“AEROGRAM”

FROM THE HERITAGE OF LITHUANIAN JEWISH (LITVAK) MUSIC

 

Introduction

In the early 1300s Grand Duke Gediminas began to invite Jews from all over Europe to his expanding Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Thousands of persecuted Jews from many countries got a safe haven there to develop their culture, religion and intellectualism at a remarkably high level. When Napoleon in 1812 came to Lithuania, he was very puzzled by what he saw, and it was him who first named Vilnius 'Jerusalem of the North'. 

Through 600 years the Lithuanian Jews (the Litvaks) remained one of the most important pillars for development in Lithuania and neighbouring countries, until Holocaust tragically wiped out 95% of the Jews living in Lithuania. But around the world descendants of the Litvaks still today play remarkably strong, leading roles.

One of the most remarkable contributions that the Lithuanian Jews have made was to the World Musical Culture. World-famous musicians and composers - in the past and nowadays - such as Leopold Godowsky, Jascha Heifetz, Benny Goodman, Alexander and Mischa Schneider, Vlado Perlemuter, Maximillian Shteinberg, Aaron Copland, Joseph Achron, David Geringas, the Livschitz brothers, Vyacheslav Ganelin, Julian Rachlin, Anatolijus Šenderovas, and many others were and are either of Lithuanian origin, or were born and raised in Lithuania. Much has been written about them and their music, which has undoubtedly contributed to the awareness of them in Lithuania and beyond. The best way for music to live, however, is to be performed again and again so it is embraced by as many hearts and minds all over the World.

 

About the Project

Hence this project - a meaningful attempt on part of a group of Lithuanian musicians to connect past and present by following the footprints of the Litvak music heritage. 

Four young, but prominent and one of the brightest Lithuanian performers - violinist Dalia Dėdinskaitė, cellist Gleb Pyšniak, pianist Robertas Lozinskis and vibraphonist Marius Šinkūnas - teamed up for a joint two-fold initiative: firstly, to record a collection of selected Lithuanian Jewish chamber music works for violin, cello, piano and vibraphone by combining them into one album, secondly, starting from November 2017, to introduce the program in a number of live performances to the audiences in over the world.

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Artists

Dalia Dėdinskaitė, a laureate of national and international competitions, is one of the most prominent Lithuania’s young violinists. She won the main prize at the international competition “Violine in Dresden” in Germany in 2010 after which she was invited to perform L. van Beethoven’s Violin Concerto at the prestigious festival “Dresdner Musikfestspiele 2012”. D. Dėdinskaitė has given concerts around Europe, the USA and New Zealand.  She has also performed as a soloist together with the Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra, the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra, “Dresdner Kappelsolisten” and the symphonic orchestra “Carl Maria von Weber” of Dresden, conducted by Saulius Sondeckis, Juozas Domarkas, Georg Mark, etc. In 2014 Dalia debuted at the Wiener Musikverein with great success where she performed the world premiere of V. Barkauskas’ “Duettissimo”. It was her first teacher Elena Lašaitė who noticed her budding talent. Later Dalia continued her studies with prof. Jurgis Dvarionas, whereas lessons given by Christian Altenburger, Austrian violinist and a professor at the University of Vienna, left the most visible trace. For more information visit www.dalia-dedinskaite.com.

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Already at the age of 14, Gleb Pyšniak debuted as a soloist with the Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra (conductor: Prof. Saulius Sondeckis) in the Lithuanian National Philharmonic Society. The student of the legendary cellist Natalia Gutman performs in the most famous concert halls all over the world including the Wiener Musikverein, Royal Concertgebouw of Amsterdam, the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory. As a soloist he has performed with the Symphonic Orchestra of the Moscow Conservatory, the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra, the Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra, the Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra, the St. Christopher Chamber Orchestra, Riga Sinfonietta, the Porto Symphony Orchestra, to mention just a few. Gleb has received the highest evaluations in significant national and international competitions and an award from the hands of Valdas Adamkus, the President of the Republic of Lithuania, for promoting the country abroad. His first teacher Tatjana Kuc guided the cellist in his musical journey, which took him to studies with prof. Rimantas Armonas and prof. Johannes Meissl and was later enriched by the master classes of Yo-Yo Ma, Mstislav Rostropovich, Silvija Sondeckienė and Heinrich Schiff. For more information visit www.glebpysniak.com.

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Robertas Lozinskis became a prize-winner of more than 20 international piano competitions in such countries as the United Kingdom, Germany, Czech Republic, Greece, Italy, Latvia and Lithuania. In May 2015 he won the 1st Prize and the Audience Prize at the prestigious Sheepdrove Piano Competition in England. In September 2015 he won the 1st Prize at the International M.K.Čiurlionis Piano and Organ Competition as well as the Audience Prize, National Philharmonic Prize and the Special Prize for the best performance of M.K.Čiurlionis pieces. Robertas currently studies with professor Fali Pavri at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. He has previously studied with professor Zbignevas Ibelgauptas at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre and also spent one year as an exchange student at the Berlin University of the Arts where he studied with professor Elena Lapitskaja.

 

Marius Šinkūnas was born in Vilnius, in 1983.  Since early age, he started studying classical percussion instruments by famous percussionist Arvydas Vainius. During this time, he started doing solo performances as the time working in the orchestra. Later he got a scolarship to study in Lyon Music and Dance Academy, France by Professor Jan Geoffroy. After that he got a scholarship to study in Western Michigan university by Professor Judy Monert. There together with classical percussion studies he started to learn a jazz vibraphone. He started to play with jazz musicians recording and travelling all around the world with performances. Marius also gives master classes in Sankt Peterburg, Russia and, of course, in Lithuania. Last three years he has a music radio programme at Lithuanian National radio station LRT KLASIKA.

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For CD order or any other requests please contact: arslituanica@gmail.com

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Artistic director of the project "Aerogram": Gleb Pyšniak