Event Guide

ESTONIA
January 7-15, Festival Pärnu Contemporary Music Days, Pärnu

Estonian Arnold Schoenberg Society has a major project – Pärnu Contemporary Music Days with a symposium, concerts, music workshops for performers, exhibitions, and performances. Initiated in 1988, Music Days will introduce Western music history of the XX century, particularly modernism and its aesthetic and philosophical principles – through concerts, performances, presentations and discussions. The event will shape communications in various fields of art, literature, philosophy, and between theory and practice.

January 14, Jazz Concert by Vind Prana, Philly Joe’s Jazz Club, Tallinn

Vind Prana presents his audience a program that takes the listener to new ambient landscapes of sounds. Atmospheric sounds are evoked by Raun Juurikas, rhythm patterns knitted by Arno Kalbus, and all this is united with melody lines and the sound of the clarinet by Meelis Vind. Raun Juurikas is a musician of the younger generation. He has studied classical as well as jazz piano and graduated from the Estonian Music and Theatre Academy in the field of composition. Raun Juurikas has performed in almost every European country. He’s constantly collaborating with the most important Estonian jazz musicians. Arno Kalbus, the drummer of the beloved Bombillaz, is a successful percussionist and an appreciated drum craftsman. Meelis Vind is the most outstanding jazz clarinetist in Estonia. He has played with nearly all Estonian jazz musicians. For his musical activity Meelis Vind earned a sound art endowment award by Kultuurkapital (Cultural Endowment) in 2012 and the Danske Jazz Prize in 2014. The concert is organized by the Estonian Jazz Union. Tickets are available at pre-sale at www.gateme.com and on the spot. More information on the concert can be found at www.jazz.ee
 

January 21, Scottish Party in Haapsalu

The recurrent theme of the Scottish festival is introducing Scottish culture; this is organized in cooperation with the British Embassy, the Scottish Club, the Scottish Culture Society of Estonia and the Whiskey Club. The festival’s program includes film screenings, performances of Scottish dancers and bagpipers, as well as concerts, a whiskey course and an open championship of whiskey connoisseurs.

Open till February 19, Exhibition Changing Tartu in Four Views, Tartu Art Museum
Tartu Art Museum introduces its rich collections with a new exhibition on the depiction of Tartu in paintings and prints throughout Estonian art history. The exhibition includes numerous artists associated with the Pallas art school, such as Nikolai Triik, Johannes Võerahansu and Kaarel Liimand, as well as Baltic German artists from the 19th century. The opening of the exhibition takes place on 10 November at 6 pm. The exhibition will remain open until 19 February 2017. The aim of the exhibition is to introduce the museum’s collections through works from the last two centuries depicting Tartu. This selection offers a historic overview of the changes in the perception and representation of Tartu and its symbolic locations. Visitors will take a stroll through the history of some of these places and they can see the transformations in the town, as well as in the art that has depicted it. There are many places and symbols in Tartu that are seen as characteristic of its identity, and the present exhibition has chosen four locations that are often associated with Tartu: the suburbs, the Emajõgi River, the main building of the University of Tartu and Toome Hill. These locations make the changes that have taken place in the life of the town and its art clearly visible. Detailed information about the exhibition is available at www.tartmus.ee

LATVIA

January 14, Grand Opening of Riga Street Food Festival 2017, Winter Edition, Riga-Gauja Region: Riga, Sigulda, Cesis, Valmiera

In 2017, the Riga-Gauja region will bear the honorary title of European Region of Gastronomy. A special concept, called “Wild at Palate”, will be the guide for you to get to know the diverse dining out pleasure to be found in Riga, Sigulda, Cesis and Valmiera. The series of Riga-Gauja region events will be launched with a unique and unprecedented gourmet event – the first Riga Street Food Festival |edition: Winter| on January 14th. Riga’s top chefs have risen to the challenge to create their own versions of Latvian gastronomic masterpieces in the blistering cold. Meals prepared will highlight the wide range of Riga-Guja region winter produce, encompassing both the primeval and the contemporary. Dzintars Kristovskis, chef of Valmiermuiža embassy in Riga and the Riga-Gauja region ambassador: “European Region of Gastronomy is about returning to the roots – back to the produce and raw materials that we’ve hailed, respected and consumed for centuries, that have grown right here, behind the city walls – in our bountiful forests, meadows, fields, rivers and lakes.” The entrance to the event is free of charge. For detailed information on the festival grand opening please visit
 www.rigagauja.lv  

