The Lieder Company enters its first concert season, which will run in Prague from 8 May to 11 December. The opening three concerts are dedicated to France, partly symbolically linked to the exchange of the EU Presidency between France and the Czech Republic, but also reflecting important anniversaries.
The first concert on 8 May will feature Olivier Messiaen’s rarely performed almost hour-long cycle Harawi, accompanied by two works by his teachers P. Dukas and M. Dupré. This concert will mark 30 years since Messiaen’s death. Soprano Irena Troupová, baritone Robin Červinek and pianist Jan Dušek will perform.
The second concert on 5 June is dedicated to the anniversaries of other French composers César Franck, Claude Debussy and Jacques Ibert. Their works will be performed by soprano Jana Sibera, baritone Roman Janál and pianist Karel Košárek.
The third concert on 26 June represents to some extent a link between Czech authors and France. Works inspired by French literature from the pen of B. Martinů, V. Ullmann and H. Barton. The programme also includes cycles by L. Bernstein and the Romanian living composer A. Popa, whose works will be performed in the Czech premiere. For this concert, the Society has also commissioned a new composition by the young Czech composer Pavel Duda. The concert will feature soprano Irena Troupová, mezzo-soprano Jana Hrochová and pianist Jan Dušek.
With its September concert on 18 September, the association wants to explore lesser performed works by otherwise relatively well-known composers I. Stravinsky, A. Honegger, D. Milhaud and Z. Kodály, whose various anniversaries are also commemorated this year. Their works will be performed by mezzo-soprano Jana Hrochová, baritone Robin Červinek and pianist Bohumír Stehlík. Stravinsky’s works will also be performed by other instrumentalists.
We consider the October 16th concert to be exceptional in its timing, taking place on the day exactly 110 years after the premiere of the 20th century’s seminal work: Arnold Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire. It will be performed at the concert together with the cycle A. Zemlinsky and a new work by the young composer and singer Vojtěch Šembera, who will himself take on the interpretation. Irena Troupová will play the solo parts in the works by Schönberg and Zemlinsky, as well as leading Czech instrumentalists conducted by Petr Louženský.
The festive November concert on 13 November, just a few days before the national holiday, presents songs by Czech composers K. B. Jirák, P. Bořkovec, E. Schulhoff, O. Mácha and I. Hurník, whose important anniversaries are also commemorated this year. The performers will be soprano Irena Troupová, mezzo-soprano Lucie Hilscherová, baritone Roman Janál and pianists Bohumír Stehlík and Jan Dušek.
The final concert of the season on 11 December will have a very intimate tone, featuring canzonettas and songs by J. Haydn, J. A. Benda and J. L. Dusík (also this year’s jubilarians). All in an authentic, historically informed interpretation by renowned soprano Irena Troupová and pianist Petra Matějová, who will play the hammerklavier.
The concerts on 8 May, 26 June, 18 September and 16 October will take place in the Great Hall of the New Town Hall (Prague 2), 5 June in the Refectory of the Professional House (Prague 1), 13 November in the Martinů Hall and 11 December in the Respirium of the Lichtenstein Palace (Prague 1).
