Warsaw Is Capital of Russian Music

What is the connection between the Academy award-winning “Peter and the Wolf” and “The Black Swan” with its Academy award-winning star Natalie Portman? What is the connection between “Romeo and Juliet” and “Star Trek”? What is the connection between Mel Gibson’s remarkable role in “Braveheart” and “Sheherezade”? And finally, what is the connection between Arnold Schwarzenegger’s classic “Conan the Barbarian” and… “The Flight of the Bumblebee”? Well, they all feature the ingenious works of the greatest Russian composers, such as Rimsky-Korsakov, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, Prokofiev, Stravinsky and Shostakovich, and they can all be heard in Warsaw in one week’s time.

On 28-30 September, for the third time, the Grand Theatre – National Opera in Warsaw will open its doors to a great crowd of both seasoned music lovers and to those, who are only taking their first steps in the realm of classical music, while Warsaw will become the capital of Russian music thanks to the “La Folle Journée – RUSSIA” international festival. The genius of the greatest Russian composers will be presented over three days by 950 artists from all over the world.

Szalone Dni MuzykiDuring the festival, the Grand Theatre abandons its usual rule for appearing at the opera in evening attire. The concerts – 60 this year – will take place in 4 rooms and in the festival tent set up in the Theatre Square. Especially for the occasion, the rooms of the Grand Theatre will take on the names of great Russian writers: the Moniuszko Auditorium will become Pushkin Hall, the back-stage area will take on the name of Dostoyevsky, the small auditorium will take on the name of Chekhov and the Redutowe Rooms will be named after Tolstoy. The festival tent, to which admission will be free, will bear the name of Gogol.

Thanks to the festival, all listeners will be able to become acquainted with the beautiful interiors of the Grand Theatre – National Opera. The 350 seat Dostoyevsky Hall is usually the backstage area of the main stage – full of secret passages, hidden nooks and crannies and beautiful interiors which all contribute to create a mysterious impression imbued with a fairy tale-like, almost mythical aura. Combined with excellent music, it is certain to cause shivers of excitement to run down everyone’s spine. That hall will mainly feature symphonic concerts, one of which will be played by the Polish Sinfonia Iuventus Orchestra under the direction of George Tchitchinadze performing Rimsky-Korsakov’s Sheherezade. Chamber ensembles will also play there, however, including Trio Wanderer and the Polish Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Jerzy Maksymiuk. Pianist Abdel Rahman El Bacha will perform Rachmaninov’s complete Preludes, and also Prokofiev’s 2nd Piano Concerto.

Aficionados of chamber music will likely spend much time in the Chekhov and Tolstoy rooms. The 250 seat Chekhov room will witness performances by Russian pianist Vadim Rudenko and by the duet of Bartosz Koziak (cello) and Justyna Danczowska (piano). It is also there that the Fairy Tale World of Russian Music will be experienced by the youngest listeners, aged 0 to 5 at special “Smykofonia” [“Toddler Philharmonic”] concerts.

The stage of Tolstoy Hall will witness performances by the Borodin Quartet, pianists Andrei Korobeinikov and Nikolai Lugansky, cellist Alexander Kniazev and, straight from St. Petersburg, the Russian Horns Orchestra directed by Sergei Polanichko.

The Gogol hall is the tent set up in Theatre Square. It can hold as many as 300 listeners and admission to concerts in the tent is free. It is here that we will mainly hear the Young Performers – the best ensembles from 10 music schools all over Poland. The famous Motion Trio will also perform in the tent. It is also here where we will be able to experience a definite must-see: a hip-hop rendition of the music of Stravinsky!

As in previous years, the concert programs and Polish and foreign artists will satisfy even seasoned music lovers, while the duration of each concert (45-60 minutes) and low ticket prices should encourage all those to attend, who’ve had little contact with classical music or who have resisted its charm.

Tickets priced at PLN 5, 7 and 10 are already on sale at the box office of the Grand Theatre – National Opera, on-line at www.teatrwielki.pl and www.ebilet.pl  and in e-Bilet locations. More information is available at www.2012.szalonednimuzyki.pl.
The organisers of the Festival in Poland extend a warm invitation to participate in a wonderful encounter with Russian classical music!

  • Festival organisers: Sinfonia Varsovia Orchestra, CREA (Centre de Réalisations et d’Études Artistiques à Nantes), the “Ogrody Muzyczne” Foundation with the participation of the Grand Theatre – National Opera, the French Institute in Warsaw and the Institute of Music and Dance
  • Honorary Patronage: President of the city of Warsaw, Ms. Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz, Minister of National Education, Ms. Krystyna Szumilas, the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, the Ambassador of France, Mr Pierre Buhler and the Ambassador of Russia, Mr Alexander Alekseev
  • Festival Sponsor: Auchan
  • Festival Partners: The Capital City of Warsaw, the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, the Sinfonia Varsovia Foundation, the Palace in Radziejowice, The Centre for Artistic Education, the Music is for Everyone Foundation, the French Embassy, JWT Warszawa, Blueberry, Carat, AMS, Cam Media, Digital Board, IDM net, SWOT, eBilet.pl, Renault, Silesia Music Center, Kawai, Weil Gotshal (?), Polservice, Mazowieckie Centre for Culture and Art, Stolica, ZAiKS
  • Chief Media Patron of the Festival: Radio RMF Classic
  • Media Patrons of the Festival: TVP 2, TVP Kultura, TVP Warszawa, Radio Kampus, Polityka, Gazeta Wyborcza, The Warsaw Voice, Culture.pl, Gazeta.pl Warszawa, Cameralmusic.pl

About La Folle Journée

La Folle Journée RUSSIA is the Polish edition of the international La Folle Journée festival, conceived and directed by René Martin – founder of festivals and organiser of many classical music concerts all over the world. Martin established the Centre de Realisations et d’Etudes Artistiques a Nantes (C.R.E.A.). The festival was held for the first time in Nantes, in 1995. Soon after annual editions of the festival moved to Portugal, Spain, Japan, Brazil and Poland. This international event has become so popular that in 2013 it will expand to include Canada and China, with more countries waiting in line to join. La Folle Journée is an exceptional encounter with music to which everyone is invited, without exception.

Previous Warsaw editions of La Folle Journée were devoted to the music of Chopin (“Chopin Open” in 2010), and Brahms, Mahler, Liszt, Strauss and Szymanowski (“Les Titans” in 2011). Each time, approximately 100 concerts performed by hundreds of artists from around the world were attended by an audience of nearly 30 000, while the accompanying educational events were attended by a total of 6 500 children from Warsaw’s primary schools. This year, La Folle Journée was preceded by “The Labyrinth Event.
www.follejournee.pl / www.2012.szalonednimuzyki.pl

Szalone Dni Muzyki
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