| Duration | 100 min |
Love is everything. But not everything is love.
Love comes in many forms and manifestations: love in friendship, or in romance. Love between a parent/caregiver and child, love for a particular object. It makes sense that the Dutch-Ukrainian Maxim Shalyigin wanted to incorporate that enormous theme into his music for this chamber opera. Because opera traditionally goes in all directions. Four singers take us along in ‘Symposium’: one of philosopher Plato’s most famous written conversations. But he adds an act of love himself: because even the characters who were not given a voice in the conversation, are given a voice by Maxim. Even if you’ve never been into opera, this is simply a beautiful musical trip. If you are still not convinced, we quote the NRC about the premiere: “An unforgettable experience”.
During a banquet in the house of the playwright Agathon, several guests, including the philosopher Socrates and the comedy writer Aristophanes, give speeches about Eros (love) in several facets: from physical to platonic love. Socrates tells how the wise woman Diotima taught him how love can lead to knowledge of the Beautiful itself. At the end of the banquet, the drunken general Alcibiades storms in. He gives a personal eulogy to Socrates and candidly describes his failed attempts to seduce Socrates, admiring Socrates' self-control.
Paul van der Woerd wrote his libretto when he was inspired by Percy Bysshe Shelley's romantic translation of Plato's dialogue, in which the emotions flare up more than in the original. It inspired Shalygin to create fascinatingly colourful music, full of humour, passion and virtuosity. The libretto is entirely sung, which ensures a rich melodic and harmonic development. As Shalygin himself says: “I want people to descend into the vaults of the melodic lines, to be carried away on that wave.”
Maxim Shalygin (1985) is one of the most impressive composers of his generation. Born in Ukraine and based in the Netherlands since 2010, he has developed an extremely personal musical language. His music balances between spirituality and emotional power, between stillness and explosion, and grows organically. His style is adventurous and deeply rooted in tradition, with a spiritual layering that recalls his Eastern European roots.
Shalygin composes in a variety of genres, from chamber music and vocal works to electroacoustic compositions, music for film, theatre and his first opera: Amandante. His compositions have been performed on stages such as Carnegie Hall, Klarafestival, De Doelen and the Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ.
Composition: Maxim Shalygin
Libretto: Paul van der Woerd
Lighting design: Nico de Rooij
Ensemble: Nova Opera
Soprano: Maryana Golovko
Soprano: Anna Kirsh
Baritone: Andrii Koshman
Baritone: Ruslan Kirsh
Piano: Antonii Baryshevskyi
Violin I: Fiona Robertson
Violin II: Ernst Spyckerelle
Viola: Oksana Mukosii
Cello: Ketevan Roinishvili
Double bass: Silvia Gallego
Conductor: Mikheil Menabde
Amandante is a production by Muziekgebouw Productiehuis in collaboration with Nova Opera, the Greek National Opera and Stichting Ensemble Shapeshift.
Korzo Zaal