January 13, Vestards Simkus’ Concert Performance of Novecento, Spikeri Concert Hall, Riga

Director Dmitrijs Petrenko invites everyone to attend a performance of the Alessandro Baricco long-form monologue, Novecento, or 1900. Alessandro Baricco (b 1958) is a world-renowned author and philosopher from Italy who studies glass castles, silk and Homer. As a young man, he thought a lot about music and even wrote books about the topic. The director hopes that the performance will lead audience members to look into themselves. The performance is based on a book of the same title, telling the story of an unusual musician who grows up on a ship and has never stood on dry land. He plays the piano in a manner that no one has done before. People from all around the world want to hear this genius, but to do so they have to travel across the ocean. The pianist will be played by the outstanding pianist Vestards Simkus, and the story will be narrated by Latvian National Theatre actor Kristaps Keselis. To learn more about the concert go to www.latvijaskoncerti.lv and to buy tickets please visit
 www.bilesuparadize.lv  

Open till January 25, Felicita Pauluka’s Exhibition Pastels and Drawings, Latvian National Museum of Art, Riga

Felicita Pauluka is a significant personality in Latvian art, master of portraits and nudes. Already in early youth, she showed talent for charcoal and sanguine drawings, a knack for technical specifics, and the ability to capture the essence of any model. As of the 1960s, Pauluka began to work exclusively with pastels, feeling, as she put it, “a demand to work with heartfelt passion in this specific technique, revealing new treasures.” Her portraits of well-known artists, actors and literati rest assured carried her own vision and interpretation. Exquisite is the word one can use to describe Felicita Pauluka’s nudes. A major aspect of her career, her view of life and virtuoso flair found full fruition in this delicate genre. She would often feature series of works using one single model. This resulted in new findings, nuances of character and mood. Ticket prices: EUR 0.50 – EUR 3.00.

Open till January 29, Alexandre Vassiliev Exhibition, Mark Rothko Art Centre, Daugavpils

As a result of successful cooperation, Daugavpils Mark Rothko Art Centre is presenting an exhibition from the collection of Alexander Vassiliev for the second time. This exhibition is a unique project of high artistic and cultural significance. It is the first time in Eastern Latvia to have such a rare opportunity to show a collection of authentic women’s clothing characterizing the cultural environment and fashion of people who lived in the period of the reign of Queen Victoria (1837-1901). The display is comprised of about 50-60 garments and numerous accessories worn by the people mapping a vast geographic area: the territories of England, France, Italy, Germany, and Austro-Hungary, and it shows clothing of different styles, beginning with Romanticism up to Art Nouveau. The display is also comprised of more than 150 accessories including hand fans, parasols and umbrellas, hats, jewellery, purses, vests, corsets, lorgnettes, as well as many other fashion items now discarded from our daily usage, dooming them to complete oblivion. Various ball gowns and taffeta crinolines typical for the period from 1850 to 1860, as well as tournure gowns for leisurely strolls in parks and ball gowns with trains are of a special interest. The exhibition is supplemented with large-size vintage photo copies, as well as oil paintings and watercolours – predominantly portraits from the second half of the 19th century, selected by Alexandre Vassiliev from his vast fashion collection of the 1850s to 1900s. Altogether they create a very special atmosphere of life and fashion of that time. For complete exhibition information please visit
 www.rothkocenter.com

Open till February 12, Anton Buchholtz’s Exhibition, Museum of the History of Riga and Navigation, Riga

The exhibition is dedicated to the history of Riga’s history of coin minting and A. Buchholtz, as a founder of Livonian numismatics. The exhibition features scientific publications, manuscripts, documents, and coins collected in 1897 during the archaeological research in Martinsala conducted by Buchholtz. Rare and unique items from Buchholtz’s coin collection are sorted chronologically, thus allowing following the development of coinage in Riga throughout eight centuries. Learn more about the exhibition at www.rigamuz.lv

LITHUANIA

January 12, Concert In Memoriam, St. John’s Church, Vilnius

The concert will be played to commemorate the victims of January 13th, and will feature the Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra, Vilnius State Choir, wind group of the Guard of Honor Orchestra of the Lithuanian Armed Forces, and conductor Arturas Dambrauskas. Learn more about the concert at www.filharmonija.lt

