The festival starts with “Einstein on the Beach”, the legendary P. Glass/Wilson opera, starring the legendary Suzanne Vega. Title graphics: Courtesy of Brno Philharmonic.
Brno, Sep 16 (BD) – The programme of the 50th Moravian Autumn [“Moravsky Podzim”] reflects the roots of the festival, featuring 19 main diverse and colorful events presenting the audience with music from the 17th century to the present.
The 50th Moravian Autumn, which takes place from September 29 to October 16, 2019, will ingeniously weave together Bohuslav Martinů, the French Revolution, the 100th anniversary of the birth Mieczysław Weinberg (1919-1996) and the anniversaries of E.F. Burian (1904-1959), all interconnected and conceived unconventionally. “Fifty invites you to look back, but we do not want to be merely retrospective, but also to look for new impulses in the roots of the festival,” said artistic director Vítězslav Mikeš.
“We will start with the spectacular minimalist opera by Philip Glass, “Einstein on the Beach”, in which Suzanne Vega takes on the role of the narrator,” said Marie Kučerová, director of the Brno Philharmonic. “It is an approximately four-hour work, during which the door of the hall will remain open so that listeners can enter and exit freely.”
For four days the work of Bohuslav Martinů will be played in the Goose on a String Theatre, Besední dům, the famous villas of Brno and the Red Church.
1/ WED 2 Oct 2019, Goose on a String Theatre, 7:00pm
GIDE / MARTINŮ: OEDIPUS
Oedipus, a play by André Gide with incidental music by Bohuslav Martinů
stage direction Mark Ther, members of the Filharmonie Brno
conductor Tomáš Krejčí
2 / THU 3 Oct 2019, Besední dům, 7:00pm
BOHUSLAV MARTINŮ SONGS IN BESEDNÍ DŮM
Jana Hrochová mezzo-soprano, Giorgio Koukl piano
3/ FRI 4 Oct 2019, Jan Amos Comenius Church, 7:00pm
MARTINŮ VOICES
J. NOVÁK Testamentum, Missa philadelphiae, Jubilatio matutina
LISZT / JANÁČEK Mass in B flat major, MARTINŮ Vigil, Four Songs about Mary
Martinů Voices, choir director Lukáš Vasilek, Linda Sítková organ
4/ SAT 5 Oct 2019, the villas of Brno:
Stiassni (11:00am), Löw-Beer (3:00pm), Tugendhat (5:00pm)
BOHUSLAV MARTINŮ SONGS IN BRNO’S VILLAS
Villa Stiassni: Roman Hoza baritone, Ahmad Hedar piano
Villa Löw-Beer: Tomáš Kořínek tenor, David Švec piano
Villa Tugendhat: Lada Bočková soprano, Marta Vašková piano
“It [Martinů’s music for Gide’s play Oedipus] has been performed only once, live, on the radio in 1936. We will perform it on stage for the first time, so it is a world premiere,” said the performance director Mark Ther from the Terén platform, from where the production originates. The scenic form develops the original radio format and shows the powerful combination of the musical and dramatic components in a deflected theatrical form with a symbolic dimension.
International stars will come to Brno for the festival, including pianists Piotr Anderszewski, with the Basel Chamber Orchestra, and Alexandre Tharaud, who will present music from the chambers of Versailles Castle. David Greilsammer will return after two years, this time as conductor of the Geneva Camerata ensemble. The dance-music project Dance of the Sun, which has received standing ovations all over the world, is considered by critics to be one of the top achievements in the world of contemporary dance art.
Mieczyslaw Weinberg is one of the jubilee composers to be commemorated at the festival. The originality and depth of his operatic, symphonic and chamber works have only begun to be appreciated in recent years.
The festival will culminate with a closing concert featuring two of the prominent personalities of contemporary world music: the chief conductor of Filharmonie Brno [Brno Philharmonic], Dennis Russell Davies, and the Hungarian conductor, composer and teacher Peter Eötvös. The Besední dům will thus become a venue for a unique event.
Tickets for the festival events are available online at https://filharmonie-brno.cz/en/moravian-autumn/.
Brno Daily is a media partner of Filharmonie Brno.
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