Kafka-Fragmente
György Kurtág / Betsy Jolas Cycle
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Date
- 20:00 / Cancelled 20:00 / Sold out Wednesday, 20:00
Location
Grand Auditorium Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation- Soprano
- Violin
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Marisol Montalvo
Soprano
The American soprano is among the most sought-after exponents of contemporary music working today. She is possessed of an extraordinarily flexible instrument, “brilliantly stratospheric” yet “sweet-voiced”, that has enabled her to achieve success in repertoire from Strauss to Boulez. A consummate, “unstinting” singing actress, she has been greatly acclaimed for identifying unconditionally with her characters.
As well as performing alongside many of the world’s most renowned conductors and orchestras, she has had the privilege of working closely with many of today’s leading composers, including Matthias Pintscher, Olga Neuwirth, and Wolfgang Rihm. Several have written roles especially for her, including Peter Eötvos (Sierve Maria in Love and Other Demons), Pascal Dusapin (Prothoe in Penthesilea) and Marco Stroppa (Olbia in Il Re Orso). Her affinity for contemporary music has led to regular engagements with ensembles including Klangforum Wien, Ensemble Intercontemporain, International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), Ensemble Remix and Ensemble Modern.
Although she has achieved success in a wide range of operatic repertoire, Montalvo is particularly associated with the title role of Berg’s Lulu. Following her debut in the part at the Opéra National de Paris, Le Monde described her performance as a true revelation: “The American soprano possesses real stage and vocal presence, and executes the exhausting role with incredible intensity”. Subsequently, Lulu has become the centerpiece of her stage work; she has performed it at houses including Deutsche Oper Berlin, Théâtre du Capitole Toulouse, Teatro de la Maestranza, Theater an der Wien, Komische Oper Berlin, and at Theater Basel, in the acclaimed production by Calixto Bieto.
Outside the opera house, Montalvo has a particularly close working relationship with Christoph Eschenbach, who has been both a mentor and a regular concert partner throughout her career. Since conducting her Carnegie Hall debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra, he has invited her to work with him alongside orchestras including the Vienna Philharmonic, the Houston Symphony, the London Philharmonic, the Munich Philharmonic and the Orchestre de Paris. Most recently, she performed the role of Sophie in a concert performance of Der Rosenkavalier with the National Symphony Orchestra under his baton at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC.
She has also worked with conductors including Daniel Harding, Vladimir Jurowski, Christopher Hogwood, Yuri Temirkanov, Bernhard Kontarsky, Sylvain Camberling, Sussana Mälkki, Lothar Zagrosek, and Sir Neville Marriner, and with orchestras including the Cleveland Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the San Francisco Symphony, St Petersburg Philharmonic, DSO Berlin, SWR Sinfonie-Orchestra, RSO Wien, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, and the Bamberger Symphoniker. She has performed at houses including Opernhaus Zürich, Bregenzer Festspiele, Gran Teatro del Liceu, Baden-Baden Festspielhaus, Teatro Real de Madrid, Glyndebourne Festival Opera, Theatre du Chatelet, Théatre de Geneva, La Monnaie de Munt, Opera de Monte Carlo, Lithuania National Opera, Polish National Opera and Opera Comique.
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Ava Bahari
Violin
Described by The Strad as “a notable emerging talent”, Ava Bahari is a highly accomplished Swedish violinist with a refreshing appetite for unique repertoire. Currently Artist in Residence with Gothenburg Symphony and selected as an ECHO Rising Star for 2026/27, she has received numerous awards, including top prizes at the Premio Paganini Competition in Genova (2021), Concours International Tibor Varga in Sion (2021) and Aurora Music Competition in Stockholm (2019).
In 2025/26 Bahari continues her two-season residency with Gothenburg Symphony: she performs Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto with Joshua Weilerstein, reunites with Jaime Martín for concerts featuring Hindemith’s Violin Concerto, and joins forces with Andreas Brantelid for Brahms’ Concerto for Violin and Cello – also reuniting with conductor Pekka Kuusisto. Elsewhere in 25/26, she makes debut appearances with Orchestre de Paris, Hamburger Symphoniker, Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra, Stavanger Symphony Orchestra and Macedonian Philharmonic Orchestra, among others, and returns to Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra for their season-closing concerts as well as to Swedish Chamber Orchestra to give the world premiere of Annamaria Kowalsky’s Violin Concerto – commissioned specifically for Bahari and which she goes on to perform later in the season with Västerås Sinfonietta.
Highlights of 24/25 included opening Gothenburg Symphony’s season with Stravinsky’s Violin Concerto and returning in Spring 2025 perform Sibelius’ Violin Concerto – both with Santtu-Matias Rouvali – as well as first-time collaborations with Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Iceland Symphony Orchestra and Helsingborgs Symfoniorkester. Bahari also made her Japanese concerto debut with Tokyo Symphony Orchestra under music director Jonathan Nott, performing Schoenberg’s Violin Concerto, while return engagements included Swedish Chamber Orchestra – to give the Swedish premiere of James MacMillan’s Violin Concerto No.2, alongside composer-conductor Brett Dean – and Gävle Symphony Orchestra.
Further past highlights include performances with Philharmonia Orchestra, Malmö Symfoniorkester, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, Gävle and Odense symphony orchestras, Teatro Carlo Felice Genova and Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, among others. Conductor collaborations and artistic partnerships extend to names such as Vasily Petrenko, Andrew Manze, Tabita Berglund, Anders Hillborg, Pietari Inkinen, Nil Venditti and Bar Avni.
A keen chamber musician, Bahari has appeared at renowned festivals including Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, Festival d’Aix-en-Provence and Santander Music Festival, and has played with musicians such as Kirill Gerstein, Daniel Hope, Adrien La Marca, Andreas Ottensamer and Sheku Kanneh-Mason, to name a few. As part of her residency with Gothenburg Symphony, she collaborates with players of the orchestra to give chamber music concerts. Notable solo performances include a Paganini recital at the Seoul Arts Center, a recital on the ‘Stauffer’ Guarneri del Gesù 1734 at Museo del Violino, Cremona, and a recital at Konzerthaus Berlin.
In Spring 2024, Bahari received her Konzertexamen Diploma from Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin, further to Bachelor and Master studies under the guidance of Professor Kolja Blacher. In 2021 she completed a degree at the Accademia Stauffer in Cremona, Italy.
Bahari plays on an Antonio Stradivarius violin, made in Cremona in 1694, on loan by the Anders Sveaas' Almennyttige Fond (ASAF).
György Kurtág
Kafka-Fragmente, op. 24
Total approximate duration: 70 min / Concert without intermission
Opening a cycle dedicated to centenary composers György Kurtág and Betsy Jolas, Gulbenkian Music presents Kafka Fragments, for soprano and violin. Following his initial fascination with the Czech writer’s work after reading The Metamorphosis, Kurtág spent decades collecting fragments from Kafka’s writings, recorded in notebooks, diaries and letters. Drawing on this collection, between 1985 and 1986 he immersed himself in the composition of 40 pieces, creating a remarkable dialogue between his art and Kafka’s, mirrored in the relationship between the two instruments.
Photos © Sylvain Barres
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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