From October 1st to 12th, Bragança will host the fourth edition of the “International Music Festival”. The “BRAGANÇA CLASSICFEST” has established itself as a leading national and international event, thanks to the consistent participation of artists of acknowledged excellence, who are highly regarded by both their peers and the audience.
Since its inception, the festival has been committed to a program of the highest quality and exclusivity, with classical music taking centre stage in a variety of forms and dynamics. This approach not only fosters knowledge and creativity, but also encourages interaction among diverse audiences of all ages.
This is an event that captivates its participants, evokes deep emotions and offers unforgettable sensory experiences. Its cultural inclusivity, presented through innovative forms and approaches, continues to draw increasingly diverse audiences, including families, young people, students, and children. This elevates the city and the region to a higher, more attractive, creative and demanding cultural level.
In a world that is increasingly detached from principles, values and meaning, the arts and artists play a crucial role. Music and, specifically, the “BRAGANÇA CLASSICFEST”, stands as a project that respects freedom of expression and promotes international cooperation, fostering unity, sharing and solidarity among people.
Under the artistic direction of Filipe Pinto-Ribeiro, to whom I would like to express my sincere gratitude for accepting this invitation, the “BRAGANÇA CLASSICFEST” will take place in one of the finest venues in the country, the Bragança’s Municipal Theatre (Teatro Municipal de Bragança), as well as in other iconic spaces in the city, such as the Church of Santa Maria (Igreja de Santa Maria) and the Church of São Francisco (Igreja de São Francisco).
Let us be enchanted by an exceptional program, featuring world-renowned artists at an event that distinctively marks Bragança and the region.
The Bragança’s Municipal Theatre (Teatro Municipal de Bragança) celebrates twenty years of existence and proudly recognises the “BRAGANÇA CLASSICFEST” as an integral part of a journey marked by vitality, quality and the universal access to Culture, as a celebration of community life.
Firmly established over time and in its various settings, the “BRAGANÇA CLASSICFEST” continues to attract and retain audiences, offering the experience of classical music within the remarkable heritage of Bragança's territory.
In this 4th edition, from 1st to 12th October 2024, the Festival reaffirms itself as a promoter of healthy cultural decentralization, elevating Bragança to a national and international reference in the realm of classical music. Under the artistic direction of Filipe Pinto-Ribeiro, the programme includes nine outstanding performances, featuring two internationally prestigious and globally recognised orchestras – the Paris Symphony Orchestra ‘Consuelo’, from France, and the Venice Baroque Orchestra ‘Solisti Veneti’, from Italy. An eclectic and appealing programme – with soloists and ensembles of notable significance – includes concerts commemorating the quincentenary of Luís Vaz de Camões – by Concerto Atlântico, under the direction of Pedro Caldeira Cabral, and by Sete Lágrimas. Also noteworthy are the concerts “Quadros de uma Exposição – Em Memória de António Mega Ferreira” and "Carta Branca”, a celebration of the 70-year career of the charismatic Maestro António Victorino d'Almeida, to whom the Bragança’s Municipal Theatre (Teatro Municipal de Bragança) will pay tribute.
The Bragança’s Municipal Theatre (Teatro Municipal de Bragança) extends his gratitude to all partners involved, particularly to His Excellency the President of the Portuguese Republic, for the High Patronage granted.
In this year of 2024, as we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the 25th of April, the BRAGANÇA CLASSICFEST International Music Festival continues its mission of democratic access to artistic excellence. Since 2021, it has brought to Bragança celebrated orchestras and musicians – such as the Vienna and St. Petersburg Chamber Orchestras, the Asturias Symphony Orchestra, violinists Esther Hoppe, Mario Hossen and Diana Tischenko, singers Lena Belkina and Julia Muzychenko, violist Gérard Caussé, clarinetist Pascal Moraguès, among many other world renowned artists – for memorable concerts that have sold out to an enthusiastic and multi-generational audience.
Starting on October 1st, International Music Day, and for two weeks, the 4th CLASSICFEST turns Bragança into the epicenter of classical music in Portugal, with an eclectic and exciting program, promoting the celebration of community life through the universal language of Music.
Among the artists and ensembles present at this 4th edition, two exceptional artists stand out at the Opening Concert: the Samuil sisters – soprano Anna and violinist Tatiana – both highly awarded soloists in major international competitions, who will present in Bragança their latest discographic project "Il Mondo Felice" for the first time in Portugal.
Other highlights of the 4th BRAGANÇA CLASSICFEST program are the concerts of two internationally renowned orchestras: The Paris Symphony Orchestra "Consuelo", one of the most audacious orchestral projects of recent years, which on October 5th will perform the extraordinary 6th and 8th Symphonies by Ludwig van Beethoven, thus continuing the complete Beethoven Symphonies cycle at BRAGANÇA CLASSICFEST, which began in 2023 with the 5th Symphony by the Asturias Symphony Orchestra. At the Closing Concert, on October 12th, the Venice Baroque Orchestra "I Solisti Veneti", founded in 1959 and considered one of the most prestigious baroque orchestras of the last decades – with an extraordinary career of over 6,000 concerts in about 90 countries and around 350 albums recorded for the best labels – will present a concert entirely filled with music by the famous Venetian composer Antonio Vivaldi.
This 4th edition will also be marked by the celebration of the 500th anniversary of the birth of Luís Vaz de Camões, with a diptych of concerts dedicated to the greatest poet of the Portuguese language by renowned ensembles, namely the Concerto Atlântico, directed by its founder Pedro Caldeira Cabral, and Sete Lágrimas, under the direction of Filipe Faria and Sérgio Peixoto.
There will also be tribute concerts to two great figures of Portuguese culture in recent decades: António Victorino d’Almeida, whose 70-year career we celebrate in the presence of the composer and pianist himself, in a Carta Branca concert with several guests. António Mega Ferreira, whose literary work will be evoked with the interpretation of his favorite music, notably the famous cycle "Pictures at an Exhibition", accompanied by readings by Pedro Lamares and Filipa Leal, of an anthology of texts specially selected for this tribute by Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, Graça Morais, Simonetta Luz Afonso, Guilherme d'Oliveira Martins, Margarida Pinto Correia, among others.
And, last but not least, a highlight on the concerts of the Schostakovich and Juventus Ensembles, featuring renowned musicians and young talents, performing works by great composers: from Mendelssohn to Dvořák, from Beethoven to Schostakovich.
In addition to the nine concerts of this 4th edition, BRAGANÇA CLASSICFEST continues its important educational and cultural awareness axis, with masterclasses and meetings, with the participation of the artists present at the festival and especially aimed at the musicians and students of the city and region.
A significant hallmark of BRAGANÇA CLASSICFEST, since its 1st edition, is the realization of concerts in venues of great heritage value, as will happen in 2024 at the Churches of São Francisco and Santa Maria, in a healthy cross between Music and the Historical, Cultural, and Architectural Heritage of the Bragança territory.
Thus, this 4th edition continues the path of consolidating BRAGANÇA CLASSICFEST as a cultural event of excellence, on a national and international scale, contributing to the dynamism and prosperity of the region.
We extend our heartfelt thanks to all those who make the BRAGANÇA CLASSICFEST International Music Festival possible, starting with the fundamental support of the Municipality of Bragança, the Municipal Theatre of Bragança, and the DSCH Musical Association, promoters and organizers of this commendable initiative, and the festival’s patron, BPI/Fundação “la Caixa”. We also thank the Directorate-General for the Arts, the Diocese of Miranda-Bragança, the media partner RTP Antena 2, and especially His Excellency the President of the Republic, for the High Patronage once again granted.
