A Little Summer Suite
György Kurtág / Betsy Jolas Cycle
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Date
- 19:00 / Cancelled 19:00 / Sold out Friday, 19:00
Location
Grand Auditorium Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation- Conductor
- Soprano
- Viola
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Gulbenkian Orchestra
In 1962, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation decided to establish a permanent orchestral ensemble. Originally with only twelve musicians (strings and continuo) it was named “Orquestra de Câmara Gulbenkian”. This collective was successively enlarged and today the “Orquestra Gulbenkian” (the name it has adopted since 1971) has a permanent body of sixty instrumentalists, a number that can be expanded depending on the repertoire.
This structure allows the Gulbenkian Orchestra to interpret works from the Baroque and Classical periods, a significant part of 19th century orchestral literature and much of the music of the 20th century, including works belonging to the current repertoire of the traditional symphonic orchestras. In each season, the orchestra performs on a regular series of concerts at the Gulbenkian Grand Auditorium in Lisbon, where it has had the opportunity of working together with some of leading names of the world of music (conductors and soloists). It has also performed on numerous locations all over Portugal, in an effort to decentralize music and culture.
The orchestra has been constantly expanding its activities in the international level, performing in Europe, Asia Africa, and the Americas. In the recording field, Orquestra Gulbenkian is associated to labels as Philips, Deutsche Grammophon, Hyperion, Teldec, Erato, Adès, Nimbus, Lyrinx, Naïve and Pentatone, among others, and this activity was recognized with several international prizes.
Hannu Lintu is the Music Director of the Gulbenkian Orchestra since 2023.
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Corinna Niemeyer
Conductor
Corinna Niemeyer is known for her dynamic approach to music-making, bringing fresh perspective and innovation across all her activities; period music ensembles, contemporary premieres, cross-disciplinary projects, opera, as well as mainstream symphonic projects. She has established a reputation for her ability to connect with audiences and for her engaging approach to presenting concerts.
Recent and upcoming orchestral highlights include the Orchestre de Paris, Danish National Symphony Orchestra, Gulbenkian, Hallé, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, SWR Symphonieorchester, Kammerakademie Potsdam, Münchner Rundfunkorchester and Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León. Corinna has also collaborated regularly with Les Siècles and Ensemble Modern.
An experienced opera conductor, in the 26/27 season she makes her debut with Welsh National Opera for a new production of La bohème, returns to Lausanne Opera for a new production of Don Giovanni, and makes her debut with Dutch National Opera for the world premiere of Vasco Mendonça’s setting of Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler. Other recent successes include her debuts with the Opéra national du Rhin (Figaro), and with the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples (George Benjamin’s Picture a day like this). She conducted the UK premiere of the latter at the Royal Opera House in 2023, which followed her acclaimed debut the previous year with a new production of The Rape of Lucretia, co-produced with Britten Pears Arts. Other recent debuts include Detroit Opera (new production of Cosi fan tutte) and English National Opera (Suor Angelica). She has also led productions in St Gallen, Lille and Cologne with repertoire spanning Purcell, Mozart, Massenet and Ravel.
From 2020 to 2024, Corinna served as Music Director of the Orchestre de Chambre du Luxembourg. During her tenure, she forged new artistic partnerships with internationally renowned soloists and attracted new audiences through bold, imaginative programming; from Rameau, Haydn and Mozart to Berlioz’s Les nuits d’été and Ligeti’s Mysteries of the Macabre.
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Hila Baggio
Soprano
Soprano Hila Baggio is acclaimed for her exceptional versatility across a wide repertoire, remarkable musical intelligence, and her ability to inhabit each role with emotional truth and elegance.
A frequent guest at leading opera houses and concert halls, Baggio has appeared with the Semperoper Dresden, Vienna Volksoper, Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, Teatro Massimo in Palermo, Israeli Opera, Staatstheater Darmstadt, Wexford Festival, Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro, Bergen National Opera, Opera National de Lorraine, Grand Théâtre de Luxembourg, Angers-Nantes Opéra & Opéra de Rennes as well as with orchestras such as the Israel Philharmonic, Wiener Symphoniker, Munich Philharmonic, Valencia Orchestra in Palau de les Arts, Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire, Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra.
