Thu, 24. 11. 2016, 7:00 p.m.

A2 Music and Literature

Venue: Zlín Congress Centre  |  Organizer: Filharmonie Bohuslava Martinů, o.p.s.  | 

All three of these works draw on literature for their inspiration. The motif of Harold in Italy was Byron's epic poem Childe Harold's Pilgrimage, in which the young nobleman seeks pleasure in life, but his travels result merely in feelings of bleakness and despair. Hector Berlioz wrote the work, which is a symphony with a concerto part for viola, at the request of Paganini, one of the greatest violin virtuosi of all time. Maxim Rysanov, who plays the solo part, comes from Ukraine, but plays the viola and conducts in Great Britain. A charismatic artist recently shortlisted for a Grammy award, he is Artist in Residence at the Royal College of Music in London. Bohuslav Martinů's Parables are modelled on Antoine de Saint-Exupery's Citadelle, which the composer liked to read, and from which he frequently drew strength for his own life. The work has three sections: the three musical parables about a sculpture, a garden and a labyrinth represent the idea that life is a journey of seeking, and that initially defined goals, once reached, in turn become merely a stimulus for a further journey of seeking. The opera The Cunning Little Vixen finds its origins in Rudolf Těsnohlídek's tale, which was first published in serial form in Lidové Noviny. Leoš Janáček developed this essentially simple story into something rather more thought-provoking, and the opera itself has become a masterpiece performed today on opera stages the world over. The suite from this opera and the other works in this concert are conducted by Arie van Beek, chief conductor of the Orchestre de Picardie based in Amiens, France, and members of that orchestra will join with us as part of the Orchestra Network for Europe collaborative project.