Zeljenka / Šimai / Britten / RespighiZeljenka / Šimai / Britten / Respighi

The Elegy by Ilja Zeljenka, one of the greatest phenomena of 20th century Slovak music, was premiered by the Slovak Chamber Orchestra at the Slovak Philharmonic in 1976. The same is true of Pavel Šimai’s Epilogue, which the orchestra premiered in 2005 to celebrate the composer’s jubilee. In response to John Dowland’s song, the British composer Benjamin Britten’s Lachrymae was written in 1950. The work for viola and piano was later arranged for string orchestra and will be performed in this form at the concert. Drawing inspiration from the music of the 16th and 17th centuries, specifically from lute and guitar tablature, Ottorino Respighi’s composition Ancient Arias and Dances is also worthy of note. The soloists of the evening Pavel Bogacz, Andrej Gál and Peter Zwiebel have been members of the Slovak Chamber Orchestra for several years, so one can expect a great affinity and interpretive understanding with the ensemble.