Music is indispensable to our lives. Across centuries and boundless territories, there has always been a melody touching our hearts, in each and every crucial moment.
Held for the first time in 1987, the Macao International Music Festival bore witness to the city’s progress and development. Music always inspires us, instilling light and hope towards a better tomorrow. Marking the festival’s 35th anniversary, this edition runs under the theme “Melodic Reconnections”. Presenting over a dozen eclectic programmes and a variety of outreach activities, it will feature both virtuosi and rising stars to bring music aficionados an unforgettable feast.
Packed with established maestros and maverick musicians to enrich the programme, this edition will kick off with Gioachino Rossini’s The Barber of Seville. Reinvented by the Royal Danish Theatre and the rising theatrical director Martin Lyngbo, this timeless comic opera will bring the audience a novel audio-visual experience. Astor Piazzolla’s tango opera María de Buenos Aires, will unveil the everlasting appeal of tango, blending music, operatic singing and contemporary dance.
Hailed as “the most powerful figure in China’s classical music scene”, conductor Long Yu will perform with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. Renowned film score-giant Joe Hisaishi, who is joining our Music Festival for the very first time, is sure to trigger a musical craze. With superb virtuosity, maverick conductor Teodor Currentzis and his musicAeterna will take melomanes beyond the limits of sensation.
On a more traditional front, under the baton of renowned conductor Liu Shun, the Macao Chinese Orchestra is joining hands with two distinguished musicians to present Night of Macao, a fabulous Chinese musical feast. Revered guqin player Chen Leiji is teaming up with the Chamber Ensemble of the China NCPA Orchestra for the crossover concert Song of the Ch’in, showcasing a dialogue between Chinese and Western civilisations at the Mandarin’s House, a site inscribed in the World Heritage list. Moving ahead with the multimedia recital Echoes Of Life, pianist Alice Sara Ott created a musical and visual journey in collaboration with awarded architect Hakan Demirel. A truly immersive and challenging fusion of classic and contemporary vibes.
No musical celebration is complete without the sheer power of vocal chords. Naturally 7, the American band well-known for the a cappella technique they call “vocal play”, effortlessly transform themselves into actual human instruments, using their extraordinary skill to perform an array of film score hits. Another outstanding ensemble, The King’s Singers, will take us on a journey between the English Renaissance and the contemporaneity in two concerts Tom and Will and Legacies. Adding on diversity, reputed fado singer Gisela João will take us through the various shades of the Portuguese soul while iconic Stacey Kent is returning for a stunning display of original songs and jazz standards.
Besides bringing together captivating performances from around the world, over the last decades the festival has provided a performing platform for local young musicians. This year, young pianist Monic Chen will display her virtuosity with a musical trio who share the same passion, showcasing the power of rising talent.
Let us join and reconnect, sharing the endless joy of music!
Leong Wai Man
President of the Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao Special Administrative Region Government