Next year will see the 8th edition of the Winter Festival, organised by the Ljubljana Festival, which is set to open in grand style on 20 February 2025 with the first of two performances of Britten’s War Requiem and will continue with concerts by world-class musicians at Cankarjev Dom, the Slovenian Philharmonic Hall and the Knights’ Hall at Križanke. Coinciding with this edition of the Winter Festival will be the Ljubljana Festival International Competition – Brass Quintets and Quartets 2025. World-renowned pianist Grigory Sokolov will close the festival on 2 March 2025 with a performance that promises to be an unforgettable experience.
A MAGNIFICENT OPENING WITH BENJAMIN BRITTEN’S WAR REQUIEM
The 8th Winter Festival will open on 20 and 21 February with two performances of the monumental War Requiem by the English composer Benjamin Britten. Scored for choirs, soloists and orchestra, the War Requiem is one of the most powerful and emotionally charged musical works of the twentieth century. Written for the consecration of the new Coventry Cathedral – built to replace its fourteenth-century predecessor, destroyed during the Second World War – the War Requiem juxtaposes the text of the Latin Requiem Mass with extra-liturgical poems by the English war poet Wilfred Owen, offering a vivid portrayal of the horrors of war. A committed pacifist, Britten created an important anti-war message with this work, one that still resonates today in a world that is once again torn by wars.
The War Requiem will be performed by the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra under legendary conductor Charles Dutoit. Soprano Nadezhda Pavlova, tenor Ian Bostridge and acclaimed baritone Matthias Goerne will be the soloists. The Slovenian Philharmonic Choir will be joined by the Kaunas State Choir and the famous Vienna Boys’ Choir.
Programme:
Benjamin Britten: War Requiem, Op. 66
(20–21 February, Cankarjev Dom, 6.00 pm)
LJUBLJANA FESTIVAL INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION – BRASS QUARTETS AND QUINTETS 2025
The Winter Festival will coincide with the Ljubljana Festival International Competition – Brass Quartets and Quintets 2025, open to young musicians and ensembles from all over the world. Following last year’s extremely successful piano competition, the focus of attention now turns to brass quartets and quintets. The brass quintet, consisting of two trumpets, French horn, trombone or euphonium, and tuba, first appeared in the nineteenth century but it was not until after the Second World War that it established itself as a formal chamber ensemble, thanks to celebrated American quintets such as the New York Brass Quintet. The brass quartet, on the other hand, encompasses various combinations of trumpets, trombones, horns, tubas and euphoniums.
The focus of the repertoire to be performed at the competition will be on modernist, postmodernist and contemporary works. The Ljubljana Festival has commissioned a new work for the occasion from Nina Šenk, one of Slovenia’s most prominent female composers, who will also be a member of the judging panel. Chaired by Branimir Slokar, the competition’s artistic director, the international judging panel will also include trumpeter Reinhold Friedrich, tuba player Andreas Martin Hofmeir (both from Germany) and Croatian hornist Radovan Vlatković.
The competition will take place from 24 February to 1 March 2025 at the Slovenian Philharmonic Hall in Ljubljana. The deadline for submitting the complete application is 1 November 2024. Application forms can be found here.
(24 February–1 March, Slovenian Philharmonic Hall)
THE HARP AND A JOURNEY THROUGH MUSICAL HISTORY
Next up is a duo performance by harpists Mojca Zlobko Vajgl and Marion Ravot on 25 February. Mojca Zlobko Vajgl is Slovenia’s best known and internationally most acclaimed harpist. Over the course of her long career she has inspired the creation of numerous new works by Slovene composers, while at the same time teaching new generations of harpists at the Ljubljana Academy of Music. She devotes particular attention to chamber music and has frequently performed in a duo with Marion Ravot, a brilliant French harpist who has worked with some of the world’s most renowned orchestras, including the Berlin Philharmonic, the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic.
The concert programme will present a journey through musical history, with a particular focus on French works from the Romantic and Impressionist periods, which saw the harp elevated to the ranks of the most refined and colourful instruments. The programme also includes baroque dances, which will take on a new light when performed on the harp. Finally, the Slovene composer Aldo Kumar has created a new work especially for this occasion which will have its very first audience at this concert.
Programme:
Georg Frideric Handel: Suite in C minor, HWV 446 (arr. for two harps by Thurston Dart) Marcel Tournier: Four Preludes for two harps
Aldo Kumar: New work for two harps
Gabriel Fauré: Impromptu No. 6 in D-flat major, Op. 86
Jean-Philippe Rameau: Suite in A minor, RCT 1
César Franck: Prelude, Fugue and Variation, Op. 18 (arr. for two harps by Dewey Owens)
Bernard Andrès: Parvis for two harps
(25 February, Knights’ Hall, Križanke, 7.30 pm)
BACH’S CHORALES
On Wednesday, 26 February the Slovenian Philharmonic Hall will host Marko Hatlak and his ensemble as they perform a very special programme dedicated to the philosophical profundity and spiritual purity of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. Accompanied by a select group of musicians, artistic director and accordion virtuoso Hatlak explores Bach’s music and invites the audience to experience the magnificent harmony of existence. Also appearing at the concert will be the Mixed Choir of the Glasbena Matica Ljubljana directed by Jerica Bukovec, opera singers Bernarda Fink (mezzo-soprano) and Marcos Fink (bass-baritone), Eva-Nina Kozmus (flute), Aleksandra Pavlovič (piano), Jelena Pejić (violin) and Stevan Jovanović (double bass). The programme includes chorales and instrumental masterpieces from Bach’s most famous works, including the St Matthew Passion and the Goldberg Variations, which through their rich choral and instrumental expression reveal Bach’s timeless musical greatness.
