One of the most anticipated, most popular and perhaps most important Lithuanian classical music events – the 29th Vilnius Festival – will take place this year from May 30 to June 20, and its symbolic postscript will be the concert scheduled for August 20. concertAmong the expected foreign celebrities are violin celebrities Christian Tetzlaff, Janine Jansen and the Camerata Salzburg orchestra, the baroque ensemble Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, piano legend András Schiff, world opera star Joseph Calleja, maestro Keri-Lynn Wilson and the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra, and many others. We will also see the most famous Lithuanian performers and orchestras.
"Since the first Vilnius Festival, its main idea has been the promotion of historical and modern world cultural values in society. Cooperation between Lithuanian and foreign musicians promotes the creation of a multicultural music scene in Lithuania, mutual tolerance and trust between artists and society, and the search for and support of new artistic forces. Since the very beginning of the Vilnius Festival, having nurtured one of its goals - to promote the musical culture of our country in the world - we strive to keep the bar of this festival program high and present the very best musicians, groups, and works," says festival director Rūta Prusevičienė.
This year's festival is organized by the Lithuanian National Philharmonic and the Public Institution "Vilnius Festivals". According to the head of this institution, Remigijus Merkelis, during its years of existence, the Vilnius Festival has clearly enriched the country's musical life and contributed to the development of cultural tourism. Thanks to this festival, the capital can be proud of concerts by world-famous performers, spread the word about the vitality of Lithuanian culture, high artistic ambitions, and full concert halls. Therefore, the Vilnius Festival is clearly visible in the general context of "Vilnius Festivals", ensuring a full-fledged cultural life of our country.
According to the organizers, this year's festival will feature bright foreign stars, enjoy the best performers from our country, and listen to well-known and unknown or rarely heard music.
On May 30, the festival will open with the program "Great Romantics." Works by Johannes Brahms and Jean Sibelius will be performed by the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra (LNSO), conducted by a guest from Georgia, Mirian Khukhunaishvili, with Christian Tetzlaff as solo violinist.
On June 1, guests from Germany will perform at the festival - the early music chamber orchestra "Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin" and Georg Kallweit (baroque violin). On June 4, a piano recital will be held by Mūza Rubackytė. On June 6, the LNSO, conductor and pianist Victorien Vanoosten and soloist Gabrielė Bukinė (soprano) will treat the audience to a feast of Maurice Ravel's music. On June 7, the program "Visions of Čiurlionis and Mendelssohn" will delight everyone with the violin star Janine Jansen and the famous orchestra "Camerata Salzburg". On June 11, piano legend Sir András Schiff will perform in Lithuania for the first time.
On June 13, on the eve of the Day of Mourning and Hope, the LNSO, Kaunas State Choir, reciter Darius Meškauskas and conductor Roberts Šervenikas will perform the program “Invocations of Faith and Hope”, which will include opuses by Onutė Narbutaitė and Algirdas Martinaitis. On June 15, virtuosos from TaiwanOn June 18, the program with the intriguing title "J. S. Bach and A. Žlabys Disputation" will bring together the Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra, violinist and conductor Sergejus Krylovas, and pianist Andrius Žlabys, who is always welcome in Lithuania, this time also appearing in the role of a composer.
The festival will culminate on June 20th with the LNSO conducting Modestas Pitrėnas, featuring world opera star Joseph Calleja. The festival's spectacular postlude, or post scriptum, will be the concert "Slava Ukraini!" on August 20th, featuring the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra conducted by Keri-Lynn Wilson and soprano Rachel Willis-Sørensen.
Ten festival concerts will take place in the Great Hall of the National Philharmonic, one in Vilnius St. Casimir's Church (free admission). All festival concerts are announced on the website filharmonija.lt. From May 7 to 11, a 20 percent discount is applied to festival concert tickets (except for the lowest fare tickets) - purchase tickets at more favorable prices!
