Rotterdam Philharmonic Gergiev Festival 2019
Rotterdam Philharmonic Gergiev Festival 2019
The 2019 Gergiev Festival, from 12 to 15 September 2019, is devoted entirely to Paris, the city of love, light and music. From the Baroque to Stravinsky, this edition of the festival features the rich musical history of France.
When Valery Gergiev became Principal Conductor in 1995 he and the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra decided to hold an ambitious multi-day musical event. One year later, they presented the Rotterdam Philharmonic Gergiev Festival.
What began in 1996 as a themed concert series grew into a large-scale music festival. The 2001 edition was a major milestone, because it adopted a multi-disciplinary format to spotlight Shostakovich and his War Symphonies. In 2003 the Festival chose a ‘difficult composer’ in Prokofiev, but thanks to the wide range of programmes it managed to attract a record number of visitors. Further successes were achieved in the festival featuring Tchaikovsky (2004) and the edition entitled Fin-de-siècle Icons (2005) with music including works by Wagner and Strauss.
In 2006 the Festival entered its second decade, with Freedom as its motto. There was now no focus on a particular composer or musical period, but a theme that gives every opportunity to place the music in a wider context. This course continued with Night of Love, Heaven and Earth, Eternal Youth and a trio of festivals about Rotterdam: Resurrection (2010), Sea & the City (2011) and Sea & You (2012). In 2013 the festival celebrated Valery Gergiev’s 25-year connection with the city and in 2014 the theme was The First World War.
In 2014 the festival opted for a new format concentrated into a long weekend. Once again the principal actors (Valery Gergiev and the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra) and their unique chemistry took centre stage. This new format was very well received by the audiences. The 2015 (Rachmaninov), 2016 (Prokofiev) and 2017 (The Russian Avant-Garde) festivals were very well attended; the highlights included the piano marathons, children’s concerts and the collaboration with the Symphony Orchestra of Codarts & the Royal Conservatoire.
Party time! Later this year the theme of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Gergiev Festival will be the 30-year relationship between Valery Gergiev and Rotterdam.
At the age of 35, Valery Gergiev made his debut in Rotterdam in 1988. The concert was a triumph for both conductor and orchestra. When he appeared again in Rotterdam in the last week of November even more sparks flew. After the performance of the Shostakovich Fifth Symphony the audience burst into thunderous applause, wrote NRC Handelsblad. Now, 30 years later, the festival celebrates this unique bond between conductor and orchestra – a bond that is characterised by intense musicianship. The three concerts in the main auditorium show exactly what Gergiev excels in. You can see Gergiev as an opera conductor, as a conductor of major symphonic works and as a proponent of new Russian music.
In fact it’s a double jubilee, as the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra is now 100 years old. So an all-round programme is called for.
About the Rotterdam Philharmonic Gergiev Festival
When Valery Gergiev became Principal Conductor in 1995 he and the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra decided to hold an ambitious multi-day musical event. One year later, they presented the Rotterdam Philharmonic Gergiev Festival.
What began in 1996 as a themed concert series grew into a large-scale music festival. The 2001 edition was a major milestone, because it adopted a multi-disciplinary format to spotlight Shostakovich and his War Symphonies. In 2003 the Festival chose a ‘difficult composer’ in Prokofiev, but thanks to the wide range of programmes it managed to attract a record number of visitors. Further successes were achieved in the festival featuring Tchaikovsky (2004) and the edition entitled Fin-de-siècle Icons (2005) with music including works by Wagner and Strauss.
In 2006 the Festival entered its second decade, with Freedom as its motto. There was now no focus on a particular composer or musical period, but a theme that gives every opportunity to place the music in a wider context. This course continued with Night of Love, Heaven and Earth, Eternal Youth and a trio of festivals about Rotterdam: Resurrection (2010), Sea & the City (2011) and Sea & You (2012). In 2013 the festival celebrated Valery Gergiev’s 25-year connection with the city and in 2014 the theme was The First World War.
In 2014 the festival opted for a new format concentrated into a long weekend. Once again the principal actors (Valery Gergiev and the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra) and their unique chemistry took centre stage. This new format was very well received by the audiences. The 2015 (Rachmaninov), 2016 (Prokofiev) and 2017 (The Russian Avant-Garde) festivals were very well attended; the highlights included the piano marathons, children’s concerts and the collaboration with the Symphony Orchestra of Codarts & the Royal Conservatoire.
Party time! Later this year the theme of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Gergiev Festival will be the 30-year relationship between Valery Gergiev and Rotterdam.
At the age of 35, Valery Gergiev made his debut in Rotterdam in 1988. The concert was a triumph for both conductor and orchestra. When he appeared again in Rotterdam in the last week of November even more sparks flew. After the performance of the Shostakovich Fifth Symphony the audience burst into thunderous applause, wrote NRC Handelsblad. Now, 30 years later, the festival celebrates this unique bond between conductor and orchestra – a bond that is characterised by intense musicianship. The three concerts in the main auditorium show exactly what Gergiev excels in. You can see Gergiev as an opera conductor, as a conductor of major symphonic works and as a proponent of new Russian music.