Programme:
Johann Sebastian Bach:
Nun komm der Heiden Heiland, BWV 659
St Matthew Passion, BWV 244
Concerto for two harpsichords in C major, BWV 1061
St Matthew Passion, BWV 244
Ich habe genug, BWV 82
Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben, BWV 147
Goldberg Variations, BWV 988
(26 February, Slovenian Philharmonic Hall, 7.30 pm)
ZAGREB’S MAGNIFICENT MUSICAL GIANTS
Established more than 70 years ago, the Zagreb Soloists are one of the world’s best-known chamber ensembles, having performed on every continent and in the most prestigious concert halls. On Thursday, 27 February we will have an opportunity to hear them in concert in Ljubljana at the Slovenian Philharmonic Hall, with a programme of works by great composers: the String Symphony No. 10 in B minor by Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, the Simple Symphony by Benjamin Britten, the emotive Adagietto from Gustav Mahler’s Fifth Symphony and the iconic Serenade for Strings in C major by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The ensemble’s Ljubljana concert will cover a broad spectrum of musical styles, from classical elegance to profound emotional tones, that will captivate aficionados of chamber music and offer an excellent insight into the diverse repertoire and musical virtuosity of an ensemble that has given almost 4,000 concerts all over the world to date.
Programme:
Felix Mendelssohn: String Symphony No. 10 in B minor, MWV N 10
Benjamin Britten: Simple Symphony, Op. 4
Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 5 (arr. for string chamber orchestra by Sreten Krstić)
***
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Serenade for Strings in C major, Op. 48
(27 February, Slovenian Philharmonic Hall, 7.30 pm)
CLOSING RECITAL: GRIGORY SOKOLOV
World-renowned pianist Grigory Sokolov, acclaimed as one of the greatest living pianists and celebrated for his poetic interpretations and incredible technical mastery, will take the stage at Cankarjev Dom at 7.30 pm on Sunday, 2 March 2025. Sokolov began studying the piano when he was five years old and won the gold medal at the International Tchaikovsky Competition at the age of sixteen, marking himself out as one of the most important musicians of his generation. His recitals cover a broad repertoire, ranging from baroque transcriptions to masterpieces by composers such as Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, Brahms and Rachmaninov. For his Ljubljana concert he is preparing a programme that will reveal the deep spiritual dimension of music and highlight Sokolov’s ability to elevate even the best-known works to an entirely new level through his interpretation. Sokolov is famous for the total dedication he brings to every concert he plays, which includes studying the mechanism of the piano on which he is to perform, in this way establishing a unique connection between performer and instrument. His art transcends mere technical brilliance as he draws the audience into a profound and intimate experience that reveals the hidden layers of the works he performs. This exceptional concert will also be the closing concert of the 8th Winter Festival.
(2 March, Cankarjev Dom, 7.30 pm)
Tickets are already on sale at ljubljanafestival.si, the Križanke box office, petrol stations and other Eventim outlets. Ljubljana Festival Club members are entitled to a 20% discount during the presale period (which lasts until 16 November for the above events) and a 10% discount after tickets go on general sale. These discounts do not apply to the performances of the War Requiem. You can join the Ljubljana Festival Club by clicking here.
Thank you for your interest in the Ljubljana Festival programme.
The Ljubljana Festival reserves the right to modify the programme.
More information at ljubljanafestival.si.
Information / Public relations
Tina Berk
Tel.: +386 (0)1 241 60 20
tina.berk@ljubljanafestival.si
Petra Kavaš
+386 (0)1 241 60 18
trzenje3@ljubljanafestival.si
ljubljanafestival.si
www.facebook.com/ljubljanafestival
www.instagram.com/ljubljanafestival
www.youtube.com/user/TheFestivalLjubljana
www.linkedin.com/company/festival-ljubljana
www.tiktok.com/@ljubljanafestival
The founder of the Ljubljana Festival is the City of Ljubljana, which also provides financial support. Member of the European Festivals Association (EFA) since 1977.
General sponsor: Sava zavarovalnica, d.d.
General media sponsor: Delo, d.o.o.
Sponsor: Zavarovalnica Triglav, d.d.
Media sponsors: Europlakat, Ljubljana Airport, Radio Center, Radio 1, NET TV
Transport partners: LPP d.o.o.
Official wine supplier: Vina Koper, d.o.o.