VILNIUS FESTIVAL 2025. 29th festival
May 2025, 30 – June 20* / *Postscript – August 20
Friday, May 30, 19 p.m. at the Great Hall of the Lithuanian National Philharmonic
"The Great Romantics. Christian Tetzlaff and the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra interpret Brahms and Sibelius"
LITHUANIAN NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA (Artistic Director and Chief Conductor Modestas Pitrėnas)
Soloist CHRISTIAN TETZLAFF (violin, Germany)
Conductor MIRIAN KHUKHUNAISHVILI (Georgia)
Program: JOHANNES BRAHMS – Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in D major, op. 77; JEAN SIBELIUS – Symphony No. 1 in E minor, op. 39
June 1, on sunday, 19 p.m. Lithuanian National Philharmonic In the Great Hall
"A European Baroque Journey."Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, Georg Kallweit
Early Music Chamber Orchestra AKADEMIE FÜR ALTE MUSIK BERLIN (Germany)
Soloist and concertmaster GEORG KALLWEIT (baroque violin, Germany)
Program:
FRANCESCO MARIA VERACINI – Overture No. 6 in G minor for two oboes, bassoon, string orchestra and basso continuo; TARQUINIO MERULA – Canzone No. 4, op. 12, “La treccia” (“The Braid”) for two violins and basso continuo; GEORG FRIEDRICH HÄNDEL – Concerto grosso for two violins, cello and string orchestra No. 1 in G major, op. 6, HWV 319; JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH – Concerto for violin, orchestra and basso continuo No. 2 in E major, BWV 1042; ANTONIO VIVALDI – Concerto for two oboes, strings and basso continuo in D minor, RV 353; JOHANN VALENTIN MEDER – Chaconne in C major for two solo instruments and basso continuo; GEORG PHILIPP TELEMANN – Suite for string orchestra and basso continuo No. 6 in G minor “La Musette”, TWV 55:g1; FRANCESCO GEMINIANI – Concerto grosso No. 12 in D minor, H. 143 “La Folia” for two violins, string orchestra and basso continuo. Theme and variations from Arcangelo Corelli’s Violin Sonata No. 12 in D minor, Op. 5, Theme from “La Folia”
Wednesday, June 4, 19 p.m. at the Great Hall of the Lithuanian National Philharmonic
"Maestra Mūza Rubackytė. From Vilnius to Venice"
MŪZA RUBACKYTĖ (piano; Lithuania, France, Switzerland)
Program: LEOPOLD GODOWSKY – Sonata in E minor, I d. – Allegro non troppo, ma appassionato; MIKALOJUS KONSTANTINAS ČIURLIONIS – Preludes: D minor (VL 239), D minor (VL 294, “Autumn”), F minor (VL 197); Nocturnes: C sharp minor (VL 183), F sharp minor (VL 178); FERENC LISZT – “Venezia e Napoli” (“Venice and Naples”), S. 162; RAMINTA ŠERKŠNYTĖ – “Fairytale” for piano; FERENC LISZT – Sonata in B minor, S. 178
Friday, June 6, 19 p.m. at the Great Hall of the Lithuanian National Philharmonic
"French Horizons with Maurice Ravel. LNSO, Victorien Vanoosten, Gabrielė Bukinė"
LITHUANIAN NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA (Artistic Director and Chief Conductor Modestas Pitrėnas)
Soloist and conductor VICTORIEN VANOOSTEN (piano, France), soloist GABRIELĖ BUKINĖ (soprano)
Program: MAURICE RAVEL – Suite No. 1 from the ballet “Daphne and Chloe”, M. 57a; Concerto for Piano and Orchestra in G major, M. 83; Song Cycle “Scheherazade” for soprano and orchestra, M. 41; “Bolero”, M. 81
Saturday, June 7, 19 p.m. at the Great Hall of the Lithuanian National Philharmonic
"Violin star Janine Jansen and the Camerata Salzburg orchestra. Visions of Čiurlionis and Mendelssohn"
Orchestra CAMERATA SALZBURG (Austria)
Soloist JANINE JANSEN (violin, Netherlands)
Orchestra Concertmaster and Music Director GREGORY AHSS (violin, Israel)
Program: MIKALOJUS KONSTANTINAS ČIURLIONIS – String Quartet in C minor for orchestra (orchestrated by Vilhelms Čepinskis); FELIX MENDELSSOHN – Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in E minor, op. 64; Symphony No. 5 in D major/D minor, op. 107 (“Reformation”)
The concert is partially funded Ministry of Culture Funded by the Professional Art Dissemination Program
Wednesday, June 11 19 h In the Great Hall of the Lithuanian National Philharmonic
"Piano legend Sir András Schiff interprets the classics"
Sir ANDRÁS SCHIFF (piano, United Kingdom)
The program includes Johann Sebastian Bach, Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven, Franz Schubert.
