
NFM Leopoldinum: Bizet’s Carmen Suite
NFM Leopoldinum: Bizet’s Carmen Suite
Experience the unforgettable music of Bizet’s opera Carmen alongside moving pieces by Bacewicz and Strauss.
This programme spans deep emotion and playful ingenuity, performed by the distinguished NFM Leopoldinum Orchestra under the direction of virtuoso violinist Alexander Sitkovetsky.
Grażyna Bacewicz’s Concerto for String Orchestra is a striking opener – its music shifting from fiercely propulsive to sublimely lyrical. A composer who deserves to be heard more often, Bacewicz brings a distinctive voice to 20th-century string repertoire. Richard Strauss’ Metamorphosen, composed amid the ruins of WWII, is steeped in grief and loss. In its long, intertwining lines, Strauss mourns a shattered world.
In contrast, Wojciech Kilar’s symphonic work is inspired by the river Orawa which runs through the Polish mountains to the Slovakian border.
Finally Rodion Shchedrin’s Carmen Suite bursts with theatrical flair. His reimagining of Georges Bizet’s opera – written for his ballerina wife – transforms its melodies into a thrilling ballet suite for strings and percussion.
Part of our Focus on Poland series featuring seven concerts celebrating Polish culture.
The orchestra has achieved a prestigious reputation in Polish music, performing in diverse formations and developed its own approach to music interpretation, combining the emotionality of sound with the clarity of texture.
The NFM Leopoldinum Orchestra, resident at the National Forum of Music in Wrocław, takes centre stage as the flagship ensemble of our Focus on Poland series during their International Festival Residency.
Focus on Poland Partners
Programme
A keepsake freesheet is available at the venue for this performance.
Full programme
Bacewicz Concerto for String Orchestra
Strauss Metamorphosen
Interval
Kilar Orawa
Bizet arr. Rodion Shchedrin Carmen Suite for Strings and Percussion
Performers
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- NFM Leopoldinum Orchestra
- Alexander SitkovetskyDirector & Violin
NFM Leopoldinum OrchestraCloseOpen
- Solo Violin & Artistic Director of NFM Leopoldinum OrchestraAlexander Sitkovetsky
- ConcertmasterKarolina Podorska
- Deputy ConcertmasterMagdalena Ziarkowska-Kołacka
- Leader, 2nd ViolinAgata Kasperska
Tymoteusz Rapak - ViolinAleksandra Bugaj
Arkadiusz Pawluś
Aleksandra Pilone
Dorota Pindur
Anna Pozdiejewa
Anna Szufłat
Katarzyna Woźnica - Co-Principal ViolaMarzena Malinowska
- ViolaAgnieszka Żyniewicz
Tomasz Pstrokoński-Nawratil
Anna Wałek - Principal CelloMarcin Misiak
Tomasz Daroch - CelloMonika Łapka
Jacek Francuz
Gabriel Pieronek - Double bassMirosław Mały
Jan Kołacki