LITHUANIAN NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
(artistic director and principal conductor Modestas Pitrėnas)
Soloist JAVIER COMESAÑA BARRERA (violin, Spain)
Conductor and soloist SAMUEL LEE (viola, South Korea)
MAX BRUCH – Romanze for viola and orchestra, Op. 85, in F major
OTTORINO RESPIGHI – Concerto gregoriano for violin and orchestra, P. 135
FELIX MENDELSSOHN – Symphony No. 5 (Reformation), Op. 107, in D minor
The concert brings together winners of international competitions, young talented musicians: Javier Comesaña Barrera, winner of Jascha Heifetz Competition in Vilnius and Joseph Joachim Competition in Hanover among other competitions and recipient of “Prinz von Hessen-Preis” awarded by the Kronberg Academy, as well as Samuel Lee, the winner of the prestigious Malko Competition for Young Conductors among other achievements.
Born in Seville and already familiar to Vilnius audience, Comesaña Barrera has performed as a soloist with orchestras from various countries (including those of Barcelona, Seville, Hanover, Poznań, Milan, Mantua, Bern, Stuttgart, the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra, and others) under the baton of Pablo González, Vasily Petrenko, Andrew Manze, David Afkham, Modestas Barkauskas, Modestas Pitrėnas, and others. The violinist also performs in various chamber ensembles and has appeared with such renowned musicians as István Várdai, Tabea Zimmermann, Christian Tetzlaff, Martin Helmchen, and Lukas Geniušas. Barrera plays his own Claude Pierray violin made in Paris around 1720.
Having won the prestigious Malko Competition among others, the young maestro Samuel Lee has collaborated with dozens of the world’s most renowned orchestras, served as associate conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (USA) during the 2024–2025 season. The breadth of his conducting repertoire is reflected in the fact that he is a passionate advocate of contemporary music and also has participated in the Italian Opera Academy in Tokyo led by Riccardo Muti, where Lee conducted Verdi’s opera Rigoletto. Interestingly, he began his musical journey and studies as an accomplished violist, performing as a soloist with orchestras in Germany, South Korea, and elsewhere; was a member of Novus string quartet. Thus, in this concert, he will appear not only as a conductor but also as a soloist, performing and conducting Max Bruch’s Romanze for viola and orchestra, a work of extraordinary beauty often referred to as a gem of the viola repertoire.
