Events

July 3-14, 2010
10th International Festival "Greater Hermitage Music"

The 10th International Festival Greater Hermitage Music is organized by the State Hermitage and the Hermitage Music Academy with the assistance of the Committee for Culture of St Petersburg City Government. The Festival had its origin in the concert in the Great Courtyard of the Winter Palace in June 2001, in which a monumental composition Seven Gates of Jerusalem by the classicist of the modern music, an outstanding Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki was performed.

The jubilee 10th International Festival Greater Hermitage Music will take place from 3 to 14 July, 2010 in the halls of the Hermitage and outdoors and it will cover all the festival genres, which have already become traditional – early music, classics, jazz and World music. The Festival opens with an exquisite concert-dedication to the great Italian painter of The Renaissance Michelangelo Caravaggio (to 400 years from his death), whose masterpiece the Lute Player is resided in the Hermitage. In the Big Italian Skylight Trio from Italy Laus Consentus (two lutenists and soprano) will present the music of the painter's epoch. Each part of the concert corresponds to a particular picture of the master. The concert is held under support of Italian Institute of Culture in St Petersburg (3 July, 19:00).

Classic guitar quartet Meridion from Sweden will play classical Spanish music with excursus to German baroque and modern age in the Big Italian Skylight where the collection of Spanish painters is represented. (8 July, 19:00)

The Courtyard of the New Hermitage, small and cozy, with great natural acoustics will host the traditional Jazz-Fusion Concert with participation of Andrey Kondakov and one of the brightest stars of the world jazz, five Grammy Awards holder, a brilliant trumpet player Rendy Brecker (the USA). (11 July, 20:00)

The Great Courtyard of the Winter Palace this time will become the venue for holding of a national French holiday - Bastille Day. Performances of the theater Licedei, different dancing groups, work of painters, fashion show, entertainments and contests will set the stage for the performance of the most unusual French group LoJo, combining in their creative work French chanson, African, Arab, Italian music, funky, jazz and dub with elements of street theater and circus performance. With all the mixture the French origin is definitely heard in their music. (14 July, 18:15).

The project is implemented within the Year of Russia-France 2010 under the patronage of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation jointly with French Institute in St Petersburg.