Easter with Beethoven

Since 1997, Poland's Ludwig van Beethoven Easter Festival has become one of the largest and most important musical events in the country and in Europe. Dozens of concerts performed by hundreds of artists bring in audiences that number in the thousands. Each year, the festival is different as organizers present Beethoven's music from varied perspectives - revealing both the sources of the composer's inspiration and, in turn, those musicians inspired by him.

This year the theme of the festival is - Beethoven: music and literature. "The program was assembled to show works of music in their various literary contexts within the framework of major texts of cultural significance," says Elżbieta Penderecka, the founder of the festival.

The festival will begin with a concert titled Jazzsinfonica, showcasing jazz musicians performing classical music. Artists on the main billing include Nigel Kennedy, Christopher Hogwood, Camerata Salzburg and Bamberger Simfoniker. The concerts will include a huge range of Beethoven's works alongside pieces from other composers from the 19th and 20th centuries. Music lovers will have the opportunity to hear all of Beethoven's violin sonatas, rarely-performed Liszt piano suites, songs by Szymanowski and a concert version of Verdi's Othello. Five cities will host a total of close to 30 musical events over the 13 days of the festival.

As in previous years, the concerts are supplemented by exhibitions and workshops, such as the exhibit of manuscripts from composers like Beethoven, Chopin and Mozart at the Jagiellonian Library in Kraków, an international musicological symposium and a series of workshops addressed to young singers led by Christy Ludwig.

For more information, see http://www.beethoven.org.pl/