Her performances have graced venues including the Berlin Philharmonie, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Wiener Konzerthaus, Gewandhaus Leipzig, Dresden Philharmonie, Essen Philharmonie, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Wigmore Hall.
Her wide-ranging operatic repertoire include Violetta (La Traviata), Lucia (Lucia di Lammermoor), Juliette (Roméo et Juliette), Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro), Gilda (Rigoletto), Oscar (Un Ballo in Maschera), Musetta (La Bohème), Adina (L’elisir d’amore), Norina (Don Pasquale), Pamina (Die Zauberflöte), Ilia (Idomeneo), Despina (Così fan tutte), Miranda (La Tempesta), Rosina (Il Barbiere di Siviglia), Marie (La Fille du Régiment), Tytania (A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Micaëla (Carmen), The Vixen (The Cunning Little Vixen), Olympia (Les Contes d’Hoffmann), Eurydice (Orfeo ed Euridice), Lisette (La Rondine), The Child (The Child Dreams), Geppo/Venus (Le Grand Macabre).
Renowned for her affinity with 20th- and 21st-century music, Baggio has given acclaimed performances as Das Ungeborene in Alma at the Volksoper Vienna, Geppo/Venus in Ligeti’s Le Grand Macabre at Semperoper Dresden, and in Schönberg’s Pierrot Lunaire in Berlin with Daniel Barenboim. She has also appeared in Ligeti’s Mysteries of the Macabre, Olivero’s Many Waters, and Ayal Adler’s Alone, I Return from the Night, confirming her as one of the leading interpreters of modern and Israeli repertoire. She joined the Jerusalem Quartet on a CD tour of The Yiddish Cabaret which was released by Harmonia Mundi.
In concert, she has performed Mahler’s Symphonies No. 2, 4, and 8, Brahms’ Requiem, Mozart’s Requiem and Mass in C minor, Beethoven’s Symphony 9, Bernstein’s Kaddish, Berg’s Seven Early Songs, Haydn’s Creation, Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater, and Mendelssohn’s Elijah, and sang under the batons of Daniel Barenboim, Zubin Mehta, Daniel Oren, Omer Meir Wellber, Lahav Shani, Manfred Honeck, Dan Ettinger, Daniele Callegari, Speranza Scappucci, Pascal Rophé, Frédéric Chaslin, Rani Calderon, Asher Fisch, Alexander Joel, Corinna Niemeyer, Alexandre Bloch.
An artist deeply devoted to sharing her knowledge, Hila Baggio gives Master Classes, and teaches at the Conservatoire de la Ville de Luxembourg. Her artistry has been honored with numerous prizes, among them awards from the International Hans Gabor Belvedere Competition, the Israeli Ministry of Culture, and the Rosenblum Prize for the Performing Arts.
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Timothy Ridout
Viola
Timothy Ridout’s 2025/26 season features appearances with many top international orchestras including BBC Symphony Orchestra/Hannu Lintu, Orchestre de Paris/Lorenza Borrani, Die Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen/Ed Gardner, Nederlands Philharmonisch Orkest/Sir Mark Elder and Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra/Donald Runnicles.
A popular soloist for many conductors Richard Egarr takes him to Residentie Orkest, Roberto Abbado to the Orchestra Filarmonica di Bologna, Mark Wigglesworth to the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, and Anthony Hermus to the Ulster Orchestra. In addition, he continues his close relationship with Sir Simon Rattle for Berlioz’ Harold in Italy on gut strings with Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment for concerts in London and Dublin.
Following the successful world premiere last season of Mark Simpson’s Viola Concerto Hold Your Heart in Your Teeth with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin and Robin Ticciati, Ridout brings the work to Royal Liverpool Philharmonic with Andrew Manze, Musikkollegium Winterthur with Alexandre Bloch and Philharmonie Zuidnederlands with Duncard Ward.
