- Venue
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St John's Smith SquareSmith Square, London SW1P 3HA, United Kingdom
Culture event
Opening Concert of the Latvian Presidency of the Council of the European Union in London
Last updated on 10 February 2015, 17.05
The multimedia concert Cage and Time will feature compositions by composers John Cage, J. Ābols, K. Pētersons and others, as well as fragments from musical experiments by the artistic group, Nebijušu sajūtu restaurēšanas darbnīca (NSRD; the Restoration Workshop of Unprecedented Feelings).
With:
Latvian Radio Choir
Soloists E.Kalnakārkle, I.Martinsone, K.Rūtentāls, J.Strazdiņš
Kristaps Pētersons, double-bass
Rihards Plešanovs, piano
Musical direction: Sigvards Kļava
The concert is designed to provocatively connect otherwise extremely opposing objects and means of expression. First comes the connection between picture and sound, which is created with rhythmically diverse multi-beam projections. Second comes the connection between live sound and recordings. Provocateur John Cage will provide this, connected with the timeless Latvian multi-artist Hardijs Lediņš of the NSRD, Dadaist Juris Ābols, and spectacular Kristaps Pētersons. Third comes the connection of levels and dimensions in the stage setting.
It is no coincidence that the musical interludes are provided by the NSRD, which created examples of a genre that could be called Latvian absurd music. In the 1980s, the NSRD’s Hardijs Lediņš and Juris Boiko presented new, experimental forms of media and arts to the Latvian public.
The Latvian Radio Choir (LRC) ranks among the top professional chamber choirs in Europe, and its refined taste for musical material, its finesse of expression and vocals of an unbelievably immense compass have charted its course as a noted brand on the world stage. Since 1992, the LRC has two conductors, Sigvards Kļava as the musical director and principal conductor, and Kaspars Putniņš.
Tickets available on the St. John's Smith Square website.
Photos from the opening concert: