Tagged with 'composers'

There is a distinct magic to Snape Maltings in June. The Suffolk reed beds shimmer, the North Sea breeze carries a quiet creative energy, and the legacy of Benjamin Britten feels entirely alive. But this June, the 77th Aldeburgh Festival carries an even deeper resonance. Marking 50 years since Britten’s passing, the festival is honouring its founder’s vision of the "complete musician”, and they have found the perfect modern embodiment in Ryan Wigglesworth.

Schott Music New York has signed a representation agreement with the Wayne Shorter Estate. This will make the concertante and symphonic works of the influential jazz master available for performance by orchestras and ensembles worldwide.

The breath carries Michael Tippett’s Symphony No. 4 through seven fluid movements, his last symphony, tracing life’s journey from “birth to death”.  Look out for Andrew Davis conducting the BBC Philharmonic at the BBC Proms on 19 July 2022!

The discord between composer and poet during the conception of an opera happens to the best of us, with Richard Strauss no exception. Ironically, he addresses this balance of forces within an operatic work, namely Capriccio.

Hibernation in summer? – In Sebastian Hilli's new composition Hibernation, the term "hibernation" represents not an external, but an internal "cold spell". On July 7, 2022, Hibernation will be performed in Viitasaari, Finland as part of the Time of Music Festival. The International Ensemble Modern Academy will be conducted by Alexander Sinan Binder, with video projections by Jenny Jokela.

A psychological thriller on the opera stage – the opera Die Teufel von Loudun by Krzysztof Penderecki could certainly receive such an introduction. On June 27, 2022, the piece will premiere in a new production by Simon Stone at the Bayerische Staatsoper, with Vladimir Jurowski as musical director.

“We want to be in your gang!” – That’s likely what Schiller’s robbers would have said to their captain Karl Moor if they had lived in the 21st century. In Ludger Vollmer’s opera for young people, Schillers Räuber, they use these exact words. The play will premiere at the Stadttheater in Hildesheim on June 25, 2022. Achim Falkenhausen takes charge of musical direction, Oliver Pauli is director and Alaz Deniz Köymen, choreographer.

Carmina Burana by Carl Orff is undoubtedly among the most popular symphonic choral works. Paul Leonhard Schäffer’s new reduced version offers smaller ensembles the opportunity to perform this large-scale work, whilst maintaining the “original sound”. Schäffer’s version will be heard for the first time on June 19, 2022 in Visp, Switzerland, performed by both Oberwalliser Vokalensemble and the Chaarts Ensemble, conducted by Hansruedi Kampfen. A further performance will follow on June 25, 2022 in Boswil.

Hope will never be silent. This is the credo of civil rights activist and politician Harvey Milk, the main character in Stewart Wallace’s opera Harvey Milk Reimagined. The work will receive its world premiere at Opera Saint Louis, Missouri, conducted by Carolyn Kuan in collaboration with stage directors Seán Curran and James Robinson.

The eternal ice is no more: The climate crisis leaves its marks even at the coldest and southernmost spots on earth. In their new opera Antarctica, Australian composer Mary Finsterer and her librettist Tom Wright paint a picture of a changing continent. The new piece will be premiered on 5 June 2022 at Holland Festival with Asko|Schoenberg Ensemble, conducted by Jack Symonds. Director Imara Savage and her team are responsible for the scenic realization at Amsterdam’s Muziekgebouw aan ’t  IJ.