Christmas Festival. Reinis Zariņš. Messiaen’s Twenty Gazes on the Child Jesus

Artists:

Reinis Zariņš, piano

Program:

Olivier Messiaen

piano cycle “Twenty Gazes on the Child Jesus”

As part of the Christmas Festival, we invite listeners to a special evening featuring the monumental piano work by French composer Olivier Messiaen, “Twenty Gazes on the Child Jesus”. This work is one of the most significant piano compositions of the 20th century, consisting of 20 interconnected meditations on the theme of Christ’s birth - deeply symbolic, theologically rich, and at the same time emotionally full. It is a musical meditation on the mystery of Christ’s birth, in which each part reveals a different perspective from the cosmic to the deeply personal, from ecstasy to quiet contemplation.

The concert is given a special atmosphere by pianist Reinis Zariņš’s interpretation, in which the music becomes a living dialogue with the listener. You will hear these works as a single spiritual journey in a large-scale form, in which listeners will be invited not only to hear, but also to experience - to pause, to delve deeper, and to surrender to the interplay of sound and silence.

Concert duration: 2 h without an intermission