The tradition of the Vilnius Festival is to present a recital by a Lithuanian performer. This year the tradition will be fostered by Mūza Rubackytė, one of the most prominent Lithuanian pianists and ambassadors of musical culture in the world, recipient of the Lithuanian National Prize for Culture and Art, founder and artistic director of the Vilnius Piano Festival. Her programme Vilnius to Venice will be presented at the Lithuanian National Philharmonic Concert Hall on 4 June. The musical journey will include music by Leopold Godowsky, Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis, Raminta Šerkšnytė and Ferenc Liszt.
A prominent ambassador of the piano art in the world, pianist Mūza Rubackytė bases the programme of the recital on some of the most successful examples of her performance art. First and foremost, the works of Ferenc Liszt, that have accompanied the pianist throughout her life. Named “one of the best living Liszt performers” by Fanfare magazine (USA), Rubackytė is a member of the office of the International Liszt Associations (ILA), president of the LiSZtuania Society and of the Lisztofonija Competition, and a long-standing jury member of the international Ferenc Liszt piano competitions. In 2020, the Liszt Association awarded the 41st Liszt Ferenc International Grand Prix Du Disque to Rubackytė for her CD De la valse á labime (Lyrinx) as the best recording of Liszt’s music of the year, and in 2024, in Vilnius, the President of Hungary decorated pianist Mūza Rubackytė with the Knight’s Cross of the Hungarian Order of Merit.
For the Vilnius Festival, the pianist has chosen Liszt’s triptych Venezia e Napoli (Venice & Naples) and the Sonata in B minor, which is considered to be the pinnacle of the composer’s piano oeuvre. Rubackytė became fascinated with this masterpiece of Liszt’s when she was still in her teens and performed the Sonata in B minor for the first time at the age of fifteen. Since then, the work has been a regular part of her repertoire and has continued to fascinate her with its depth and mystery.
Over the last few years, Rubackytė has also been spreading the music of Leopold Godowsky, recently discovered Litvak composer, around the world. His Sonata in E minor (with works by Karol Szymanowski), recorded on CD (Godowsky / Szymanowski, Ligia label), won the Diapason d’Or, the most important international prize in France, as well as the most prestigious prize of the audience, the ffff Event (Télérama). Canadian pianist Marc-André Hamelin has described Allegro non troppo, ma appassionato, the first movement of Godowsky’s sonata, as “the grandest manifestation of Godowsky’s lyrical talent”. It is this movement of the impressive cycle that Rubackytė chose for her recital in Vilnius.
Another highlight of Rubackytė’s repertoire is the works of Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis and promulgation of his legacy in the world. “As a child, I was surrounded by the music of Čiurlionis. My mother taught piano, and her pupils would play Čiurlionis’ works. I myself am an alumna of the M. K. Čiurlionis School of Art, so I was really shaped by Čiurlionis’ influence. His musical legacy is surprisingly eclectic, especially his late works. Čiurlionis’ late opuses moved away from tonality into much more experimental territories. It is remarkable how, in such a short time, his musical journey encompassed everything from the classical tradition to modernism, and finally to what could be described as cosmic music,” says Rubackytė about Čiurlionis’ oeuvre and the influences on her own artistic journey.
The pianist’s double album, released on the prestigious Marco Polo/Naxos label in 1993, was the first presentation of Čiurlionis’ music of such importance in the West. This album is still very popular today and is constantly reissued. In addition, thanks to the efforts of Rubackytė, the International M. K. Čiurlionis Piano and Organ Competition became a member of the international WFMC.
On the occasion of the 150th anniversary of Čiurlionis’ birth, at a recital in Vilnius the pianist will perform his Prelude in D minor (VL 239), Prelude in D minor (VL 294, Ruduo (Autumn)), Prelude in F minor (VL 197), which come from both the composer’s early and late periods. Alongside these the pianist will offer two more of the composer’s early works, the Nocturne in C sharp minor (VL 183) and Nocturne in F sharp minor (VL 178), marked by romantic and contemplative moods.
Raminta Šerkšnytė’s Pasakalija (Passacaglia) will add a contemporary Lithuanian touch. The composer admits that Pasakalija (Passacaglia) is one of her works the mood of which resonates in a particular way with the spirit of Čiurlionis’ oeuvre. The pianist Rubackytė sees links between Pasakalija (Passacaglia) and Liszt’s Funérailles (Funerals). Last autumn, Rubackytė performed this work several times during the Lithuanian season in France.
Vilnius Festival concert Maestra Mūza Rubackytė. From Vilnius to Venice will take place on Wednesday, 4 June at 19.00 in the Lithuanian National Philharmonic Concert Hall. All concerts of Vilnius Festival are announced on the website www.nationalphilharmonic.lt The festival is organised by the Lithuanian National Philharmonic Society and PI Vilnius Festivals, with the support of Vilnius City Municipality, Juozas and Laima Magelinskas and Artis Centrum Hotels.
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