News

14th Yerevan Perspectives International Music Festival to kick off tonight

11 April 2013

The Yerevan Perspectives International Music Festival will launch its 14th edition with a concert of the legendary Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra on 11 April in Yerevan at the Aram Khachaturian Concert Hall. This truly historical concert will be conducted by famous American conductor, 11 rimes Grammy awards winner Michael Tilson Thomas; soloist of the festive evening is greatest virtuoso pianist Yefim Bronfman. Yerevan Perspectives‘ high class concert season will present also the Shanghai Quartet, Yuri Bashmet‘s 60th jubilee concert with the Moscow Soloists Orchestra, bariton Dmitri Hvorostovsky and conductor Constantine Orbelian, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra with Vladimir Ashkenazy, to mention but a few of the remarkable concerts of the 2013 festival edition. The Yerevan Perspectives Festival is being held under high patronage of the President of the Armenian Republic Serzh Sargsyan. The Festival‘s founding President and Artistic Director is composer Stepan Rostomyan. The Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra was established in 1842. In 1860 the orchestra cooperated with important conductors, composers and soloists Otto Dessoff, Hans Richter, Richard Wagner, Giuseppe Verdi, Anton Bruckner, Johannes Brahms, Franz Liszt. In 1877 the Vienna Philharmonic had its first performance outside of Vienna at what was then known as the “Salzburg Musikfest” and it performed abroad for the first time at the World Exhibition in Paris in 1900 with Gustav Mahler conducting. The Philharmonic's close relationship to Richard Strauss, of course, is of great historical importance. Further musical highlights were artistic collaborations with Arturo Toscanini, the long-lasting cooperation with Wilhelm Furtwängler and – after 1945 – with honorary conductors Karl Böhm and Herbert von Karajan as well as the Vienna Philharmonic’s honorary member Leonard Bernstein. The orchestra has been a registered association since 1908. The Vienna Philharmonic has performed approximately 7000 concerts since his creation on all five continents, has participated in the Salzburg Festival since 1922, is permanently guest at the Festival Wiener Festwochen, the Mozart Week in Salzburg or the Lucerne Festival, has been presenting Vienna Philharmonic Weeks in New York since 1989 and in Japan since 1993. The orchestra organizes the New Year's Concert, which is broadcast internationally in over 70 countries, and the Summer Night Concert Schönbrunn in the unique ambience of the gardens of Schönbrunn palace, attended annually by up to 120,000 people. The programme of the concert of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra will present: Franz Schubert Overture “Rosamund”, Johannes Brahms Piano Concerto No. 2, Johannes Brams Piano Quartet No. 1 arranged by Arnold Schoenberg. Related links: • Public Radio of Armenia about Yerevan Perspectives International Music Festival