of the Russian invasion.
The programme also includes Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, Wagner’s Prelude and Liebestod from the opera Tristan and Isolde and Richard Strauss’s Four Last Songs (with American soprano Rachel Willis-Sørensen), as well as Max Bruch’s Violin Concerto (with Romania’s Alexandra Cocunova as the soloist).
In a statement for the media, Olena Zelenska, First Lady of Ukraine, described the repertoire as “musical treasures”. She said: “True culture, like all eternal values, is not about politics; it is about something greater, about humanity, about preserving the individual, their spirit, rights, and freedom.”
The Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra is the brainchild of the Canadian-Ukrainian conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson. Her idea inspired the General Managers of the Polish National Opera and the Metropolitan Opera in New York to join forces in founding an ensemble which brings together Ukrainian musicians, members of orchestras from Ukraine who had to flee areas attacked by Russia, as well as Ukrainian members of orchestras in several European countries.
Setting the scene for the upcoming tour, Keri-Lynn Wilson told the media: “For the fourth time since the onset of Russia’s brutal invasion, we’ll be touring in support of Ukraine’s right to be free. We are Ukraine’s soldiers of music, playing for our nation’s cultural legacy and its brave right to exist. At this critical time when Ukraine needs our support more than ever, I invite all European lovers of freedom and democracy to join us.”
The 2025 tour of the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra is funded by the Kovner Foundation, Berry Charitable Foundation and Ann Ziff, and organized by the Polish National Opera together with Askonas Holt agency.
Pierwsze próby Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra za nami! 🇺🇦 Orkiestrę odwiedził podczas nich kompozytor Maxim Kolomiiets,...
Opublikowany przez Teatr Wielki - Opera Narodowa Sobota, 9 sierpnia 2025
Tour itinerary:
- 14 August, Warsaw
- 16 August, Wrocław
- 18 August, Lucerne
- 20 August, Vilnius
- 22 August, Jūrmala, Latvia
- 25, 26 August, Bucharest
- 27 August, Amsterdam
- 29 August, London.
(mk/mp)