Gala opening of the Ohrid Summer Festival

Julian Rachlin-conductor/violin

Julian Rachlin is Music Director of the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, Chief Conductor of the Kristiansand Symphony Orchestra, and Principal Guest Conductor of the Turku Philharmonic Orchestra. With a career spanning more than thirty years, Rachlin has taken his multifaceted interests across the globe as a conductor, soloist, chamber musician, teacher and artistic director. His critically acclaimed recordings have been released by Deutsche Grammophon, Sony Classical and Warner Classics.

Rachlin is a much sought-after symphonic guest conductor worldwide. Highlights of recent seasons include the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Israel Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Vienna Symphony, Oslo Philharmonic, Konzerthausorchester Berlin, Helsinki Philharmonic, and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic.  As a violinist, he has shared the stage with the world’s most prestigious orchestras and conductors. Recent highlights include appearances with the Oslo Philharmonic and Klaus Mäkelä, Philharmonia Orchestra with Santtu-Matias Rouvali, National Symphony Orchestra and Gianandrea Noseda, Munich Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic with Zubin Mehta, St. Petersburg Philharmonic with Yuri Temirkanov, Boston Symphony, Filarmonica della Scala, RAI National Symphony with Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Orcheste Symphonique de Montréal and the Pittsburgh Symphony with Manfred Honeck.

Rachlin’s music festivals reflect his passion for bringing audiences together in a celebration of music and art. He frequently collaborates with longtime musical partners Martha Argerich, Evgeny Kissin, Janine Jansen and Mischa Maisky. His work and dedication to Julian Rachlin & Friends, a festival in Dubrovnik, Croatia, which ran for over a decade, received worldwide recognition. Rachlin has been artistic director of the Herbstgold Festival at the Esterházy Palace in Eisenstadt, Austria, since 2021. Rachlin plays a 1704 ex-Liebig Stradivarius and a 1785 Lorenzo Storioni viola, courtesy of Dkfm Angelika Prokopp Privatstiftung.

NI Philharmonic of Republic of North Macedonia

Eight decades of continuous music making. Eight decades of love, passion, incredible energy, artistic togetherness. Eighty years of wonderful journeys together with brilliant music minds-thousands of soloists and conductors that have brought life to the works of the great music masters- giving the audiences over the years a plethora of emotions, creations, harmonies, melodies, rhythms. This year the Macedonian philharmonic marks 80 years with the motto “80 years LOVE!”. This is the first and only symphonic orchestra in the Republic of North Macedonia, and with that the only permanent representative of the symphonic creations of Macedonian composers.  During the last few decades, the orchestra has significantly rejuvenated and with this process a new elan and enthusiasm have dominated the work processes. Tоday the Macedonian philharmonic is an orchestra with high instrumental qualities that brings to the stage and inventive repertoire that over encompasses both the traditional music literature as well as complex new works by contemporary composers.

The orchestra was formed on 24 November 1944 soon after the end of WWII and just 11 days after the liberation of Skopje. In the home of composer Todor Skalovski one of the pillars of Macedonian music culture, a group of musicians hold their first meeting with the intention of establishing the first State orchestra and lay the ground for the first cultural institution of its kind in liberated Macedonia.  From its modest beginnings over the past eight decades, the Philharmonic has created unforgettable concerts performing the words of classic and contemporary composers and taking great pride in being an ambassador for the works of Macedonian composers.

Programme:

1. Mendelssohn: Concerto for violin and orchestra E minor op. 64

                                                Allegro molto appassionato

                                                Andante – Allegretto non troppo

                                                Allegro molto vivace

1. I. Tchaikovsky: Romeo and Juliet Overture- Fantasy