{"id":3878,"date":"2025-05-21T09:11:11","date_gmt":"2025-05-21T09:11:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iscm-slovakia.org\/?p=3878"},"modified":"2025-05-21T09:11:57","modified_gmt":"2025-05-21T09:11:57","slug":"bokess-orpheus-seeks-a-new-expression-in-the-diversity-of-music","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/iscm-slovakia.org\/en\/reviews\/bokess-orpheus-seeks-a-new-expression-in-the-diversity-of-music\/","title":{"rendered":"Bokes\u2019s Orpheus Seeks a New Expression in the Diversity of Music<\/strong>"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

19 May 2025 \u2013 Bratislava, Concert Hall Dvorana<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Continuing its mission to give voice to young Slovak composers, the student festival Orfeus<\/em> entered its 24th edition with a tribute to Vladim\u00edr Bokes<\/strong> \u2013 a teacher at the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava (V\u0160MU) and a key figure of Slovak musical avant-garde. The second concert, titled Orfeus Chamber<\/em>, showcased the diversity of approaches among a new generation of composers in their quest for an expressive and convincing contemporary sound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The evening opened with Zuzana Zamborsk\u00e1\u2019s enthusiastic performance of Bokes\u2019s piano works \u2013 the sparkling 5 Etudes<\/em> full of his characteristic humor, the lyrical Romance, Op. 35<\/em>, and the Little Suite<\/em>, where the world of childhood came to life with energetic sonic colors. In String Quartet No. 2<\/em> by Matej Ricotti<\/strong>, the rhythmic complementarity and carefully constructed structure with contrasting harmonic fields were especially engaging. Among the quartet members, cellist Barbora Klapalov\u00e1 stood out with a captivating tone quality. Skilled pianist Elisabeth Lesan made the most of the modal harmonies in 2 Etudes, Op. 30<\/em> by \u013dubo\u0161 Gab\u010do.<\/strong> In the performance of Gab\u010do\u2019s Fantasy Divinum Mysterium, Op. 28<\/em>, violinist Miroslav Ma\u010duha and pianist Jozef Koval\u010d\u00edk displayed technical finesse, seamless coordination, and artistic balance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The second set of pieces opened with SONATA \u2013 Homenaje a F. M. Torroba, Op. 2<\/em> by Benjam\u00edn Maga<\/strong> \u2013 a three-movement work paying homage to the 20th-century Spanish composer who enriched the modern guitar repertoire. The well-matched pairing of guitarist Adam Svita\u010d and cellist Ken-Wassim Ubukata resulted in a surprisingly natural blend of Spanish musical temperament with a classical-romantic gesture. In her cycle Ecce, Homo!<\/em> Vikt\u00f3ria K\u00fcrthyov\u00e1<\/strong> explored the human condition from childhood to the afterlife. Despite the ambitious concept, the musical material occasionally felt overly direct \u2013 childhood portrayed through playful folkloric motifs, youth as chaotic dissonances, and adulthood in a weighty cantilena. However, the string quintet instrumentation and the thoughtful composition and interpretation of five-part textures brought a refreshing element. Stanislav Plyaka\u2019s introspective works (But between thousands and thousands<\/em> and Unconsciously written<\/em>) offered a meditative exploration of sound, marked by subtle dynamics and expressive nuances. The latter piece, demanding in interpretative understanding, stood out for its expressivity under the precise leadership of conductor T\u00e1\u0148a Hrdinka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo: Simona Babjakov\u00e1<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

After a short intermission, the audience was treated to a three-movement Guitar Concerto, Op. 61<\/em> by Tereza Ja\u010fu\u010fov\u00e1<\/strong>, followed by a choral-orchestral arrangement of the sacred song Ave Maria<\/em> by Ervin Roman Fulmek<\/strong>. The concerto attempted a bold synthesis of musical influences \u2013 Spanish idioms, sentimental film-score lyricism, and medieval dance elements. The limitations of this interesting concept became apparent in the stylistic transitions, which at times disrupted the work\u2019s flow. In the most successful final movement, the bold instrumentation occasionally overpowered the solo guitar. Established soloist Adam Svita\u010d delivered a technically confident and emotionally nuanced performance. However, the orchestra responded rather uncertainly to conductor Mari\u00e1n Lejava\u2019s gestures \u2013 particularly in the wind section, where noticeable intonation and rhythm issues occurred.  The final piece featured standout vocal performances by Vikt\u00f3ria Baro\u0161ov\u00e1 and Tatiana Semeniuk, whose voices formed a cohesive and tastefully emotional duet. The charming female vocal ensemble, however, was at times overpowered by the excessively amplified orchestra \u2013 similar to the guitar, which was placed in front of the orchestra.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regrettably, the last two works suffered from unfortunate dramaturgical and time-related planning. The concert, which ended late in the evening, came across as overly extended \u2013 the abundance of large-scale forms within a single program made it difficult for the audience to maintain focused attention. While the intention to provide space for as many composers as possible was understandable and commendable, future editions might benefit from a \u201cless is more\u201d approach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aneta FICKOV\u00c1<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

19 May 2025 \u2013 Bratislava, Concert Hall Dvorana Continuing its mission to give voice to young Slovak composers, the student festival Orfeus entered its 24th edition with a tribute to Vladim\u00edr Bokes \u2013 a teacher at the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava (V\u0160MU) and a key figure of Slovak musical avant-garde. The second concert,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":3876,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[42],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iscm-slovakia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3878"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iscm-slovakia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iscm-slovakia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iscm-slovakia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iscm-slovakia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3878"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/iscm-slovakia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3878\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3883,"href":"https:\/\/iscm-slovakia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3878\/revisions\/3883"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iscm-slovakia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3876"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iscm-slovakia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3878"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iscm-slovakia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3878"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iscm-slovakia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3878"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}