“Liepāja Summer” Festival returns to its historic home

This year, the “Liepāja Summer” Festival will return to its historic home by the seaside – Liepāja Jūrmala Park, in the renovated Concert Garden “Pūt, vējiņi!”, where during three grand concerts the audience will be offered a great amount of different genres, styles and eras.

Started in 1881, the tradition of giving symphony concerts has become an integral sign of cultural identity of Liepāja City. Powers have changed, the city itself has changed, the stages built for open-air concerts also change, however, enjoying music on summer evenings surrounded by the tender breath of the sea reverts to the spirit of our city's life over and over again.

Commensurate to the great moment of revival of the Concert Garden “Pūt, vējiņi!”, the Liepāja Symphony Orchestra will celebrate the three fundamental music traditions of Kurzeme Capital of Culture in three big concerts: the 100th anniversary of Liepāja Opera tradition celebrated with a concert conducted by Atvars Lakstīgala, a 140-year-long symphonic tradition celebrated with a concert programme featuring Vestards Šimkus and Guntis Kuzma, and the Liepāja rock music tradition rocking along with the legendary rock-band “Pērkons” for more than half a century already.

In the 19th and 20th century Liepāja those were three months of intense summer concert life featuring guest artists from Rīga, Lithuania, Poland and Germany. In 20s/30s of the last century summer concert seasons gained enormous popularity and now were based mainly on local orchestra musicians, while in the second half of the 20th century summer symphonic seasons under the direction of Valdis Vikmanis from now on were held for many decades.

Starting from 2010, the “Liepāja Summer” Festival took place in many concert venues and churches in Liepāja, attracting many outstanding international artists such as Giora Feidman, Gidon Kremer, Avi Avital, Tokiko Kato, Maija Kovaļevska, Wilhem Latchoumia, Hakan Sensoy and Yalchin Adigezalov, also Chamber ensembles formed by musicians of the Liepāja Symphony Orchestra began to play an important role in the repertoire of the Festival.

Uldis Lipskis, the manager of the Liepāja Symphony Orchestra, is open about his excitement: “The “Liepāja Summer” Festival is starting a new life cycle. The Liepāja Symphony Orchestra, now even more brilliant and powerful than ever, is going back to its roots with the summer concerts to be held in the revived Concert Garden by the sea, and in the coming years we will have many inspiring encounters at the summer symphonic music concerts on the “Pūt, vējiņi!” open-air stage”.

On 2 July 2022, the Festival will please the audience with an opera music concert, where the Liepāja Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Atvars Lakstīgala, will perform overtures, arias and ensembles of well-known operas in cooperation with the soloists. The soloists participating in the concert are world-famous singers, such as the Serbian rising star, soprano Marija Jelić, the Italian tenor Dario di Vietri and the famous Latvian bass baritone Egils Siliņš.

On 5 August 2022, for the first time in the renovated Concert Garden the audience will be offered an opportunity to enjoy a summer symphonic music programme, where compositions by George Gershwin, Leonard Bernstein and Maurice Ravel will be performed. At the Liepāja Symphony Orchestra conductor’s desk – Guntis Kuzma, who will become the chief conductor of the Orchestra this Autumn. In turn, the pianist Vestards Šimkus as the soloist in cooperation with the Orchestra will shine on stage performing the piano concert by the American composer George Gershwin.

On 27 August 2022, the legend of Latvian rock music – the rock-band “Pērkons” while celebrating its 40-year journey will make some noise at the first concert programme made in cooperation with the symphony orchestra. On 4 September 2022, this concert will also be held in Dzintari Concert Hall in Jūrmala.

Tickets for the “Liepāja Summer” Festival are available in all “Biļešu Paradīze” ticket offices.

NEWS