What is the concert-lecture about?
About opera!
We perform arias from operas and talk about them.
Here’s what you’ll learn, for example:
❓What bird is Carmen singing about in the "Habanera"?
(“Love is like a rebellious bird”)
❓Why did the premiere of Bizet's opera Carmen fail?
❓Why was the opera Carmen considered harmful at the time?
(“Love is like a rebellious bird”)
❓Why did the premiere of Bizet's opera Carmen fail?
❓Why was the opera Carmen considered harmful at the time?
What would have happened if Carmen had married José? (Purely hypothetically, of course!)
"You ruined me, oh dark eyes!"
It took three people to create this romance.
They lived in different times, in different places, and never met each other.
Ukrainian poet Yevhen Hrebinka, German composer Florian Hermann, and Greek musician Sergei Gerdel together created the most famous Russian romance.
They lived in different times, in different places, and never met each other.
Ukrainian poet Yevhen Hrebinka, German composer Florian Hermann, and Greek musician Sergei Gerdel together created the most famous Russian romance.
Modern version: He loved her, but she loved jewelry.
Lyrics by Yevhen Hrebinka. Music by Florian Hermann.
"I might need a second."
❓Why do the main characters die in Tchaikovsky's version, unlike in Pushkin's The Queen of Spades?
What if we looked at Pushkin's novella The Queen of Spades through the eyes of a criminologist and asked: "Who benefited from the Countess's death?"
What if we looked at Pushkin's novella The Queen of Spades through the eyes of a criminologist and asked: "Who benefited from the Countess's death?"
Excerpt from P.I. Tchaikovsky's opera The Queen of Spades, featuring Tomsky's Ballad of the Three Cards.
Starring: Misty the Cat (short for Mysticism).
(No animals were harmed during the filming of this clip.)
Starring: Misty the Cat (short for Mysticism).
(No animals were harmed during the filming of this clip.)
❓Why did Tchaikovsky make the old Countess younger? In Pushkin's story, she's 87, but in Tchaikovsky's version, she's 80. What's the reason?
❓Why is Pushkin's The Queen of Spades a detective story, while Tchaikovsky's opera is a tragedy?
❓Why did Tchaikovsky change the rules of the card game in The Queen of Spades opera so that Hermann not only lost all his money but ended up in massive debt?
❓And what card game were they playing, anyway?
❓Why is Pushkin's The Queen of Spades a detective story, while Tchaikovsky's opera is a tragedy?
❓Why did Tchaikovsky change the rules of the card game in The Queen of Spades opera so that Hermann not only lost all his money but ended up in massive debt?
❓And what card game were they playing, anyway?
Listen to a humorous song by Tomsky from Tchaikovsky's The Queen of Spades.
While you're at it, count how many "R"s are in this song. This excerpt only includes the first verse of two, but I assure you, the second verse has the exact same number of "R"s.
Why did Tchaikovsky compose the opera Eugene Onegin but never write a single romance to Pushkin's poetry?
(Strictly speaking, he did write two romances, but they’re not quite romances in the traditional sense, so this doesn’t change the essence of the question.)
Почему Чайковский написал оперу Евгений Онегин, но не напсдфисал ни одного романса на стихи Пушкина?
Concert in Russian with simultaneous translationК
Our concert will be in Russian.
For your convenience, we use modern technology to provide simultaneous translation into Lithuanian, English, and Ukrainian.
A large 3x5 meter screen will be set up on stage, displaying subtitles.
We will translate:
- The lecture-style explanations for each piece
- The lyrics of arias and romances, allowing you to enjoy the performances while understanding their meaning.
Click the "Continue" button to find out the date and location of the concert, explore the program, read the performers' biographies, and purchase tickets.