As part of the “Great Works Cycle,” the Madeira Classical Orchestra, has invited the brilliant violin soloist Haik Kazazyan, and conductor José Eduardo Gomes to perform at a concert on the 20th of May at the Madeira Congress Centre. The concert starts at 18:00 and is billed as an extraordinary performance where Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 will be interpreted and, in a European premiere, the Concerto for Violin and Orchestra will perform “The Jacob’s Dream” by Baruch Berliner.
“Symphony No. 7, in musical terms, represents the new direction that Beethoven gave to symphonic music. The extraordinary rhythmic unity that drives the entire symphony, especially the second movement, makes this one of the most beautiful Beethoven musical moments of inspiration. It is due to its rhythmic unity, harmonic conjugation, structural balance, and mastery of compositional techniques that make this Symphony, in the opinion of several authors, Beethoven’s best.
The European premiere of Baruch Berliner’s Concerto for Violin and Orchestra, “The Jacob’s Dream,” is inspired by the famous biblical story portrayed in the Old Testament, more specifically in the book of Genesis (28:10-22), where he describes that, after fleeing a fight with his brother Esau, Jacob arrived at a certain place and decided to spend the night there; with his head resting on a stone that served as his pillow, and, sleeping under the starry sky, he saw a ladder that went from earth to heaven and that the angels of God went up and down it. At the top of the stairs was the Lord who said to him, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham and your father Isaac. This land on which you are lying is yours. I will give it to you and your descendants. For thou shalt have as many descendants as the dust of the earth; they will cover the earth from East to West and North to South. And all the nations of the earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. And even more, I am with you and will protect you wherever you go; I will bring you safely to this earth again. I will be with you at all times in order to give you all that I am promising you.” And it is this dream that inspired Baruch Berliner so much.
Violinist Haik Kazazyan, considered one of the most prominent young violinists of his generation, is regularly invited to perform in many countries with renowned orchestras and musicians, and his concerts are held on major international stages. Haik will perform the Concerto for Violin and Orchestra, “The Jacob’s Dream,” as one of the violinists. He is also part of Baruch Berliner’s International “Genesis” Project team.
In this concert, the Orchestra will be conducted by Maestro José Eduardo Gomes, who was recently awarded the 1st Prize in the European Union Conducting Competition, having also won the Beethoven Prize in the same competition. He is the principal conductor of the Classical Orchestra of FEUP and Professor at the Superior School of Music and Performing Arts of Porto, where he works with various Orchestras. In 2018, he was awarded the Medal of Cultural Merit by the City of V.N. Famalicão.
It should be noted that this concert will also be attended by the Israeli composer Baruch Berliner who will be for the first time in the Autonomous Region of Madeira, to accompany the rehearsals and attend the concert. Baruch Berliner was born in Tel-Aviv in 1942. As a child, he grew up in Viennese culture, to the tune of Johann Strauss, Franz Lehar, and Emmerich Kalman. In his youth, he was a pupil of Oeden Partos, who was director of the Tel Aviv Academy of Music and winner of the Israel Prize. Composer Berliner completed school in Berlin and academic studies in theoretical physics at the University of Zurich in Switzerland where he obtained a doctorate in mathematics.
Within the scope of the formative and pedagogical responsibility of the Classical Orchestra of Madeira, students and trainees from all artistic areas of the Conservatory-School of Arts of Madeira have free entry upon presentation of a student card and availability of the room.
It is a concert that will surely arouse the interest of our audience, where the romanticism of Beethoven and the mysticism of Baruch Berliner will combine in a unique concert of great emotions,” states Norberto Gomes, Artistic Director of the Madeira Classical Orchestra.
Tickets cost 20€ (with discounts for children, young people, and seniors) and can be purchased at Ticketline – https://ticketline.sapo.pt/evento/orq-classica-madeira-h-kazazyan-martin-andr-73169
Gaudeamus Store – Jesuit College, Rua dos Ferreiros (near Funchal City Hall)
Ticket Office of the Congress Centre of Madeira – Only on the day of the concert from 16:00.
