Today at 19:00 the Latvian National Opera and Ballet (LNOB) will host the “Great Music Award” presentation ceremony, informs the organizers of the event.
The “Great Music Award” for lifetime contribution will be received by singer Lilija Greidāne and singer and vocal teacher Aina Bajāre.
The singer Arta Jēkabsone, the trio “Metamorfoze” and the students of the musical department of the Riga Dome Choir School were nominated in the “Young Artist of the Year” category for the musical “Pūt, vējini!” by Kārlis Lāčas. in the production.
Violinist Paula Šūmane, violist Yevgenija Frolova and cellist Anna Veselova will compete for the laurels in the “Concert of the Year” category for the event held on May 7 in Mazaja Mežotne Palace. Also nominated for the award was the concert performance of Richard Wagner’s opera “Tristan und Isolde” on July 9 in the “Cēsis” concert hall, as well as the concert of guitarist Matīs Čudars, bassist Edvīns Ozols and percussionist Ivars Arutjunyans, which took place on July 19 in the cultural space “M/Darbnīca”.
Conductor Krista Audere, violinist Vineta Sareika, as well as baritone Rihards Miller and pianist Erika Miller have been nominated in the category “For excellent interpretation”. On the other hand, saxophonist Kārlis Auziņš, percussionist Guntars Freibergs and singer Jūlija Vasiļjeva won nominations in the category “For outstanding performance throughout the year”.
Cellist Inga Ozola, pianist Rihards Plešanovs and harpist Ieva Shablovska will compete for the laurels in the category “For outstanding work in an ensemble”. On the other hand, Krista Auzniek’s “Sensus”, which premiered on February 18 in St. John’s Church in Riga, was nominated in the “New Work of the Year” category. Also nominated in this category is Andras Dzenīš’s Second Symphony “Warm Wind”, which premiered on March 5 in Liepaja’s “Lielais dzintars” concert hall. The clarinet concert “Long Walks” by Jānis Petraškevičs, which premiered on January 29 at the Great Guild, will also compete for the title of “New Work of the Year”.
In the “Performance of the Year” category, Anna Fischer’s opera “Vēsā” was nominated in Valmiera’s “Kurtuve”, conducted by Artūrs Gailis. The production was directed by Klāvs Mellis. Also nominated in this category is Alfred Kalniņš’s opera “Baņuta”, which was performed in the quarter of Tallinn Street, in the cultural space “Tu jau zini kur”. The musical director of the production is Jēkabs Nīmanis, and the director is Franciska Kronfot. Jānis Kalniņš’s opera “Hamlet” at the Latvian National Opera, conducted by Mārtiņš Ozoliņš and directed by Kristīna Vuss, will compete for the title of “Performance of the Year”.
Latvian conductor Audere, who lives in the Netherlands, and the State Academic Choir “Latvija” will perform at the ceremony.
The representative of the choir, Zane Skrauča, states that in August of last year, at the 25th International Sacred Music Festival in the Roman Catholic Church of St. Peter and St. Joseph of Liepāja, Audere and the choir “Latvija” met for the first time in a jointly created program in which German polyphonic music works were performed, as well as Agra from Liepāja The works written by Engelmann and the French Olivier Messiaen. For this, the jury of the “Great Music Award” nominated the conductor for the award in the category “For excellent interpretation”.
On the other hand, in the upcoming concert dedicated to the award ceremony, Audere has chosen the Credo part of the Swiss Frank Martin’s mass, composed in 1922 for a double choir.
The “Great Music Award” presentation ceremony will be covered by Latvian Television Channel 1 and “Latvijas Radio 3” – “Klasika”.
The “Great Music Award” is the highest Latvian state award in music. In 1993, the Ministry of Culture, following the initiative of the then Minister of Culture Raimonds Paul, decided to annually honor the best achievements in the country’s musical life with a special award.
