Christmas Festival. Schuberts Symphony No. 5 and Violin Concerto by Mendelssohn

Performers: Kristīne Balanas (violin), Latvian National Symphony Orchestra, conductor Guntis Kuzma

Programme:

Part I

Gioacchino ROSSINI (1792–1868)
Overture to the “Barber of Seville"

Franz SCHUBERT (1797–1828)
Symphony No. 5 in B flat major, D. 485.

I Allegro
II Andante con moto
III Menuetto. Allegro molto
IV Allegro vivace I. Allegro molto appassionato

Part II

Wolfgang Amadeus MOZART (1765–1791)
Six German Dances KV 571

Felix MENDELSSOHN (1809–1847)
Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64

I Allegro molto appassionato
II Andante
III Allegretto non troppo – Allegro molto vivace

Violin solo Kristīne Balanas

ABOUT THE PERFORMERS:

KRISTĪNE BALANAS, violin

Described by The Times as a musician of ‘eye-popping virtuosity’, Latvian violinist KRISTĪNE BALANAS is one of the fastest rising talents on the international scene and was recently recognised as Young Artist of the Year in the prestigious Grand Music Awards of her home country.

The 2018–19 season - debuts with Das Sinfonie Orchester Berlin in the Berliner Philharmonie, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Camerata Jerusalem Israel, Tatarstan National Symphony Orchestra, the Sichuan Symphony Orchestra and the Liepāja Symphony Orchestra on a nationwide tour; return to the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra; and appear in recitals across Germany, Italy, Israel, Latvia, Greece, France – at the Festival Radio France Occitaine Montpellier alongside her cellist sister – and the UK, where she is artist in residence at this summer’s Presteigne Festival.

Kristīne has appeared as a soloist with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre de Chambre de Paris (directing from the violin), European Union Symphony Orchestra, Moscow Soloists under Yuri Bashmet, Latvian National Symphony Orchestra, Polish Chamber Philharmonic, Sinfonietta Rīga, amongst others, under conductors including Ainārs Rubiķis, Rory MacDonald and Gad Kadosh. A regular guest soloist on Latvian National Radio Recitals, Kristīne has also performed on BBC Radio 3’s In Tune and BBC One’s The One Show and given recitals at the Purcell Room, St John’s Smith Square and Kings Place. A tireless advocate of contemporary and lesser-known repertoire, Kristīne premiered David Coonan’s Violin Concerto and gave the UK premiere of Weinberg’s Violin Concerto and Romanian premiere of Pēteris Vasks’ Violin Concerto Distant Light. As a chamber musician, Kristīne has collaborated with Maxim Vengerov, Vadim Gluzman, Boris Garlitsky, Roland Krueger and Rudiger Lotter.

Kristīne is a graduate of the Royal Academy of Music, where she studied under György Pauk, and Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler, under Kolja Blacher, and she continues to be mentored by Leonidas Kavakos.

She performs on a 1787 Antonio Gragnani violin, kindly loaned to her by The Little Butterfly Foundation through the Beare’s International Violin Society.

THE LATVIAN NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA (LNSO)

The LNSO is one of the valuable assets of the classical music scene in Latvia. It is a team of highly professional musicians with strong traditions, generous sound and devoted performance. The LNSO mainly focuses on 19th- and 20th-century orchestral masterpieces, classical and contemporary works by Latvian composers and occasionally concert performances of operas or musicals. The orchestra pays great attention to educational children and youth programmes. For several years, it has successfully performed a series of chamber music programmes, and since 2015 it celebrates the end of the summer with the new festival LNSO Summer House.

Since November 2013, the music director of the LNSO is Andris Poga.

GUNTIS KUZMA, conductor

Guntis Kuzma is the LNSO’s conductor since the 2014/2015 season. Successful leadership in concerts with the LNSO, multiple collaborations with the Sinfonietta Rīga and Sinfonia concertante orchestra, the Liepāja SO, the JVLMA Orchestra, and the Latvian Festival Orchestra in summer, 2018. Guntis Kuzma and the LNSO’s performance of Ādolfs Skulte’s Symphony No. 5 received great praise in the Grand Concert of Latvian Symphony Music in January, 2018. Assistant professor and head of the Woodwind Instrument Class at the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music. LNSO’s principal clarinet from 2008 to 2014. Principal clarinet of the Sinfonietta Rīga since the orchestra’s formation in 2006 until 2015. Enjoys performing in chamber music projects; a fan of contemporary music, he has performed the clarinet in premieres of several new works. Nominated for Latvia’s Grand Music Award 2012 For Outstanding Work in an Ensemble.

 
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