December 13, 2021| Tchaikovsky Concert Hall
Subscription Series no. 24: “Images”. Tribute to Evgeny Svetlanov
“Birds”
Conductor – Pierre Bleuse (France)
Haydn. Symphony No. 83 in G minor, “The Hen” (La poule)
Ravel. “My Mother Goose” (Ma mère l'Oye) , suite for orchestra
Respighi. “Birds” (Gli uccelli), suite for small orchestra
Stravinsky. Suite from the ballet “Firebird” (1919)
In January 2022 the Moscow Philharmonic Society will celebrate its centenary. Many musicians, casting a glance onto the past, are reviving historical premieres and programs once presented on the Philharmonic stage. The “Images” subscription of the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Russia, dedicated to Evgeny Svetlanov, is one of the most extensive series of this kind.
The collective directed by Vladimir Spivakov got inspired by the philharmonic cycle of the same name carried out by the eminent conductor in the 1992/1993 season. Each of the five concerts of the State Orchestra led by Svetlanov had a distinct theme: “A Nook in France”, “Friends Meet Again”, “Sea”, “Birds” and “The Universe”. They offered unusual juxtapositions and unexpected angles, and included many repertoire rarities. The concert which is opening the NPR subscription series fully evokes the program played on December 27, 1992.
The concert will be conducted by French maestro Pierre Bleuse who made his NPR debut in 2019. He works with top French orchestras and many well-known collectives in Europe and the USA, regularly conducts at the Opéra de Lyon, is one of the co-founders of the Lemanic Modern Ensemble. Since the 2021/2022 season Pierre Bleuse is the chief conductor of the Odense Symphony Orchestra (Denmark) and artistic director of the Pablo Casals Festival in Prades (France), while in the 2023/2024 he will head the famous Ensemble intercontemporain.
The dedication of the subscription series to Evgeny Svetlanov is not casual. Vladimir Spivakov considers the outstanding Russian conductor to be one of his lodestars: 'He is of those great artists who are erecting “miraculous monuments”, mentioned by Pushkin, to themselves during their lives. Svetlanov's discography, his “Anthology of Russian Symphony Music” is unique in the current music history and performing practice, it is a tour de force which I hardly can compare with anything else... Svetlanov extended the space of music, especially Russian. He gave useful advices, shared the secrets of his mastership, one of his most precious covenants being to think in advance so that to comprehend the whole structure of a musical score, similar to a mother's perception of her baby before it is born.'