Liepāja
The Berliner Philharmoniker have celebrated the anniversary of their founding on 1 May with the Europakonzert
at a location of special historical significance since 1991. This year’s concert celebrating the orchestra’s 140th
anniversary was originally scheduled to take place at the Odesa National Academic Opera. Due to the attack
on Ukraine, another venue has had to be found. The Berliner Philharmoniker and chief conductor Kirill Petrenko
are very grateful to the team of the Great Amber Concert Hall in Liepāja, Latvia, that this year’s Europakonzert
can be held there at such short notice. It is a show of solidarity with Odesa and Ukraine and for peaceful
coexistence in Europe. Together with the Latvian mezzo-soprano Elīna Garanča, a new programme has been
created that focuses on composers whose musical message is about freedom and self-determination.
The concert can be followed live in the Digital Concert Hall. The Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg (rbb) will
broadcast the concert live on TV (Das Erste) and on radio (rbbKultur) on 1 May 2022 at 11am. The concert is a
co-production of EuroArts with rbb, NHK, CCTV and Latvian television LTV.
The Berliner Philharmoniker would like to thank the Friends of the Berliner Philharmoniker and the German
Foreign Office for their financial support of the project.
Europakonzert of the Berliner Philharmoniker
1 May 2022 11am
Lielais Dzintars, Liepāja, Latvia
Berliner Philharmoniker
Kirill Petrenko conductor
Elīna Garanča mezzo-soprano
Pēteris Vasks Musica dolorosa for string orchestra
Luciano Berio Folk Songs for mezzo-soprano and orchestra
Valentyn Silvestrov Elegy for string orchestra
Leoš Janáček Taras Bulba, rhapsody for orchestra
Jean Sibelius Finlandia, tone poem for orchestra, op. 26