Flores Musicae 2022
Flores Musicae – Medieval and Renaissance Music Festival
In 2017, after six editions, the former festival entitled Days of Early Music, which succeeded the Court Music series, underwent a transformation and a revival. The festival, which takes place in Nova Gorica and in Goriška Brda, has been renamed to Flores Musicae, and Medieval music has been added to the existing Renaissance repertoire. Flores Musicae festival is the only ancient music festival in the western part of Slovenia and the only festival dedicated to medieval and Renaissance music in Slovenia.
Bor Zuljan – The artistic director of the festival Flores Musicae
The artistic director of the festival is the renowned Slovenian guitarist and lutenist Bor Zuljan, who completed his studies in guitar, lute, medieval music and music pedagogy at the Haute école de musique de Genève. The series of concerts of Slovenian and international musicians will illustrate the various traditions of the longest period in music history.
Sredozemlje je že izpred časov antike pomembno križišče in topilni lonec različnih kultur in religij, hkrati pa tudi zibelka evropske kulture. Tudi v srednjem veku in renesansi je veljalo Sredozemlje za center sveta, med Beneško republiko in Otomani, med Arabci, judi in kristjani, v Evropi pa je ponovno odkrivanje kulture antične Grčije in Rimljanov privedlo do preporoda, renesanse.
Letos se bomo tako osredotočili na širšo tematiko Sredozemlja: od srednjeveškega popotovanja iz Španije preko celotnega Sredozemlja do centralne Azije, do vokalnih polifonij renesančne Italije v izvedbi slovite Cappelle Pratensis; ter od dvojnega solističnega koncerta z glasbo neapeljskega čembalista Antonija Valenteja v izvedbi Paole Erdas in z renesančno kitaro v rokah Tržačana Federica Rossignolija, vse do modernega kantavtorja in trubadurja Piersa Faccinija, ki v svoji glasbi uporablja vplive celotnega Sredozemlja ter srednjeveške in renesančne glasbe.
In 2017, after six editions, the former festival entitled Days of Early Musicu, which succeeded the Court Music series, underwent a transformation and a revival. The festival, which takes place in Nova Gorica and in Goriška Brda, has been renamed to Flores Musicae, and Medieval music has been added to the existing Renaissance repertoire. Together in a friendly cross-border cooperation with the DRAMSAreM Centro Giuliano di Musica Antica, and with financial support from the Nova Gorica Municipality and the Ministry of Culture, we present interesting ensembles with innovative and fresh approaches to early music. The revival of early music during warm autumn days is thus a pleasant introduction to a new concert season. Masterclasses for lute, guitar, harp, harpsichord and singing, as well as other events are held alongside concerts. These events, which include free guided tours and food and wine tastings, promote the cultural heritage of the festival venues. The early music concerts united with the gems of our cultural heritage form a very special music experience.
Bor Zuljan, acclaimed guitarist and lutist, has been the festival’s artistic director for the last decade. He works with different music genres and constantly strives for a synthesis between contemporary and early music, different world music traditions, jazz and improvisation. He is the winner of many awards and prizes for his solo albums as well as those recorded with his ensemble La Lyra. He received his master’s degree in guitar (prof. Dušan Bogdanović), in lute (prof. Jonathan Rubin), and medieval music (prof. Francis Biggi) at the Haute école de musique de Genève. He works as research assistant on a project on Renaissance fantasia improvisation on lute, the subject of his PhD thesis, in cooperation with the Ricercar Centre for research in Renaissance music and the University of Tours, France. He teaches at two conservatoires in Geneve, and occasionally he gives lectures at prestigious world-famous institutions.
Foto: Gregoire Fillion
This year’s edition of the festival will also include free guided tours of two pearls of Goriška cultural heritage. On Friday, a tour of the Renaissance Villa Vipolža in Goriška brda will take place, and on Saturday, as part of the celebration, the 550th anniversary of the first mention of the Church of St. Mihaela in Šmihel guided tour of restored frescoes inside the “small cathedral, as it is called by art historian Klavdija Figelj. The tour will take place before the concerts.
VILLA VIPOLŽE, GORIŠKA BRDA
Villa Vipolže, embraced by picturesque vines, has been through different makeovers during its history. It served initially as a hunters’ lodge of the Counts of Gorizia who used it for their summer vacations. Later, it was owned by the noblemen of the families Herberstein, Della Torre, Attems and Teuffenbach. In the 17th century, the Venetians renovated it into their summer residence. It then took the form of a rectangular villa with two towers at the corners and the Venetian decor. To this day, it remains surrounded by a magnificent park with a Baroque fountain.
ST. MICHAEL’S CHURCH, ŠMIHEL
The Church of St. Michael in Šmihel is one of the architectural gems that will host this year’s festival edition. It is located in the parish of Šempas near Nova Gorica and is the oldest church in the parish. This is also reflected in the fact that churches dedicated to St. Michael were constructed as a symbol of Christian triumph over paganism. The original small church with no bell tower was built in the 15th century and has been rebuilt three times in its history. The bell tower and the sacristy were added in the 18th century. The Gothic chancel dates back to the 15th century. It is decorated with frescoes depicting scenes from the Bible, saints and symbols. They were restored between 1906 and 1909. In 1962, the frescoes were copied and are now kept in the National Gallery in Ljubljana. The Baroque marble and stone altar decorated with the coat-of-arms at the top was later added. In the alcove behind the altar is the statue of Saint Michael dating back to the 15th century, a work of the Friulian “Tolmezzo school”. Saint Michael holds a sword in one hand, a symbol of an army leader, which he used to defeat Satan that lies at his feet. In his other hand, he holds a pair of scales in which he weighs the souls in the name of God, judging whether they are worthy of heaven or not.
Barbara Poša Belingar
Public relations, organization and
coordination of cultural programs
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E: pr@kulturnidomng.si
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