One of the great cultural events of the Croatian tourism calendar returns for the 48th time on September 21, 2018, as Varazdin Baroque Evenings welcomes Japan as this year’s partner country.
It is a festival which was first conceived some 50 years ago this year, way back in 1968, as a way of commemorating the 140th anniversary of the Varazdin Music School, and from its first festival in 1971, the Varazdin Baroque Evenings festival has become one of Croatia’s most important annual cultural festivals.
Held in the Baroque city which was once the capital of Croatia, the concept of Varzdin Baroque Evening is one of consolidating and presenting the richest and the most extensively preserved heritage: musical, architectural, horticultural, visual, literary and educational. Some 30 concerts over a two-week period in Autumn, whose reach spreads far from the home page of Varazdin, the city – this year’s festival will also host concerts in Kneginec, Belec, Novi Marof, Lopatinec, Krizevci, Ludbreg, Krapina, Lobor, Prelog and Vinica.
As has been the tradition for many years, the festival invites a partner country each year, a chance to share musical experiences and promote cultural ties between the city and the partner country. This year’s partner country is Japan, and a rich collection of Japanese musicians will be descending on Varazdin in the coming days to perform at one of Croatia’s best loved cultural festivals.
The opening concert will take place at 20:00 on September 21 at Varazdin Cathedral, where conductor Hidemi Suzuki will lead a rich programme of Telemann and Vivaldi with an outstanding array of Croatian and Japanese musicians, as follows:
CROATIAN BAROQUE ENSEMBLE
Laura Vadjon, leader, Tanja Tortic, Helga Korbar i Urban Jerman, violins, Tadesse, viola, Stjepan Nodilo, oboe, Lea Sušanj Lujo, cello, Fran Petrač, double bass
SOLOISTS OF ORCHESTRA LIBERA CLASSICA
Natsumi Wakamatsu, Kaori Toda, Nao Takahashi, Rieko Ikeda, violins, Hiroshi Narita, viola, Takayuki Kiryu, trumpet, Hiroshi Kaneko, lute, Naoki Ueo, harpsichord
VOCAL ENSEMBLE LA FONTAVERDE
Midori Suzuki, Netsuko Someya, sopranos, Sumihito Uesugi, countertenor, Yosuke Taniguchi, Katsuhiko Nakashima, tenors, Yoshitaka Ogasawara, bass
CHORUS ANGELICUS CHOIR
Anđelko Igrec, choirmaster, Hidemi Suzuki, conductor
The festival will also conclude at Varazdin Cathedral on October 3, with a final concert from the Varazdin Music School Varazdin Chamber Orchestra. For more details on the full programme, click here.
