The Festival of Premieres - NOSPR

‘Premieres’ – and Primeval Times

The crowning expression of NOSPR’s commitment to new music is its biennial Festival of Premieres. As the name suggests, the festival is devoted to world premieres of works by composers from Poland and beyond, usually commissioned especially for the occasion. Yet the Polish prefix pra-, as in prawykonanie (‘world premiere’), can be intriguingly deceptive: it evokes not only what is entirely new, but also what is ancient. Take the basilisk and the Silesian bebok, for instance – the protagonists of one of the concerts at this year’s festival, specially designed for our youngest listeners (alongside Elementarz, a collection of wonderfully madcap songs by Artur Zagajewski). The first of these creatures is the subject of a ballet written in the first half of the 20th century by Miłosz Magin, a composer and pianist (and prizewinner at the 5th International Chopin Piano Competition) who could well have been the great-grandfather of many of our music lovers. For those who have grown up in the digital world, the symphony orchestra itself may seem positively prehistoric. We will therefore endeavour to demonstrate just how well it gets along with electronics, and how (poly)choral music can brilliantly bridge the distant past and bold visions of the future. We look forward to seeing you there!

Michał Mendyk

Everything you need to know before you come to the NOSPR – practical advice for those attending events.

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