A highly respected chamber musician, Ridout continues to present both solo and ensemble programmes across major venues and festivals. In summer 2025, he appeared at Verbier, Lanaudière, Salzburg, Rosendal, Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Ryedale festival where he was Artist in Residence. This season, he plays around the UK with Federico Colli, with Leonkoros Quartet at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, and with his regular quartet partners – Benjamin Grosvenor, Hyeyoon Park, Kian Soltani – at Vienna Musikverein.
In March 2026, he is Guest Artistic Director at Festspiele Frühling Mecklenburg Vorpommern presenting 17 programmes. He also continues his three-year residency at Junge Wilde in Dortmund and performs three different programmes at Wigmore Hall. In Asia, he plays at the very first edition of the Verbier Festival in Shenzhen, at Beare’s Premiere Music Festival in Hong Kong and at the NSO International Chamber Music Festival in Taipei. His other chamber partners include Janine Jansen, Frank Dupree, Isabelle Faust, Vilde Frang, Pablo Ferrández, Denis Kozhukhin and Klaus Mäkelä.
Recent orchestral highlights include concerts with Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, hr-Sinfonieorchester, Hamburger Symphoniker, WDR Sinfonieorchester, Mozarteum Orchester Salzburg and Chamber Orchestra of Europe.
Across his engagements, he has worked with conductors such as Sakari Oramo, Jonathan Darlington, Martyn Brabbins, Riccardo Minasi, Sir András Schiff, Lionel Bringuier, Sylvain Cambreling, Nicholas Collon, David Zinman, and Kazuki Yamada.
Known for his wide-ranging discography, Ridout regularly records for Harmonia Mundi and his next album features 20th century French music with pianist Jonathan Ware and is coming out in May 2026.
In 2025, he won the Opus Klassik award in the 'Young Instrumentalist of the Year' category for his first solo viola album featuring works by Telemann, Bach, Britten and Shaw, and in 2024 he released an album which paid tribute to the great violist Lionel Tertis. Ridout also won a Gramophone Award for his recording of Elgar’s Cello Concerto, arranged for viola by Lionel Tertis, in the Concerto Category in 2023.
Previous recordings include works by Prokofiev, Schumann, Britten, Vaughan-Williams, Hindemith, Martinu and see Ridout collaborating with BBC Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg, Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne as well as with pianists Frank Dupree and James Baillieu.
A graduate of the Royal Academy of Music and Kronberg Academy, Ridout has earned accolades such as First Prize at both the Lionel Tertis and Cecil Aronowitz International Viola Competitions. As well as being a former BBC New Generation Artist, he is also a recipient of the Borletti Buitoni Trust Fellowship and was awarded the Royal Philharmonic Society 2023 Award for Young Artist. He was the inaugural recipient of Hamburger Symphoniker’s Sir Jeffrey Tate Prize and took part in the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Bowers Program.
Timothy Ridout performs on a 1565-75 viola by Peregrino di Zanetto, generously on loan from a patron of the Beare’s International Violin Society.
Betsy Jolas
A Little Summer Suite
Claude Debussy
Nocturnes: 1. Nuages; 2. Fêtes
György Kurtág
Songs to Poems by Anna Akhmatova, op. 41
— Intermission of 20 min —György Kurtág
Movement for Viola and Orchestra
Olivier Messiaen
L’Ascension: 3. Alléluia sur la trompette, alléluia sur la cymbale
Betsy Jolas
Ces belles années…
Total approximate duration: 100 min
The second event in the György Kurtág / Betsy Jolas Cycle features some of the most distinguished orchestral works by the two composers, conducted by Corinna Niemeyer, renowned for her bold and inventive artistic personality. The solo parts are entrusted to two of today’s greatest talents: the versatile and expressive soprano Hila Baggio, a specialist in twentieth- and twenty-first-century repertoire, and the outstanding violist Timothy Ridout.
Photo © Simon Pauly
Sponsor Gulbenkian Music
The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation reserves the right to collect and keep records of images, sounds and voice for the diffusion and preservation of the memory of its cultural and artistic activity. For further information, please contact us through the Information Request form.
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