Adventures in Sound

February 19th sees the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO), directed by their Principal Conductor Sergey Smbatyan, return to Dubai Opera to present a stunning diverse program of works from the Romantic era through to the modern day. The first half of the performance sees the MPO welcome to the stage the First Prize Winner of the Queen Elisabeth Competition (Brussels, 2017) and Prague Spring International Competition (2012), recipient of the “Best Instrumental Solo” Award at the Victoire de la Musique in France (2018) and a Diapason d'Or (2017), cellist Victor Julien-Laferrière, for a performance of two concertos for cello. Opening with Tchaikovsky's Variations on a Rococo Theme , Op. 33, a work heavily influenced by the Classical era, in particular the work of Mozart, the concert then movese to Alexey Shor's Musical Pilgrimage, a rousing and intrepid journey through the composer's imagination inspired by an eclectic array of influences ranging from the Baroque to Latin American music. Following a short intermission, the orchestra will return to perform Omega , a work by the leading Maltese pianist, composer and educator, Kris Spiteri, before concluding the evening with a performance of Igor Stravinsky's Firebirdsuite, a momentous work from the ballet of the same name chronicling the legend of Prince Ivan, who sets out to capture the mysterious beast in his struggle against the evil magician Koschei. This concert is presented by CMDI Group and SAMIT Event Group, with the support of the European Foundation for Support of Culture (EUFSC).

Programme:

P. Tchaikovsky

Variations on a Rococo Theme , Op. 33

A. Shor

Musical Pilgrimage Cello Concerto

--Intermission--

K. Spiteri

Omega

I. Stravinsky

The Firebird Suite

Sergey Smbatyan

Acclaimed as a cultural leader in his native Armenia and increasingly in demand on the international stage, Sergey Smbatyan is founder, Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the Armenian State Symphony Orchestra. In September 2019 he became Principal Conductor of the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra following highly successful tours of Germany, Austria and the United States, including performances at the Berlin Philharmonie, Vienna’s Musikverein and Carnegie Hall.

Music’s power to unite, heal and inspire has driven and sustained Smbatyan since childhood. His mature artistic vision combines lessons learned from the best traditions of Russian music-making and a profound personal commitment to transforming lives through the shared experience of performing and listening. The charismatic conductor’s reputation with fellow musicians and critics alike flows from his technical command, the intensity with which he shapes and communicates musical ideas, the intelligence of his programming, and the spiritual richness and depth of his interpretations.

Sergey Smbatyan was eighteen when he founded the Armenian State Symphony Orchestra in 2006. He has overseen its transformation since from youth ensemble into one of Armenia’s finest professional orchestras. They began 2020 with a landmark European tour, complete with debut appearances at Vienna’s Musikverein, the Berlin Philharmonie, Salzburg’s Großes Festspielhaus, the Barbican Hall in London, Moscow’s Zaryadye Concert Hall, the Gasteig Munich, Stuttgart’s Beethoven Hall and Prague’s Rudolfinum.

Smbatyan’s guest conducting career has flourished in recent seasons, leading to concerts with Sinfonia Varsovia, the Berlin Symphony Orchestra, the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, the Dresden Philharmonic, Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra and, among others, the Orchestra of the Komische Oper Berlin. He returns to the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra during the 2020-21 season for a European tour comprising concerts at Wiesbaden’s Kurhaus and the Vienna Musikverein. His schedule also includes dates with the Malta Philharmonic, Russian National, Jerusalem Symphony and Royal Philharmonic orchestras as part of the 2021 Malta International Music Festival. Smbatyan will conduct the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra on its first UK tour in September 2021, presenting ten concerts at leading venues in company with Maxim Vengerov as soloist

Known for his imaginative programming, Smbatyan is a determined champion of new music and supporter of emerging talent. He is founder and artistic director of four music festivals in Armenia, Artistic Director of the Aram Khachaturian International Competition and, in October 2019, conducted the WTIC World Orchestra in the first ever concert of music composed by artificial intelligence (AI). His repertoire embraces everything from masterworks of the western symphonic literature to compelling scores by Armenian and other Eastern European composers, many of them commissioned by or specially written for him.

Born in Yerevan in 1987, Sergey Smbatyan showed exceptional musical promise as a child. He received his first violin lessons from his grandmother, Tatiana Hayrapetyan, and continued his training at the Komitas State Conservatory of Yerevan, the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory and with Zakhar Bron. He refined his conducting skills while studying for a PhD in fine arts at the Institute of Arts of the Armenian National Academy of Sciences and as a postgraduate student at London’s Royal Academy of Music, where he gained invaluable insights into the conductor’s art from Sir Colin Davis.

Sergey Smbatyan’s list of awards and prizes includes the title of Honoured Artist of the Republic of Armenia, presented by the President of the Republic of Armenia in recognition for his promotion of Armenian music and culture. In 2014 he became the youngest ever worker in the field of the arts and the first Armenian to be appointed Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French Ministry of Culture.