January 14, Concert Orchestra Zoomed In, Lithuanian National Philharmonic, Vilnius

“Let’s get acquainted with the orchestra” is the motto of the concert, when the musicians of the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra will appear as soloists, accompanied by their colleagues and Maestro Modestas Pitrėnas. Having earned genuine admiration of the audience over the years, Orchestra Zoomed In opens the stage for talented string and wind players of the orchestra, showcasing their professional skill. Along the classical and neo-classical opuses by Gioacchino Rossini, Sergei Prokofiev, Richard Strauss and Paul Hindemith, the program will feature masterpieces by American composers: George Gershwin’s Three Preludes for violin and orchestra, made famous by Jascha Heifetz, and Ernest Bloch’s Concertino for flute, viola and string orchestra, commissioned by the Juilliard School, and according to critics, full of “affectionate freshness.” For the concert’s program and more please go to www.filharmonija.lt

January 18-22, Short Film Festival, various theatres in Vilnius

Vilnius International Short Film Festival is the largest short film festival in the Baltic countries, presenting the newest and best short films from all around the world. In eleven years, the festival has become a unique platform in Lithuania, screening not only European, but world-wide professional short films, presented by the upcoming generation of talented filmmakers. Every year, Vilnius International Short Film Festival offers the international short film competition program, which consists of around 60 of the most acknowledged short films produced during the last two years. The films are considered and awarded by the International Jury. A huge focus on Lithuanian short films is always presented to the audience – every year a special program of the newest, retrospective, thematic or specific filmmaker-based programs is on board. The festival is organized by the Lithuanian short film agency Lithuanian Shorts. To learn more about tickets, venues, and festival program, please visit www.filmshorts.lt

January 21, Concert King David, Lithuanian National Philharmonic, Vilnius

Maestro Juozas Domarkas leads the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra and Lithuanian soloists Kristina Zmailaitė, Rita Novikaitė, Edmundas Seilius and Rimantas Bagdzevičius, as well as two choirs (Vilnius State Choir and Č. Sasnauskas’ Chamber Choir) in an impressive 20th century oratorio Le Roi David by Arthur Honegger, a French composer of Swiss heritage. In 1921, conceived as incidental music for a small ensemble of 16 musicians, the composition has grown into a huge musical story in two years. It tells the biblical story of King David’s life from the time he was a shepherd, to his conquests in battle, rise to power, his lust for another man’s wife, his agony over his son’s death, disobedience to God, and finally to his own death. In musical terms, Honegger’s oratorio captivates, because he combined different styles of music in one complete work. Honegger used compositional techniques ranging from Gregorian chant to Baroque to jazz. The concert’s program and more is available at www.filharmonija.lt

Open till February 5, Exhibition Juzeliūnas’ Cabinet: Modernizing Lithuanity, National Gallery of Art, Vilnius

Julius Juzeliūnas (1916-2001) is one of the most prominent Lithuanian cultural and political figures of the second half of the 20th century. From today’s perspective, he would likely be considered an interdisciplinary artist: an influential composer, proponent of national modernism, professor, mentor of more than 50 Lithuanian composers, habilitated doctor, creator of an original theory, one of the founders of the National Revival (Sąjūdis) movement, and an active participant in the processes of the restoration of Lithuania’s independence. Juzeliūnas stands out in the Lithuanian music landscape with his independent attitude and extraordinary initiative. He became the primary modernizer of the national tradition, spawned a century ago by Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis, and fostered in the interwar period by Juozas Gruodis. He drew inspiration not only from phenomena beyond the Iron Curtain or trips to distant lands (Nigeria, Burma, Tunisia, Congo, Mauritius, and Madagascar), unavailable to most Lithuanian artists at the time, but also research into folk music and linguistics. Juzeliūnas’ expanding interests shaped a musical language and philosophy which differed quite radically from the official ideological requirements, and paved the way for the emergence of the avant-garde and individual styles in Lithuanian music. The exhibition Juzeliūnas’ Cabinet: Modernizing Lithuanity celebrates the composer’s 100th anniversary. It is based on the findings of artistic and scientific research, which brought together artists and scholars from different spheres. The exhibition features films, installations, photographs, comic strips, objects, music and texts. Full info on the exhibition can be found at www.ndg.lt