Music Festival opens with opera, budget remains unchanged

Monty Alexander will present A Life in Jazz

The month-long 32nd Macao International Music Festival (MIMF) will be held from September 28, offering 16 programs across 22 performances, with the budget predicted to remain at MOP30 million.

Themed “Enjoy – The Moment in Music,” this year’s MIMF kicks off with the opera L’Elisir D’Amore by the Zurich Opera House, inviting the renowned German director Grischa Asagaroff.

The festival will close with two concerts by the Staatskapelle Dresden and conductor Christian Thielemann, who will interpret Schumann’s complete symphonies, presenting the work of the romantic German composer of the 19th century.

Acting president of the Cultural Affairs Bureau, Ieong Chi Kin, announced in a press conference yesterday that this year’s budget is similar to last year’s.

“The amount of money predicted [to be spent] is thirty million, which is quite similar to last year’s amount,” Ieong told the press.

Highlights of the show will include a quartet from Salzburg, who will perform a concert of German and Austrian classics which will allow the public to experience the evolution of the string quartet through a musical journey.

Ieong Chi Kin, acting president of the IC

Jamaican jazz pianist Monty Alexander will take to the stage with his trio to present A Life in Jazz and interpret jazz songs, while British choir Stile Antico will present the concert, Queen of Muses, featuring a selection of British Renaissance music composed during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

The same ensemble will further offer the concert, Tenebrae Responsories, taking the audience on a journey of Catholic music by Spanish Renaissance composer Tomás Luis de Victoria.

Combining the rumba flamenco with Portuguese fado, the Portuguese ensemble, Sangre Ibérico, will present a night of Latin music in the concert, “Portugal Meets Spain.”

To mark the 150th anniversary of the death of Italian composer Gioachino Rossini, the MIMF will present the opera, Il Signor Bruschino.

The Camerata Salzburg, hailing from Mozart’s hometown, will also join hands with acclaimed French violinist Renaud Capuçon to present two of Mozart’s violin concertos and two contrasting symphonies by Haydn.

The renowned Brazilian cellist, António Meneses, is also set to perform in the city to present a repertoire, including Bach’s Cello Suite.

Meanwhile, the music director of the Macao Orchestra, Lu Jia, will join hands with the Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra to present the original version of Anton Bruckner’s magnum opus, Symphony No. 8 in C Minor (1887).

Conductor Liu Sha will lead the Macao Chinese Orchestra and join with Guo Yazhi, an icon of the suona circle of China, to present Nostalgic Lane, while the Guangdong National Orchestra will present Cantonese Rhyme along the Silk Road.

Two electronic music bands, EVADE from Macau and FM3 from Beijing, will perform at the soon-to-open Navy Shipyard No 2.

In addition, the special concert “Bravo Macao!” will bring to the stage two young local percussionists, Hoi Lei Lei and Raymond Vong.

Meanwhile, the MIMF Outreach Programme will feature a total of 13 activities in six categories, including talks, pre-show talks, backstage tours, master classes, meet-the-artists sessions and workshops.

Highlights will include Brazilian cellist Antonio Meneses, who will conduct a master class in this edition of MIMF, mentoring local cello students, while the organizer will hold a backstage tour of the opera L’Elisir d’Amore, to explore how the costumes, props and sets help to create the scene of an Italian village in the 19th century.

Navy Shipyard No 2 to open for public use in October

The Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) has announced that the Navy Shipyard No 2 will open to the public in October to host a concert included in the Music Festival.

Earlier in July, the IC completed a sound test and concluded that the noise will not heavily affect the surroundings. The venue is next to Navy Shipyard No 1, nearby A Ma temple, which holds art exhibitions. It took three years to revamp and cost MOP13 million. It has a capacity for 100 persons.

“The place will focus on performing electrical music, modern music and orchestras. While we are doing some finishing touches now, we hope to open this place for users in the latter half of the year,” said Ieong.

“We hope to have more sites for different types of local music bands to reveal their talents and abilities. […] We hope to regenerate the place into a more relaxing and cultural site,” the acting president added. He pledged that musical associations will be able to use the space for free.