From April 17th to May 11th 2021, the Maltese capital of Valletta will host over three weeks of consecutive evening performances of classical music. InClassica, the tenth anniversary edition of the Malta International Music Festival is organised by the European Foundation for Support of Culture (EUFSC) in partnership with the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra. The EUFSC is an organisation committed to promoting cultural projects in Europe and around the world, an aim reflected in this programme of concerts featuring performances by exceptional artists from across the globe, and one that is certain to delight both casual and committed lovers of classical music

Alexey Shor’s Symphonic Poem Images from the Great Siege will be performed at the opening of the InClassica Festival. Mr Shor has been Composer-In-Residence for the Malta International Music Festival since 2017, a post he also holds with the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra Academy. Dedicated to the history of Malta, this musical work is conceived as a ‘grand canvas’, depicting this 16th century event through the reflective prism of a 21st century mindset. The composition will be performed by two orchestras: the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra and the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) under the baton of their chief conductor, Sergey Smbatyan.

This ambitious score will be performed at the Mediterranean Conference Center (MCC) in Malta’s capital, Valletta. Located in the 16th century historical building known as the Sacra Infermeria, it is considered one of the finest concert halls in Europe. Renowned artists, actors and musicians from La Scala, the Neapolitan Theatre of San Carlo, the Spanish National Ballet, the Belgian Philharmonic Orchestra have all travelled to the MCC to perform, and for 2021 InClassica is set to invite a host of classical music stars to continue this tradition.

Participating in the event will be numerous internationally recognised performers, many of whom for which the chance to see them perform live is rare, and especially so at the same festival as so many other esteemed artists. The youngest of these performers will be violin prodigy, Daniel Lozakovich, who will present a new violin concerto by Alexey Shor. Shor’s compositions will also be performed by pianists Denis Kozhukhin and Andrei Gugnin, cellist Gauthier Capuçon, violinist Stella Chan, violist David Aaron Carpenter and operatic soprano Carmen Giannattasio, who will be accompanied in concert by the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra.

Other classical music stars in attendance at the festival include pianists Marta Argerich, Grigory Sokolov, Denis Matsuev, Rudolf Buchbinder, Julia Zilberquit and Severin von Eckardstein, violinists Maxim Vengerov, Daniel Hope, Sergei Dogadin and Anna Tifu, cellist Steven Isserlis, clarinettist Andreas Ottensamer and opera diva Danielle de Niese. Audiences will also be treated to a rare live performance by violinist and conductor, Gidon Kremer, who will perform Philip Glass’s double concerto for violin and cello together with Giedre Divanauskaite.

Aside from the festival’s impressive roster of visiting artists, the programming too is comprehensive and varied, featuring works by P. I. Tchaikovsky, S. Rachmaninov, S. Prokofiev, M. Bruch, F. Mendelson, M. Ravel, L. van Beethoven, G, Verdi, A. Dvorak, K. Saint-Saens, D. Shostakovich, I. Stravinsky, B. Bartok and others. Performed by such virtuosos, performances of these scores are sure to take on new life and delight audiences throughout the festival.

Aside from the visiting artists present, the event will also feature eight leading symphony orchestras and conductors, who will direct the ensembles on a rotational basis. This fluidity in the event’s programming aims to provide classical music lovers with the unique opportunity to discover the many nuances and subtleties of sound particular to each of the visiting orchestras. Performing on the InClassica stage will be: the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, the Russian National Orchestra, the Malta Philharmonic and Youth Orchestras, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (UK), the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of Liege (Belgium), the Armenian State Symphony Orchestra, the German State Philharmonic Rhineland-Palatinate Orchestra. Maestros Dmitry Yablonsky (USA-Israel-Spain), Alexander Sladkovsky (Russia), Gianluca Marciano (Italy), Alexander Shelley (Great Britain), Michael Francis (Great Britain-USA), Gergely Madarash (Hungary), Sergey Smbatyan (Armenia) and Marius Stravinsky (Great Britain) will take turns occupying the conductor’s podium.

Even the most cursory assessment of the festival’s programme and announced lineup leaves little doubt in one’s mind that this is certain to be a truly unique event for classic music lovers, especially when considering the challenges faced by the creative sectors and live music events specifically during 2020. Headed by Konstantin Ishkhanov, the European Foundation for the Support of Culture (EUFSC) is InClassica’s organiser and founder. Supporting and promoting culture is the foundation’s mission, an aim it furthers through events such as InClassica.

"After such a tough year for many classical musicians and classical music lovers, the InClassica festival is proud to present its three-week-long program of outstanding creativity from the world’s most renowned musicians. We’ve chosen Malta as a place for our event most deliberately: we guarantee a unique cultural experience on this charming Mediterranean island for all our listeners and visitors to our concerts", - EUFSC President Konstantin Ishkhanov stated.

The EUFSC’s cultural events calendar traditionally culminates each year in the InClassica International Music Festival. In 2019, this was followed by a series of international piano competitions named ’14 Ways to Malta’. The foundation has ambitious plans for 2021 despite the difficulties faced in 2020. One such event, the ‘Classic Piano’ International Piano Competition, is due to take place simultaneously with the festival itself. 70 young pianists will compete for first prize in an event which will help launch and support the careers of talented upcoming soloists, with some of these perhaps destined to be invited back as guest soloists for future InClassica festivals.

As part of its mission to promote and support the performance of, and education in, classical music, the EUFSC will also be running an educational programme in parallel with InClassica 2021. Next year this will comprise two major modules: the Malta Classical Music Academy for professional musicians, and a course of lectures by world-renowned performers and musicologists for the general public.

The Classical Music Academy will offer masterclasses with leading pedagogues from all over the world, including Anna Chumachenko (Italy), Bernd Goetzke (Germany), Zakhar Bron (Germany), Boris Kushnir (Austria), Davide Alonya (Italy) and Grigory Gruzman (Germany), and will invite guest performers from Russia including Sergei Dogadin, Vera Kameneva, Mikhail Khokhlov and others.

A selection of these visiting artists (for example, Sergei Dogadin) will perform on the festival’s stage in addition to their educational work, as they share their skills, knowledge and experience with Academy attendees. The best students will be granted an opportunity to perform as part of the festival together with these honoured musicians, guaranteeing a unique experience and an impactful debut for this extensive educational event.