69th Maggio Musicale Fiorentino
From April 30 2006 till June 23 2006
The 69th edition of Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, which officially opens on April 30 with a concert directed by Daniele Gatti, had a special preview on April 20 dedicated to the 70th birthday of the director of Maggio, Zubin Metha. A photographic exhibition in the foyer of teatro Comunale has opened the same day, showing episodes and meetings of the Master, a catalogue with a great number of images of all the opera shows directed in Florence, a complete chronology of his activity in this town, since his debut on February 11, 1962, until nowadays, after more than half a century of career and more than 20 years as the director of Maggio.
On April 30, the traditional date for the opening of the festival, Daniele Gatti will direct the Orchestra of Maggio for the first time (Teatro Verdi, again on May 4) with the "Prelude and death of Isotta" by Wagner and the Mahler ninth Symphony, soprano Nadja Michael.
Mehta will be again on stage for two concerts (May 24 with Webern, Mozart and Brahms fisrt Symphony, May 28 with Chaikovskij "Patetica" and the "Kaddish Symphony" of Leonard Bernstein, when his son Mervon will be the reading voice). He will also direct the only opera performed in this edition, "FALSTAFF" (five shows from 12 to 19 May), a new set directed by Luca RONCONI (who celebrates 30 years of collaboration with the Maggio), and the main characters are RUGGERO RAIMONDI, BARBARA FRITTOLI and BERNADETTE MANCA DI NISSA.
The divine CALLAS will be remembered in the ballet show by Tanztheater, the 1983 coreography by REINHILD HOFFMANN (one of the main symbols of this art, with Pina Bausch and Susanne Linke), will be performed by the company MaggioDanza (from June 8).
A great event, after 20 years, is the concert of the NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA directed by LORIN MAAZEL (June 11), while Mozart is the leading theme of the piano marathon at Teatro Goldoni of Imola international Academy, as well of the orchestra and choir marathons with two concerts a day directed by Federico Maria Sardelli, Antonello Manacorda, Carlo Montanaro and Giuseppe Mega at Piccolo Teatro.
The final free concert this year will be held in Piazza Duomo, under Giotto's belltower: on June 23, the St. John' eve, Ivor Bolton will direct the Orchestra of Maggio playing two pieces of young Mozart and the Messa Solenne "Per l'incoronazione di Luigi XVIII" of Luigi Cherubini.
The program includes another exhibition (the first about Zubin Metha is from April 20 to June 11), about LUCHINO VISCONTI AND THE MAGGIO, a tribute in the 100th anniversary of his birth, which is held from June 17 to July 16 at Galleria Moderna in Palazzo Pitti, and shows images of important Visconti works in Florence.
Other important events to remember are the Wine Auction on May 13 at Gipsoteca at Istituto d'Arte, meetings and conferences, the shop windows which will be specially decorated, the Galileo 2000 Prize and a golf competition.
The 2006 logo of Maggio Musicale shown on every leaflet is by the Tuscan artist Sergio Scatizzi (b. 1918), an exhibition of his works has just ended at Reali Poste of Uffizi.
All the details about the program and the tickets are on the website
www.maggiofiorentino.com
