Press releases

The 26^th festival will be dedicated to the 30^th anniversary of the concert hall and will run for a month and a half. It will bring together prominent artists from Belarus, Russia, Lithuania, Estonia, France, Israel, Argentina and Cuba. According to the tradition, the festival will be opened by the symphony orchestra and academic choir of the National State TV and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus. The concert will feature leading Lithuanian soloists Raminta Vaicekauskaite, Algirdas Janutas, and People’s Artist of Lithuania Vladimiras Prudnikovas. Conducted by Erki Pehk (Estonia) they will present the program: J. Haydn Oratorio "The Seasons".

On 10 April the Glinka State String Quartet, one of the best chamber companies of Russia, will team up with Yuri Medianik, a unique multi-instrumentalist, to present an unusual program: “Musicians Smile”.

The playbill also features the Smolensk guitar ensemble Amicus, boys’ capella of the republican college of music at the Belarusian State Academy of Music, outstanding pianist, Honored Artist of Belarus Yury Gildyuk and famous violinist, Honored Artist of Russia Stepan Yakovich. The organ music concert by Peirre Zhyvo will include the music by prominent French composers of the 17^th -20^th centuries.

The May program is no less fascinating. On 6 May a concert will be dedicated to the World Organ Day which this year marks the 850^th anniversary of Notre Dame de Paris, and will be celebrated in different halls and churches around the world.

The organist of the Concert Hall of St. Sophia Cathedral Kseniya Pogorelaya and the Chamber Orchestra "Europe-Center" conducted by Rayil Sadykov will play organ classics, the music by the composers who served as organists at Notre Dame de Paris, the best pieces for organ and chamber orchestra. On 10 May music lovers will enjoy jazz and musicals. The famous Israeli group Веllamiya will play spirituals by George and pieces from popular Broadway musicals.

An evening of lyrical sentimental songs performed by soloists and the state choir of the Republic of Belarus named after Shirma will bring together fans of vocal music on May 16. The next day the three world renowned soloists David Ghvinianidze, Sergei Plyusnin and Yuri Zalzman will do a tribute to the great singer Muslim Magomayev.

The finale of the festival will be a concert titled as Latin American Prints on 18 May, the International Museum Day. On this evening the brilliant Cuban virtuoso pianist Luis Lugo accompanied by Argentine singer Jessica Milner will present classic examples of popular Latin American melodies and Argentine tango.