Press releases

VITEBSK, 12 March (BelTA) – Some 40 young pianists will take part in the first open regional competition for children Bach and 21st Century in Polotsk. The contest will be held as part of the 28th International Festival of Ancient and Modern Chamber Music to be hosted by the Belarusian city from 22 March till 28 April, BelTA learned from the Polotsk District Executive Committee.

The list of participants features young pianists from Polotsk, Novopolotsk, Brest, Grodno, Novolukoml, and Orsha. The organizers believe the contest will strengthen the cultural traditions of the region and give the children a chance to present their talents.

The contest Bach and 21st Century will start on 26 March with a concert by the chairman of the jury, Professor of the University of Music Franz Liszt Weimar Gerlinde Otto. The winners of the regional piano competition will perform in the final concert on 28 March.

The contest and the chamber music celebrations in Polotsk in general will mark the 330th anniversary of the birth of one of the greatest musicians Johann Sebastian Bach. The concert hall of the Saint Sophia Cathedral will host nine unforgettable performances with the participation of soloists and orchestras from Germany, Poland, Estonia, Belgium, Finland, and Belarus.

The participants of the international festival will include Christoph Hauser with chamber choir NotаBene from Munich and the Europe-Center Chamber Orchestra, Kseniya Pogorelaya, the Academic Choir and Symphony Orchestra of the Belarusian TV and Radio Company conducted by Erki Pehk from Estonia, violin virtuoso Tigran Maytesian, and many other remarkable musicians.