Friday, June 13, 19 p.m. at the Great Hall of the Lithuanian National Philharmonic
"Invocations of Faith and Hope. LNSO, KVCH, Robertas Šervenikas, Darius Meškauskas"
LITHUANIAN NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA (Artistic Director and Chief Conductor Modestas Pitrėnas)
KAUNAS STATE CHOIR (artistic director and chief conductor Robertas Šervenikas)
DARIUS MEŠKAUSKAS (reader)
Conductor ROBERTAS ŠERVENIKAS
Program: ONUTĖ NARBUTAITĖ – “Melody in the Olive Garden” (Symphony No. 2 Part II – “Melody”); ALGIRDAS MARTINAITIS – Oratorio “Invocations of Faith and Hope” (liturgical, texts from the Freedom Struggles Archive, Maironis, Vincas Mykolaitis-Putinas, author)
BSunday, June 15, 19 p.m. at St. Casimir's Church in Vilnius
"Virtuosos from Taiwan greet Vilnius"
TAIWAN PHILHARMONIC CHAMBER ENSEMBLE:
HAO-TUN TENG (violin, ensemble leader), ZHI-HUI LIN (violin), JUBEL CHEN (viola), YI-SHIEN LIEN (cello), SHANNON SHUEN CHIEH (harp), MAY-LIN JU (clarinet)
Program: FRANZ POENITZ – Capriccio, op. 73, for clarinet and harp; JUOZAS NAUJALIS – “Dream” for string quartet; YUAN-CHEN LI – “Tao of Meinong” for string quartet and clarinet; CHING-MEI LIN – “Enchanted Forest Whispers” for string quartet and harp; YU-HSIEN TENG – “April Rain” for string quartet (arranged by Ting-Chuan Chen)
Admission is free. The concert is organized with the Public Institution "Religious Music Center". Concert partner - Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania
Wednesday, June 18, 19 p.m. In the Great Hall of the Lithuanian National Philharmonic
"The Dispute between JS Bach and A. Žlabys. LKO, Sergej Krylov, Andrius Žlabys"
LITHUANIAN CHAMBER ORCHESTRA
Artistic director, soloist and conductor SERGEJ KRYLOV (violin)
Soloist ANDRIUS ŽLABYS (piano)
Program: JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH – “Brandenburg Concerto” No. 5 in D major, BWV 1050; Concerto for piano and orchestra No. 1 in D minor, BWV 1052; GIUSEPPE TARTINI – Sonata for violin and piano in G minor, B. g5 (“The Devil’s Trills”, arrangement for orchestra by Hugo Kauder); ANDRIUS ŽLABYS – “Movement for strings and piano”
Friday, June 20, 19 p.m. at the Great Hall of the Lithuanian National Philharmonic
"World Opera Star Joseph Calleja, LNSO, Modestas Pitrėnas"
LITHUANIAN NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA (Artistic Director and Chief Conductor Modestas Pitrėnas)
Soloist JOSEPH CALLEJA (tenor, Malta)
Conductor MODESTAS PITRĖANS
In the program - Giacomo Puccini, Antonín Dvořák, Jules Massenet, Joaquín Rodrigo, Joseph Vella, Georg Friedrich Händel, Francesco Paolo Tosti
Wednesday, August 20, 19 p.m. at the Great Hall of the Lithuanian National Philharmonic
"Slava Ukraini! Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra, Keri-Lynn Wilson, Rachel Willis-Sørensen"
UKRAINIAN FREEDOM ORCHESTRA
Soloist RACHEL WILLIS-SØRENSEN (soprano, JAV)
Conductor KERI-LYNN WILSON (Canada, USA)
Program: MAXIM KOLOMIITS – Suite from the opera “The Mothers of Kherson”, premiere; RICHARD WAGNER – Introduction and Isolde’s death scene (“Liebestod”) from the opera “Tristan and Isolde”; LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN – Symphony No. 5 in C minor (“Fate”), op. 67
