If Paris is known as the City of Love and the French are considered its passionate devotees, then this Saturday, on the stage of the National Philharmonic, you can expect a true French spring and a breath of love. The Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra (LNSO) under the baton of French maestro Victorien Vanoosten will present the programme Poem of Love and the Sea. Composer Ernest Chausson’s namesake vocal cycle will feature baritone Modestas Sedlevičius and the LNSO. 

The LNSO, led by the charismatic conductor Vanoosten, will open the concert with excerpts from Richard Wagner’s opera Tristan und Isolde (1859) – a tragic ode to ill-fated love that, in the composer’s view, reveals “the depths of spiritual experience.” Its music unveils the various nuances of the love between the two main characters.

Later, baritone Modestas Sedlevičius will join the orchestra. Together, they will perform the vocal cycle Poème d’amour et de la mer (Poem of Love and the Sea) by French composer Ernest Chausson. The work stands out for its poeticism; the sonorities evoke the images that inspired the composer – delicate lilacs, the blue of the sea and sky, leaves rustling in the wind, and air filled with the scent of flowers. Through this symbolist composition, Chausson conveys the human world, feelings, and experiences.

Tonight’s soloist, winner of various competitions, Sedlevičius is one of the most prominent singers of his generation. Having already built up a substantial repertoire, he is delivering roles at various European theatres. In addition to opera, the soloist also performs in concert settings, presenting works such as Gustav Mahler’s Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen (Songs of a Wayfarer), Robert Schumann’s Dichterliebe (A Poet’s Love), Franz Schubert’s Winterreise (Winter Journey), and others.

Around the time of the premiere (1893) of Poème de l’amour et de la mer (Poem of Love and the Sea), Claude Debussy began composing his only opera, Pelléas et Mélisande, a mystical musical drama steeped in Impressionist light and shadow. Tonight the audience will hear symphonic excerpts from the opera, arranged by conductor Vanoosten.

Wagner, Chausson, Debussy. Through their works, the performers of this vernal programme invite the audience to experience stories of passionate love and death, love and the sea voiced in the sounds of music. And in the finale, everyone will be swept up in the whirlwind of waltzes from Richard Strauss’ opera Der Rosenkavalier (The Knight of the Rose). 

To enhance the musical experience, an exhibition of photographs by Dmitry Matvejev on display in the foyer of the Lithuanian National Philharmonic Society to mark the upcoming 30th Vilnius Festival, revisits memorable moments from the festival’s history. Over nearly thirty years, there have been truly memorable musical encounters, premieres, and events. Tonight’s performers have also graced the stage of this prestigious festival, so the theme of love chosen for the concert will serve as a beautiful tribute to the upcoming anniversary of the Vilnius Festival.

Orchestral music concert Poem of Love and the Sea. LNSO, Victorien Vanoosten, Modestas Sedlevičius will take place on Saturday, April 18 at 19.00 in the Lithuanian National Philharmonic Concert Hall. For the full program of the LNPhS 85th season please visit www.nationalphilharmonic.lt  LNPhS 85th concert season is sponsored by NORFA.

LNPhS inf.