Programme:

Franz Schubert: Overture to the Melodrama The Magic Harp, D. 644

Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, Op. 58

Franz Schmidt: Symphony No. 3 in A major

 

The Slovak Philharmonic is undoubtedly one of the best orchestras in Central Europe! This is best evidenced by the most eminent conductors who have conducted the orchestra in recent decades (Claudio Abbado, Mariss Jansons, Sergiu Celibidache, Fabio Luisi, Kurt Masur or Charles Mackerras...). The orchestra's Chief Conductor Daniel Raiskin is one of the most prominent European conductors of the middle generation. He earned a degree in conducting from the world-famous Conservatory in his hometown of St. Petersburg, and continued improving his conducting skills at the Music Academies in Amsterdam and Freiburg. He is also Music Director of the famous Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, and was also Chief Conductor of the Rheinische Philharmonie State Orchestra from Koblenz, the Tenerife Symphony Orchestra and the Arthur Rubinstein Łódź Philharmonic. Young pianist Lovre Marušić is a rising star and a new bright name on the Croatian and European music scene, winner of prestigious piano competitions such as the Santa Cecilia International Competition in Porto and the International Music Festival in Paris. Lovre Marušić also won the silver medal at the prestigious piano competition in Cleveland in 2021, and this success opened the door for him to piano cycles in major concert halls in Europe and the rest of the world.  The concert of the Slovak Philharmonic will also be special for its programme, which will feature musical pieces of great beauty and artistic value that are not often included in classical concert programmes. They are Franz Schubert’s Overture to the melodrama The Magic Harp and Symphony No. 3 by one of the greatest composers of modern or fin de siècle music, Franz Schmidt, who was born in Bratislava. Schmidt's masterpiece, captivating in its romantic idyll and climaxes, is a true 'revelation' of symphonic music. In terms of monumentality, drama, passion, power of expression, orchestral effects and attractive musical language, his Third Symphony is close to Mahler's magnificent symphonies, with which it shares the same time of creation. Schubert's Overture is testimony to the Austrian master's unsurpassed melodic inspiration and sense of musical architecture. The highlight of the evening will be one of the most famous piano concertos in history - Beethoven's grand Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, Op. 58 interpreted by Lovre Marušić!