Luxembourg Philharmonic in Istanbul
Organised by the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (İKSV) the 47th Istanbul Music hosted more than 600 local and international artists throughout 21 days, with a total of 150 pieces performed at 22 concerts at 15 different venues in Istanbul between 11 June and 8 July 2019. The festival concerts were attended by more than 18.000 people, the organizer says.
This year’s festival theme was “Darkness of Being, Lightness of Being” In its 47th year, the Istanbul Music Festival focused on the dualities in life such as good-bad, happiness-sadness, birth-death, and their impact on music and its creation process. With its programme that was prepared under the theme “Darkness of Being, Lightness of Being”, the festival aimed to emphasise the importance of music as a means to enlightenment in times of darkness.
The Lifetime Achievement Award of the festival was presented to the pre-eminent violist Yuri Bashmet. Festival audiences met with many musicians and ensembles including pianist Yuja Wang, the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Gustavo Gimeno, the Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Liang Zhang, together with pianist Fazıl Say.
Istanbul Music Festival and İKSV Alt Kat, with the support of Istanbul Development Agency, initiated the Birlikte Güçlü Sesler Chorus (Together Stronger Voices Chorus), a project aimed for children and youth.
Luxembourg Philharmonic in Istanbul
Last year, the festival initiated a new project to support the next generation of women musicians. Women Stars of Tomorrow: Young Women Musicians Support Fund was launched in collaboration with TSKB (Industrial Development Bank of Turkey) and the contribution of the audiences to advance the international career of gifted musicians in the branches of instrument, singing, and conducting. This year, 14 young women musicians were selected to receive support from the programme and 6 of these musicians performed at a concert on 25 June at Boğaziçi University Albert Long Hall.
