World-class musicians from five countries will perform at the classical music festival in Vitebsk

November 27, Vitebsk / Sergey Kochetov - BELTA /. World-class performers from Belarus, Russia, Finland, Sweden, and the Netherlands will take part in the XXI International Music Festival named after I. Sollertinsky, which will be held from December 3 to 24 in Vitebsk. This was announced today at a press conference by Stanislav Generalnitsky, chief specialist of the culture department of the regional executive committee, reports a BELTA correspondent. This year, the organizers have prepared a lot of surprises for classical music lovers, who gather in the regional center during the forum from all regions of the country. This year's festival program is rich in both world-class performers who will perform on the Vitebsk stage for the first time, and in the works of classics that will also be heard for the first time in the concert hall of the Vitebsk Philharmonic. "The festival's repertoire policy is gradually becoming more complex, but this is happening consciously - Vitebsk has an enlightened, interested audience. The Vitebsk listener is ready to perceive quite complex musical compositions," emphasized Stanislav Generalnitsky. In addition, the Vitebsk Philharmonic, with the support of the regional executive committee, has acquired a numbered Steinway grand piano. This is the best instrument in Belarus, thanks to which it has become possible to invite world-class musicians, he added. The festival will open with a performance by one of the most sought-after Russian pianists on the world stage, international competition laureate Nikolai Lugansky. The musician is coming to Vitebsk for only 8 hours; he has a window between concerts in London and Japan. For the Vitebsk festival, this is a great stroke of luck, as negotiations with this performer lasted three years, noted Stanislav Generalnitsky. The interlocutor called the participation of one of the best and most famous Finnish pianists, Juha Lagerspetz, who will give only two concerts during his trip - in Vitebsk, and then in St. Petersburg - another success for the organizers. The organizers decided to bring back the quartet genre to the program - for the first time at the festival, one of the world's best string quartets, the "St. Petersburg" Quartet, will perform. Another festival premiere will take place at the traditional symphony music concert for the forum. For the first time, the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of the Republic of Belarus, conducted by State Prize laureate of Belarus, Honored Artist of Russia Alexander Anisimov, will be a participant in the festival. The renowned ensemble will bring a program to Vitebsk together with the international competition laureate, a graduate of the Belarusian performing school, Yuri Blinov (piano), and the soloist of the Rostov-on-Don State Musical Theater, one of the best opera sopranos, Irina Krikunova. Organ music will be presented by a concert by the eminent Swedish organist Hans Fagius. He will introduce the Vitebsk audience to the Swedish performing school for the first time; the concert will feature works by contemporary Swedish performers. An unusual musical experiment has been prepared for the listeners by the well-known domestic ensemble of soloists "Classic-Avant-garde," which stood at the origins of the Vitebsk festival and is its permanent participant. The musicians will bring a program to Vitebsk entirely dedicated to the music of George Gershwin, together with the young Belarusian pop singer Daria. The classical music forum in Vitebsk is the only chamber music festival in Belarus that synthesizes various forms of art. The main task of the forum is to promote contemporary musical art and the traditions of classical musical heritage, to revive the great cultural traditions of Vitebsk, and to discover new and revive forgotten names in various fields of art. The organizers of the International Music Festival named after I. Sollertinsky are the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee and the state concert institution "Vitebsk Regional Philharmonic." -0-