THE MARIINSKY PROJECT

The Mariinsky Theatre, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, April 09

VWM, Ibermúsica and the Mariinsky Theatre have an ongoing partnership to bring the Mariinsky’s unique opera and ballet productions to the Teatro Pérez Galdós in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria which began in 2007 with Wagner’s Ring under the baton of its Artistic Director, Valery Gergiev. Episode III of the project commenced in April 2009 with Gergiev conducting performances of Shostakovich's Lady Macbeth. The controversial work released in 1934 was subsequently banned by the Soviet regime for almost 30 years but has since been acknowledged as one of opera's most powerful masterpieces. More on Episode III | Episodes I and II.

CITY OF DREAMS: VIENNA 1900 - 1935
Esa-Pekka Salonen, Mitsuko Uchida, Christian Tetzlaff /
Philharmonia Orchestra: February 2009 - October 2009
A major multi-disciplinary project exploring the music and culture of Vienna between 1900 and 1935. The project presented the music of Mahler, Schoenberg, Zemlinsky and Berg in its historical and social context, as well as in the context of the art, craft, design, architecture, literature, philosophy and science of the period. Over 9 months Esa-Pekka Salonen and the Philharmonia Orchestra performed concerts in more than 20 cities worldwide, alongside chamber concerts, lectures, film screenings, education events and a major series of online resources, bringing together specialists and materials from the most significant international collections.

OSM 75TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR
Kent Nagano / Orchestre symphonique de Montréal: Spring 2009

VWM organised a tour with Kent Nagano and the splendid and much recorded Orchestre symphonique de Montréal to take place in April 2009. Kent became Music Director of the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal from the 2006/07 season and 2009 marks the orchestra's 75th Anniversary year. This was Kent Nagano's first major European tour with his new orchestra and has attracted substantial international publicity. Participating cities included Baden-Baden, Barcelona, Hamburg, Luxembourg, Madrid, Paris, Valencia, Vienna and Zagreb. The ambitious and wide-ranging programme included works to showcase the orchestra's versatility and virtuosity: Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique, Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde (soloists Klaus Florian Vogt and Christian Gerhaher), Strauss: Ein Alpensinfonie and Bartók: Suite from the Miraculous Mandarin, alongside works by Mendelssohn, Tan Dun and Debussy. The Orchestra will return to Europe in the summer of 2011 for a festivals' tour. To read the reviews click here