The State Hermitage Museum and the Hermitage Music Academy
with the support of the Committee for Culture of the Government of Saint Petersburg
present
the 12th international festival:
The Music of the Greater Hermitage
July 10-13 2012
On the occasion of the 250-year anniversary of the State Hermitage Museum
July 10th, 7:00 P.M.
Hall of the Academic Capella
The Great Symphony Orchestra of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU Orkest)
Conductor – Daan Admiraal
The Orchestra of the Vrije Universiteit, or “free university” of the city of Amsterdam (the Netherlands) has existed since 1962. This orchestra’s musicians are the students and alumni of the Amsterdam Conservatory. In many ways, this orchestra owes its masterful performances to its head conductor, a holder of the highest national order of the Netherlands, a knight of the Order of Orange–Nassau, Daan Admiraal, who has headed the orchestra since 1975. Under his guidance, this orchestra performs such monumental symphonic works as those of
Gustav Mahler and Dmitri Shostakovich. It is precisely because of these works that the orchestra holds one of the leading positions among youth orchestras in Western Europe and constantly performs in the most famous halls in the Netherlands, like the Concertgebouw and the Muziekgebouw. This performance is timed to coincide with their 50-year jubilee, which the Orchestra has decided to celebrate with concerts in Moscow and Petersburg. This concert in the hall of the Academic Capella promises to be a real discovery for lovers of large 20th century symphonic pieces.
The concert program includes::
John Adams: The Chairman Dances
Corrie van Binsbergen: Between Pavlovsk and Oostvoorne (world premiere)
George Gershwin: "An American in Paris"
Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No. 10
July 12th 7:00 P.M.
The Great Courtyard of the Winter Palace
The first section:
The group Mynta created its own style of music, based on love of the traditions and musical roots of Europe, India and Latin America. Their music integrates the “northern ice” and the “hot Indian spices,” i.e. Scandinavian folk dances and Latin American rhythm, brought together by the striking, magical rhythms of ancient Indian instruments, called the table and the tempura. When it was first formed, the group performed traditional jazz and blues, samba bossa nova, and then moved on to jazz/rock and fusion a little later. In 1987, the musicians visited India, where they met a talented performer on the Indian table, Faizal Kareshi. This meeting was the beginning of a striking musical experiment, in which European jazz in combined with Indian classical music. The results of this cooperation, which continues to this day, are presented on 8 albums and at numerous concerts around the world. The group currently includes Suranyana Gosh, one of very few women who perform on the tabla.
The second section:
The surprising duet called Musica Nuda appeared to a chance meeting between Petra Magoni (vocals) and Ferruccio Spinetti (bass). The name literally translates as “nude music,” and the makes this group’s goal perfectly clear: getting to the very core of music, removing all surface distractions. In their own unique manner, the duet rethinks jazz standards, pop music hits and even fragments of opera (Petra Magoni was educated as both a classical and jazz singer).
Since they formed in 2003, this duet has been become more and more popular in Italy, and, after the release of their album, 55/21 on the famous jazz label Blue Note Records, that popularity has spread throughout the world. The musicians now both create their own compositions and actively tour around the world, from the USA, Canada and Latin America to Morocco and China.
Andrei Kondakov (piano), Vladimir Chekasin (saxophone), Bruce Cox (drums / USA) and Leonid Shinkarenko (bass) will open the concert of the Jazz-Rock Free program, which will doubtless be very interesting both for connoisseurs of classical jazz and devotees of the avantgarde. This project was first presented last year at the jazz festival in Klaipėda (Lithuania), and was recognized by the public as one of the most interesting, thanks to its masterful fusion of the different movements in jazz that is virtuoso participants represent.
July 13th, 8:00 P.M.
The Great Courtyard of the Winter Palace
Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club
They have been to Russia more than one, and every time, these Cubans created a furor; viewers young and old were dancing all over the place, it’s difficult to remember another time when one could see so many happy faces in one place. So what exactly is the Buena Vista Social Club? The history of that club begins in the fourth decade of last century. Musicians got together in a little building, they played, talked, and held dances. The club quickly gained strength and popularity. It was also a laboratory, when truly Cuban musical combinations made from such ingredients as jazz, mambo, charango pachanga and cha cha cha were formed. That was a happy, peaceful time, despite the fact that those musicians could hardly make ends meets. The 1959 Revolution that brought freedom to the Cuban people ironically put an end to those happy days for the club’s regulars, since it was closed as a gambling establishment. It was only in the 90’s that the club, already as phenomenon in its own great, was given a new lease on life. The Cuban guitarist Juan de Marco Gonzales and the American guitarist Ryland Cooder brought everyone who had played in the club together. This led to the record entitled Buena Vista Social Club being recorded and unexpectedly gaining worldwide popularity. The German director Wim Wenders added fuel to this fire by filming the documentary of the same name, which was nominated for an Oscar. Since then, Buena Vista has been a constant and well-loved participant in every significant concert and festival in the world.
Today 13 people will take the stage, 5 of whom as from the original, legendary group: Guajiro Mirabal (trumpet), Jesús “Aguaje” Ramos (trombone, vocal), Manuel Galman (guitar, organ), Barbarito Torres (laoud) and the unforgettable singer Omara Portuondo.
The General Partner of the Festival:
Heineken International
Official Partners of the Festival:
The Phillips Company
The Lufthansa Company
General Informational Partners:
Radio Hermitage
Magazine TimeOut Petersburg
