Madona will host the Opera Music Festival dedicated to the memory of Jānis Zābers – Music

An opera music festival dedicated to the memory of the outstanding Latvian opera singer Jānis Zābers will take place on August 22 in Meirāni, Madona district, Vecā kiln. The concert on the open-air stage at the Singer’s Memorial Museum will feature songs from the tenor’s repertoire in both vocal and instrumental versions, performed by Zaber’s descendants – soloist Sonora Vaice, “Three Latvian Tenors”, Dainis Skutelis, etc.

Jānis Uldis Zābers, born on August 11, 1935, was loved and dear to his father all his life, from his childhood in the field to the heights of the opera soloist’s fame. Along with about 300 opera performances during his short creative life, Jānis Zābers has sung in more than 1,500 concerts of various genres – his repertoire included Neapolitan songs, chamber music by Latvian and foreign composers, and pop songs. An equally versatile concert is planned in Meirāni Old Furnace, the exposition of which is available for viewing.

Continuing the tradition started last year, the Opera Music Festival dedicated to the memory of the artist will take place on a specially designed open-air stage at the Jānis Zābers Memorial Museum. The charming opera duo Sonora Vaice and the audience’s favorite “Three Latvian Tenors” – Miervaldis Jenčs, Guntars Ruņģis and Nauris Puntulis will play the pearls of Latvian and foreign chamber music, opera music, of course, Antiņa’s aria from the opera “Golden Horse”. The program also includes the motet “O lux beata trinitas” composed by Jura Kulakov especially for “Three Tenors” – a dedication to this difficult time. Each of the tenors will perform solo songs, among them will be Eduards Grieg’s “Swan” performed by Nauris Puntuulis from the repertoire of Jānis Zābers, while Guntars Ruņģis is preparing the premiere of the song “Karuzo” composed by Luchio Dallas in 1986. The duet with Sonora Vaicis will feature for the first time the world-famous song “Time To Say Goodbye”, as well as melodies from Franz Lehar’s operetta “Funny Widow”, which will be a reminder that John Zaber’s wife Biruta Zaber was a soloist in Musical Comedy .

The concert will also feature the two-time winner of the vocalist competition “Aiviekste Nightingale”, tenor Dainis Skutelis, as well as string quartet “Juno”, pianist Māris Žagars and guitarist Mārcis Auziņš, who has prepared a special new work for guitar and string quartet – three solo quartets , the moment ”,“ You still pick roses ”and“ Even once ”. Valdis Pavlovskis, the director of the opera music festival: “It will be a concert of feelings about the time when Jānis Zābers lived and sang. As a student, I attended concerts in the Philharmonic Hall, where he sang songs by Emīls Dārziņš and Jānis Mediņš, and my mother and father led me to opera performances. I watched “Tosku” and “Audriņi”, but most of course, I liked “Golden Horse”. After that we went to the Old kiln, tenor memorial concerts, where Zaber’s colleagues – Pēteris Grāvelis, Maigurs Andermanis, Gurijs Antipovs and others – sang. And it was not a sad, sad event, but a real holiday, we hope to provide our listeners with it this time as well! ”

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