Finnish conductor Kalle Kuusava will lead the concert celebrating great composers Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky and Bartók at the Saigon Opera House on June 20. — Photo courtesy of HBSO

HCM CITY — Finnish conductor Kalle Kuusava and Vietnamese violist Phạm Vũ Thiên Bảo will present a special concert at Saigon Opera House on June 20.

The concert will celebrate the timeless masterpieces of Russian composers Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and Modest Mussorgsky, and Hungarian Béla Bartók.

The night will open with the Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture, composed in 1869 by Tchaikovsky.

The dramatic and romantic work was revised in 1870 and 1880, capturing the essence of Shakespeare’s timeless love story through breathtaking and iconic melodies.

The composition will be performed by the Symphony Orchestra of the HCM City Ballet Symphony Orchestra and Opera (HBSO).

Bảo, viola principal of HBSO, will continue the concert with the Viola Concerto, Sz. 120, one of the last pieces by Bartók.

The piece blends Eastern European folk elements while fully showcasing the viola’s warm and deep tones.

Bảo graduated as the top student in the Viola department at the Master's level in 2013 and then completed the Diplôme d’Artiste Interprète (equivalent to a Doctorate in Music Performance) at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (Paris National Conservatory of Music and Dance). He also earned numerous distinguished awards in France.

He has performed with orchestras such as the London Symphony Orchestra and the Việt Nam National Opera and Ballet, and with famous conductors such as Francois-Xavier Roth and Tetsuji Honna.

Phạm Vũ Thiên Bảo, viola principal of HBSO, will perform Viola Concerto by Bartók at the concert. — Photo courtesy of HBSO

The night will close with Pictures at an Exhibition, a ten-movement suite by Mussorgsky, inspired by a visit to an art exhibition of works by architect and painter Viktor Hartmann.

The work, written in 1874 for piano, features musical depictions of ten Hartmann's paintings.

The HBSO Symphony Orchestra will present the suite in the orchestral form arranged by French composer Maurice Ravel.

Conductor Kuusava, winner of the European Conductors Competition in Oslo in 2013, will wield the baton at the concert.

Kuusava completed his master’s degree in orchestral conducting at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo. He worked at the Norwegian National Opera from 2008 to 2018 and at the Zurich Opera in the 2007-08 season.

He was named laureate of the Evgeny Svetlanov Competition in Paris in 2014.

Kuusava has established himself as a versatile and dedicated operatic, symphonic and ballet conductor. He has led concerts, operas and ballets with numerous troupes, such as the Finnish National Opera, Monte Carlo Ballet, National Philharmonic of Russia, Welsh National Opera Orchestra and HBSO.

The concert will begin at 8pm at 7 Lam Sơn Square in Sài Gòn Ward. — VNS