Victor Julien-Laferrière

Cello

1st Prize winner of the Queen Elisabeth Competition 2017 in Brussels, as part of the first edition dedicated to cello, Victor Julien-Laferrière also won the 1st Prize and two special prizes at the 2012 Prague Spring International Competition. In 2018, he was awarded the Victoire de la Musique in France as 'Instrumental Soloist of the Year'.

The coming season sees him appear at Theatre des Champs-Elysées with Alexandre Kantorow, with Orchestre National de France under David Robertson, Les Siècles and François-Xavier Roth, Orchestre National de Lyon, Orchestre National de Lille, Liege Royal Philharmonique and Quebec Symphony Orchestra, alongside concerts at Brugge Concertgebouw, Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel, Louisiana Museum Copenhagen and Hohenems Schubertiade with David Fray and Renaud Capuçon.

Victor Julien-Laferrière performs with renowned orchestras worldwide, including Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Orchestre de Paris, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Orchestre National de France, Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse, Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, Brussels Philharmonic, Belgium National Orchestra, Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg, Lausanne and Paris chamber orchestras, Les Siècles, Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg, RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie, Orchestra i Pomeriggi Musicali, Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de Colombia, and with prestigious conductors such as Valery Gergiev, Kristiina Poska, Emmanuel Krivine, Tugan Sokhiev, Elim Chan, Maxim Emelyanychev, François-Xavier Roth, Jun Märkl, Philippe Herreweghe, Nathalie Stutzmann, Stéphane Denève, Joshua Weilerstein, Eivind Gullberg Jensen, Gergely Madaras and Ben Glassberg.

His recital and chamber music projects lead him to prestigious venues and festivals such as Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Lucerne KKL, Brussels BOZAR, Zurich Tonhalle, Philharmonie de Paris, Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Louis Vuitton Foundation, Essen Philharmonie, Phillips Collection in Washington, Prague Spring International Music Festival, Klavier-Festival Ruhr, Rheingau Musik Festival Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival, Gstaad Sommets Musicaux, Aix-en-Provence Easter Festival, Brussels Cello Festival, Copenhagen Summer Festival, Folles Journées in Nantes and Tokyo.

Victor Julien-Laferrière is also developing substantial activity as a conductor. He guest-conducts the Orchestre National d’Ile-de-France and the Orchestre de l’Opéra de Rouen on tour. He founded his own ensemble 'Consuelo' which collaborates intensively with many leading French festivals.

He has an extensive discography and has won multiple awards, including the Diapason d’Or 2017 for his album with French pianist Adam Laloum. In January 2019, Victor Julien-Laferrière released a new album dedicated to Schubert with the Trio Les Esprits (Sony Music). His latest recordings for Alpha Classics include an acclaimed album with pianist Jonas Vitaud dedicated to Shostakovich, Rachmaninov and Denisov (2019), and a Dvořák and Martinů concerti recording with Liege Royal Philharmonique and Gergely Madaras.

Victor Julien-Laferrière studied with René Benedetti, then successively with Roland Pidoux at Paris CNSM Conservatoire, Heinrich Schiff at Vienna University, and Clemens Hagen at Salzburg Mozarteum in Salzburg. At the same time, from 2005-2011, he took part in the Seiji Ozawa International Music Academy Switzerland. He plays a cello Domenico Montagnana, owned by Joséphine and Xavier Moreno, and a Dominique Peccatt bow.

Malta Philharmonic Orchestra

For half a century, the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra has been Malta’s leading musical ensemble.

The orchestra was founded in April 1968, when musicians from the defunct “C-in-C” orchestra of the Malta-based British Mediterranean Fleet regrouped as the Manoel Theatre Orchestra. It continued to serve as the theatre’s resident orchestra until September 1997, when it became an independent orchestra, taking up the name National Orchestra of Malta. The orchestra became the MPO in 2008 when it expanded into a full-size symphony orchestra, bringing together the best of Maltese talent and musicians from Europe and beyond.

Joseph Sammut, the C-in-C’s last conductor, was the orchestra’s first conductor, remaining at the helm until 1992. Since then, the orchestra has also been under the direction of Joseph Vella, John Galea, Michael Laus and Brian Schembri.

This season, the MPO has appointed Raoul Lay as its Artistic Director, together with Sergey Smbatyan as Principal Conductor and Michael Laus as Resident Conductor. The MPO also works with local and international guest conductors and soloists including Lawrence Renes, Michalis Economou, Guy Braunstein and Enrico Dindo.

As Malta’s only professional orchestra, the MPO averages more than one performance a week including symphonic concerts, opera productions in Malta and Gozo, community outreach and educational initiatives, as well as various concerts of a lighter nature.

The orchestra has performed in leading venues across the globe, including in the USA, Russia, Germany, Austria, China, Italy, and Belgium, and presently embarks on at least one international tour each concert season.

The MPO is a keen exponent of Maltese composers, regularly performing their works in Malta and overseas, as well as frequently premiering, and commissioning new compositions.

Through the MPO Academy and the Malta Youth Orchestra – which itself regularly gives concerts across Malta, the MPO is also responsible for the training and professional development of the next generation of Maltese musicians.