Ljubljana Life

The Ljubljana Summer Festival

A rich selection of musical events for everybody's taste.

by damjana l. simončič

The Ljubljana Summer Festival is once again opening its doors to the public. Now in its 55th year, the festival offers an enriching programme of diverse art forms from classical music and jazz concerts to operatic, ballet and theatre performances. World famous soloists, conductors, orchestras, directors and choreographers have taken part at this festival throughout many successful years, and this year there will be more than 70 events with artists from 23 countries.

Most performances will take place at the Križanke summer theatre, an architectural jewel and a rather unique complex designed by the famous Slovenian architect, Jože Plečnik. Other performances will also take place high above the city at the Ljubljana Castle, as well as at the traditional and more intimate Slovenian Philharmonic Hall, and also at the vast and modern Gallus Hall of the Cankarjev dom Centre.

The Ljubljana Summer Festival will be very generous to opera lovers this year. Six opera performances will greatly enrich the musical atmosphere of the metropolis during the long hot days of summer. The Festival will start (July 2nd, additional performances on July 4th and 5th) with the new co-production by the Ljubljana and Maribor Opera Theatres of Borodin's work Prince Igor. The Lithuanian National Opera will present Verdi's Aida (July 17th), Strauss' Salome (July 11) and in Ljubljana, the rarely performed and eagerly awaited masterpiece by Wagner, Die Walkyre (July 9). The Maribor Opera will perform its successful new production of Gounod's Faust on August 23. The Bolshoi State Academic Theatre from Moscow will present their new production of Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov on August 27, 28 and 29. And last but not least, on July 26 our world famous mezzo-soprano, Marjana Lipovšek, will, together with the soprano Eva Johnson and the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra, perform a concert of operatic arias and songs by Richard Wagner. Certainly a treat for all opera lovers!

Traditionally, the festival's greatest attention is focused on the concert programme, comprising symphonic and chamber music as well as solo recitals. Besides the two Slovenian orchestras, the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra and the RTV Slovenia Radio Symphony Orchestra, we will also hear the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra under the world renowned conductor Zubin Mehta on August 30^th, and on September 1st, the gala closing of the Ljubljana Summer Festival under the baton of George Pehlivanian, the chief conductor of the Slovenian Philharmonic. These two fine conductors will, each in their own way, seek to recreate the masterpieces of some of the worlds greatest musicians and composers.

On July 31^st the esteemed Polish composer and conductor Krzysztof Penderecki will appear with the Simfonietta Cracovia Orchestra. On July 23^rd, the famous young violinist Vadim Repin will perform the violin concerto by Felix Mendelssohn with the Vilnius Festival Orchestra. And on August 9th The Philharmonia Chorus from London will give a concert performance of Orff's Carmina Burana, a spectacular overview of Latin secular medieval songs.

Among other inviting and interesting performances we have to mention the Ballet of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino Festival (July 18 and 19) with choreographies on the works of Chopin, Stravinsky and Debussy, and the outstanding production of the Tesla Electric Company, a performance we've seen previously at last year's festival, as well as the Music of Dirty Dancing, a musical production of West End International Ltd. London.

Many chamber concerts, performed at the Ljubljana Castle and the Križanke Baroque Church, will be dedicated to performing some musical gems written for smaller ensembles where each member is a soloist, including the Leipzig String Quartet (August 13 and 14), the Mendelssohn Chamber Orchestra (July 25), the Kodaly String Quartet (August 20), the soloists of the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra (July 19), the Arman Trio (August 7), and many other musicians joined in various ensembles.

Among other noticeable events, the Ljubljana Summer Festival will offer its traditional open-air cinema at the Ljubljana Castle, as well as the 10th International Fine Arts Colony at Križanke, where painters from all over will contribute their creative works.