Thursday 22 June, at 9 pm at the Pala De André, free admission to the concert
Virtuosi…and generous: when she created the Foundation that bears her name to support young musicians, violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter made the awareness of their responsibility as artists a pivotal point in their training – as music should be a gift for everyone. A tenet that, in the face of the tragic events that affected Italy’s Romagna region in May, has immediately translated into the choice of renouncing her fee for the concert within the Ravenna Festival; this choice has been shared by the Mutter’s Virtuosi, the ensemble established within the Anne-Sophie Mutter Foundation. Whereas the artists’ donation is going to benefit the Municipal School of Music “Giuseppe Sarti” of Faenza, which was severely damaged in the flood, the concert on Thursday 22 June, at 9 pm at the Pala De André, is open to the public free of charge, with a special invitations to those who have been on the front line during the emergency, official bodies and volunteers. Those who have already bought a ticket for the event are going to be contacted by the Ravenna Festival’s box office and given the choice between obtaining a refund or donating the ticket price to flood-related charities. Free admission by reservation (from 16 June): info Box Office of the Alighieri Theatre +39 0544 249244, online ravennafestival.org)
“I have a deep love for the Romagna – says Anne-Sophie Mutter – Since my teenage days I frequently visited Ravenna and Cesena with my beloved teacher Aida Stucki and her husband Giuseppe Piraccini who was from that region. And I want to bring music, love, and empathy to the wonderful people of this beautiful area of Italy. My fabulous Virtuosi and I are hugely looking forward to sharing a musical embrace with all of you”. In the gift concert on 22 June, Anne-Sophie Mutter is leading her Virtuosi in compositions by J. S. Bach – the Concerto BWV 1041 and the Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 – as well as in the Italian premiere of André Previn’s Nonet, in the only concerto Vivaldi created for three solo violins of equal importance, and in the Concerto No. 2 Op. 5 by Joseph Bologne Chevalier de Saint-Georges, who was nicknamed “the Black Mozart”, among the first composers of African descent to be active in European classical music.
“Through the example set by Maestro Muti and the experience with the Luigi Cherubini Youth Orchestra, we are deeply sensitive to the ethical scope of music and the importance of passing this message on to the next generation of musicians – explains the Ravenna Festival’s Direction, General Manager Antonio De Rosa and Artistic Directors Angelo Nicastro and Franco Masotti – and for this reason, we are especially delighted for the Festival’s 34th edition to feature such an extraordinary violinist as Anne-Sophie Mutter together with the young musicians who have trained thanks to her Foundation’s aid. Now, after a flood whose consequences on the economic, social, and even cultural fabric will persist for a long time, the artists’ understanding and support make us grateful and give us hope for the future. After all, this is the great lesson: music is relationship, exchange and connection; in short, generosity. So, thanks to Anne-Sophie Mutter and the Mutter’s Virtuosi!”
The Anne-Sophie Mutter Foundation has been based in Munich since 2008. Already in 1997 the “Freundeskreis der Anne-Sophie Mutter Stiftung e.V.” (Friends of the Anne-Sophie Mutter Foundation) was founded by the violinist. Its aim is the global support of young, highly talented violin, viola, cello and double bass soloists. For years, Anne-Sophie Mutter has been performing together with scholarship students of her foundation to familiarise them with the life of a professional musician and introduce them to a broader audience. In 2011 she started the additional project Mutter‘s Virtuosi: this ensemble under the violinist’s artistic leadership consists of current and former scholarship holders of the Anne-Sophie Mutter Foundation as well as selected other young musicians. On their tours, Mutter‘s Virtuosi regularly introduce their audience to new works; benefit concerts are also a fixed part of every tour programme.