Hudobný život 11/2025

Testimonies of the Time: Choral Singing as a Path to Maturity (Dušan Bill)

Concerts and Festivals: BHS – Žilina State Chamber Orchestra – Slovak Philharmonic – Music of Today – SOČR – SOSR – Trenčín – New Synagogue Žilina, Convergences

Music Theatre: Vienna – Banská Bystrica – Bratislava

Auris interna: Silent Test

Photo Report: Pro musica nostra Nitriensi – Gemeriensi

Music Plus: Sounds of Diversity / Sanatorium of Sound

Short Story: Love (V. Rozenbergová)

CD Reviews

The November cover of our magazine captures a view of the precious cassette ceiling of the Early Gothic Evangelical Church in Kraskovo in the Gemer region. This impressive building is today one of the sought‑after destinations on the so‑called Gothic Route, similarly to the churches in Plešivec, Štítnik, or Ochtiná. I was lucky enough to visit them with my girlfriend in the middle of summer, and their architecture and, in some places more, in others less preserved fresco decoration in the Italian style are truly treasures amid a somewhat sleepy and forgotten region. The preserved organs and galleries in these churches, however, indicate that they once must have been important centers of musical culture as well—and it is precisely this spirit that our colleagues from the Concert and Festival Department of the Music Centre have been successfully striving to restore for years. The Pro musica nostra festival, which they have tirelessly organized since 2018, plays an irreplaceable role in bringing high‑quality musical productions back to these (and many other) places. Chamber music—often on the border of genres—excellent singers and instrumentalists, architectural and artistic splendor… this late summer in the Nitra and Gemer regions. We are glad to share a few visual impressions through a photo report.

Less positive news, however, is coming from Banská Bystrica. Mozart’s "Figaro" will apparently remain the only new title in the repertoire of the State Opera for a long time. The theatre, which within the Slovak context offered—within its means—a rather interesting dramaturgy, is now struggling with existential problems, and the future does not look rosy at all. All the more pleasing in this situation is the new production on the stage of the Slovak National Theatre, as well as successful Czech‑Slovak collaborations in the staging of Smetana’s "The Bartered Bride" at the Vienna State Opera or at the Prague concert of Plácido Domingo, where Adriana Kučerová and Rastislav Štúr provided more than dignified support.

We also touch on vocal art—though mainly choral—in the retrospective reflections of the jubilant choirmaster Dušan Bill in the Testimonies of the Time section.

Of course, the typically autumn musical life brings much, much more. The concert season is running at full speed; hardly have the autumn editions of Convergences and the Bratislava Mozart Festival concluded, and the New Slovak Music festival is already in full swing. Whatever did not fit into the November issue, you will find in the December one… We look forward to further encounters!

Robert Kolář