December 13 | 18:00
December 15 | 19:00
Klaipėda Culture Factory (Bangų str. 5A)
December 17 | 16:00
National Gallery of Art (Konstitucijos av. 22, Vilnius)
CHORDOS STRING QUARTET & MIKE SVOBODA
Embark on an exciting musical adventure just before the major holiday season, with the string quartet “Chordos” and trombone virtuoso Mike Svoboda (USA/Germany), who take the stage together for the umpteenth time. The combination is certainly unique—trombone and string quartet!
While the “Chordos” quartet is already well-known to the audience, Mike Svoboda is no stranger to Lithuania either. He has performed works by Lithuanian composers not only here, but also in Germany and other countries, even presenting world premieres of Lithuanian compositions.
This concert will also feature a premiere: a work commissioned by the festival and the Lithuanian Composers’ Union from composer Marius Baranauskas. The program will also include a composition by Ramūnas Motiekaitis, whose music is known for its Eastern cultural influence and serenity. Alongside Lithuanian composers, the concert will present works by contemporary music icons—British composer Benedict Mason and one of the most influential 20th-century European composers, Karlheinz Stockhausen.
Mike Svoboda has a close creative relationship with the latter. Having played trombone with Karlheinz Stockhausen in the 1980s and 1990s, as Svoboda himself puts it, this period was a crucial turning point in his musical development. Today, Svoboda is one of the main advocates for Stockhausen’s music and legacy worldwide. His experience allows him to interpret the composer’s works with deep authenticity and emotional impact.
We invite listeners from three cities—Zapyškis, Klaipėda, and Vilnius—to experience these extraordinary sounds and greet the upcoming holidays with unusual yet enlightening music, offering a promise for the future: to always remain curious explorers of uncharted worlds.
Concert Program
Marius Baranauskas
HH Object
For string quartet
World Premiere
Ramūnas Motiekaitis
Light on Light
2004/2023
Benedict Mason
Trombone and String Quartet
2012
Karlheinz Stockhausen
Tierkreis
1974–1975
12 melodies of the star signs
Arrangement by M.Svoboda (2010)
Performers
MIKE SVOBODA
USA/Germany – Trombone
Mike Svoboda – born 1960 on the island of Guam, grew up in Chicago and came to Germany with the help of a BMI Award to Young Composers in 1982. His eleven years as trombonist with Karlheinz Stockhausen during the 80s and 90s proved to be of eminent importance for Svoboda’s musical development. Including the collaboration with Stockhausen and other composers such as Peter Eötvös, Helmut Lachenmann, Wolfgang Rihm, Martin Smolka, David Lang, and Frank Zappa, Svoboda has premiered over 400 works for trombone at festivals throughout the world.
Major festivals have invited him to be artist or composer-in-residence. Often involved in his works as a soloist or with his own Mike Svoboda Ensemble, he composes across the borders between popular and classical music, high culture and entertainment, combining – through the use of text and various musical styles – both traditional and avant-garde.
Numerous CDs, mainly for the WERGO label, document Svoboda’s art both as an interpreter and composer. In 2008 he was awarded the Praetorius-Prize for Innovation in Music from the German government, because of, according to the jury, the “influence and recognition his concepts and ideas have had on the development of music and its performance”.
CHORDOS STRING QUARTET
Ieva Sipaitytė – 1st violin
Vaida Paukštienė – 2nd violin
Robertas Bliškevičius – viola
Arnas Kmieliauskas – violoncello
The “Chordos” String Quartet was founded in 1997. From its very first concert programs, the collective’s creative goal became evident—to spread and popularize the latest music by Lithuanian composers both in Lithuania and worldwide, and to introduce the latest and best foreign music to the Lithuanian audience. Throughout its history, maintaining this mission, “Chordos” has become an integral part of Lithuania’s contemporary music scene, serving as both an inspiration to audiences and a source of inspiration for younger generations of musicians.
From the very beginning, this group of young, talented artists made an impression, and within a few years of activity, they were invited to perform at all of the country’s major festivals. Since its inception, “Chordos” has paid special attention to promoting contemporary Lithuanian music: it has collaborated with composers from all generations, performed their works not only in concerts but also recorded and released several albums. The quartet’s repertoire includes over 70 string quartets by Lithuanian composers, totaling about 200 works. It is no surprise that “Chordos” presents world premieres of Lithuanian works almost every year, initiates the creation of new pieces, and has had string quartets dedicated to the group by Lithuanian music luminaries such as R. Mažulis, O. Balakauskas, A. Šenderovas, N. Valančiūtė, and others.
“Chordos” also places significant emphasis on presenting Western contemporary music to Lithuanian audiences. Over the course of its existence, the quartet has included in its repertoire and presented string quartets by the leading composers from Europe, the USA, and other countries—G. Crumb, G. Ligeti, S. Reich, M. Feldman, T. Riley, T. Dun, J. Wolfe, J. Zorn, H. Dutilleux, G. Bryars, M. Nyman, J. Cage, T. Hosokawa, and many others. The majority of these works were performed for the first time in Lithuania.
In addition to concerts, the quartet is also very active in the studio. “Chordos” has recorded 10 solo albums, which feature the creative portraits of composers O. Narbutaitė, O. Balakauskas, B. Kutavičius, A. Šenderovas, D. Čemerytė, V. Germanavičius, as well as a double album dedicated to contemporary Lithuanian composers, and a solo album, “Polilogai”, with L. Mockūnas. The group’s recordings are featured in nearly 20 compilations of contemporary Lithuanian music. The music performed by “Chordos” has been broadcast on Mezzo TV, LRT TV, and LRT Plius, as well as on radio stations including BBC3 (UK), ORF (Austria), Polskie Radio 2 (Poland), LRT Radio and LRT Classic, and several other TV and radio stations.
