Over 30 events - symphonic and chamber concerts, opera performances as well as piano and vocal recitals - are on the programme of the 17th Chopin and his Europe Festival which is inaugurated on Saturday with the concert version of Stanisław Moniuszko’s opera ‘Verbum nobile’ produced by the Italian period-instruments ensemble Europa Galante under Fabio Biondi, with Polish and Czech soloists and the Choir of the Podlasie Opera in Białystok.
Among featured orchestras and soloists billed in Warsaw are the Orchestre des Champs-Elysees conducted by Philippe Herreweghe, Collegium Vocale Ghent, Poland’s Sinfonia Varsovia, Benjamin Grosvenor, Alexander Melnikov, Eric Lu, Kate Liu, Angela Hewitt, Yulianna Avdeeva, Janusz Olejniczak and Alexandre Tharaud.
Highlighs of the event include a recital by the duo Rafał Blechacz, winner of the 2005 Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, and Bomsori Kim, Second Prize winner of the 2016 Henryk Wieniawski Violin Competition in Poznań, as well as a performance by the internationally-acclaimed Polish bass-baritone Tomasz Konieczny.
The central idea of the Chopin and his Europe Festival is to present a panorama of the European music scene from Chopin’s perspective, with a special emphasis on the trends that shaped Chopin’s individual idiom, as well as to present works that were inspired by the music of the Polish composer.
The programme of the event also reflects its continued commitment to promote Polish composers who remain little known internationally and whose music deserves a wider exposure such as Ignacy Feliks Dobrzyński, Józef Nowakowski, Franciszek Lessel, and Józef Krogulski.
The event runs until August 31.
Launched in 2005, the Chopin and his Europe Festival is among the most prestigious events on the European music circuit. (mk)
Source: IAR/festiwal.nifc.pl