Reflections of the Baroque: from Vivaldi to Max Richter

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Egor KURDELLO (France) - piano, bass
Anna SALNIT (Latvia) - violin
Christian LAFONT (France) - cello
Yulia Mikhaylova (Spain) - flute (special guest)

"Egor Kurdello's playing combines Asian technique with an unbridled passion, I would even say a desperate fury of life, characteristic of the finest examples of the old Russian pianistic tradition."
– Pierre Gervasoni, Le Monde

"The snow-covered melancholy of the Swedish sea gives way to the fury of a storm in the Pacific Ocean."
– Thierry Hilleriteau, Le Figaro

ABOUT THE PROGRAMME

This concert is a musical journey through different eras, countries and musical genres, united by a common state of mind and by a reflection on human passions, forgiveness, farewell and spiritual ascent.

At the heart of the programme lies the “Baroque breath”, which reveals itself unexpectedly even where, at first sight, centuries separate us from the Baroque.

PROGRAMME

• Antonio Vivaldi - “Summer” from The Four Seasons (composer’s own version for violin, cello and piano)

• Henry Purcell - Music for a While (for voice, piano, violin and cello)

• Alfred Schnittke - Suite in the Olden Style (for violin and piano)

• Alessandro Marcello - Adagio from the Oboe Concerto in D minor (for flute, violin and piano)

• Egor Kurdello - “Chopin Drunk in Paris” (for violin, cello and piano). A work in which the breath of Romanticism and echoes of the Belle Époque collide with the technological world of the future. The music seems to pass through an era of acceleration in which familiar intonations of the past begin to crumble under the pressure of new times

• Egor Kurdello - Venice (for voice, piano, cello, violin and flute). A musical story constructed from several old Italian melodies and texts by Iosif Brodsky, John Donne, Leonard Cohen and Jim Morrison. In a single piece, the Venice of the past and the Venice of memory meet the Italian musical tradition and the voices of poets from different centuries

• Egor Kurdello - Stone & Water (for voice, piano, violin, cello and flute). A broad polystylistic work combining the musical language of the Baroque, twentieth-century polyrhythm and an almost rock-like energy. Different eras coexist here in a tense and fascinating dialogue

• Egor Kurdello - 100 Years - world premiere (*for flute, piano, cello and violin)

• Johann Sebastian Bach / Alexander Siloti - Prelude in B minor

• Pēteris Vasks - The Inner Castle (for violin and cello). A philosophical musical poem by the renowned Latvian composer, written in 2013. Its title refers to the book by the sixteenth-century Spanish mystic Teresa of Ávila, The Interior Castle (1577). Like Teresa’s work, Vasks’s piece is a journey into the depths of the human soul, conceived as a castle with seven chambers. It is music of inner movement, searching and spiritual ascent

• Christoph Willibald Gluck - Melody from the opera Orfeo ed Euridice (for flute and piano)

• Max Richter - Spring (for violin, cello and piano)

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  THE ARTISTS

  Egor Kurdello (piano, composer)

Pianist, organist and composer, soloist of the New Opera (Moscow) and guest soloist of the Mariinsky Theatre (St. Petersburg). In addition to the classical stage, he is known for his collaborations with Peter Gabriel and Ennio Morricone, and is the creator and producer of the surrealist show The Trip Show, together with musicians from the cult band King Crimson and original soloists from the musical Notre Dame de Paris (Matt Laurent and Jan Carlyle).

Of Russian-Ukrainian origin, Egor Kurdello has been living in Lyon since March 2022 and has since performed more than 50 concerts in France, including solo appearances at major academic venues. His performances have been featured on Dutch and French television, including ARTE-classic, and his work has received enthusiastic praise from music critics. He has organised numerous benefit concerts in support of Ukraine alongside prominent European musicians such as Alexei Aigui, Alexei Kurbatov, Vitaly Vatulya, Maria Schellenberg, Johannes Leis, Cristina Toma, Vladimir Toma, Daniela Mars, Louise Bourgeat, Olga Yurina and many others.

He is the composer of the Ukrainian Symphony, whose complete version received its world premiere at the Salle Molière on 3 October 2025 (individual movements had previously been performed by orchestras in the USA and ensembles in Europe, while a flute version of the second movement was broadcast on ARTE TV). The hall responded to the symphony with a 15-minute standing ovation, followed by excellent reviews in the press.

"What is striking is how completely absent from Egor Kurdello's playing is what Americans call show-off, the formal display of technical resources and empty gestures. Endowed with the highest level of technique, he does not pursue external effects, subordinating every technical aspect to artistic objectives. One can state without hesitation that, under the hands of this wonderful pianist, even the most secular music acquires a deeply spiritual dimension, transforming into a true prayer."

– Emmanuelle Giuliani, La Croix

"As a music critic, you have the opportunity to hear many artists and attend concerts frequently. I won't hide it: sometimes it gets a little boring. Even when the performers are of a high standard, that spiritual elevation which we have the right to expect is not always present... So I can say one thing: I wasn't bored for a second at this concert. We greatly enjoyed this beautiful evening. In this grand music (the works of Egor Kurdello), there was something that reminded me of Kurt Weill: a very precise, incisive and penetrating intonation."

– Philippe Roger, Radio Canut

Egor Kurdello's works are performed by pianists around the world and included in their repertoires. However, some of them are performed exclusively by the composer himself due to his phenomenal eleventh-span hand.

Anna Salnit (violin)

Violinist, soloist and chamber musician with an extensive concert career in Europe and beyond. Trained in Moscow, Tallinn and Riga, she studied with such teachers as Anna Dvoretskaya, Marta Kushnirskaya, Uldis Viesturs Sprudzs, Teresa Iaba-Ziberte and Arvo Leibur. She studied chamber music under the guidance of Gunta Sproge, Agne Sprudzi, Marrit Gerretz-Traksmann and Janis Maleckis.

She has performed with the Estonian National Opera, the Narva City Symphony Orchestra and Kymi Sinfonietta, among other ensembles. Since 2018, she has been concertmaster of the orchestra of the international Classical Hugs Festival. She has performed in Riga, Tallinn, Tartu, Pärnu, Hamburg, Berlin, Lyon and London, among other cities. In 2018, she won second prize at the Alion Baltic International Competition in Tallinn.

Artistic director of chamber music projects and the Alma String Quartet, she is a member of the Sempre Musica piano trio. Artist and soloist with the OKONCERT agency (2022-2026) and, since 2025, a guest soloist with Tynda Music, performing on major stages before audiences of thousands.

Christian Lafont (cello)

French cellist trained both in Moscow and in France. He was president of the chamber music festival held in the grounds of the Château de Chambord. Christian Lafont performs with various orchestras and chamber ensembles, regularly collaborating with Egor Kurdello, Anna Salnit and Alexei Aigui. His playing blends French expressiveness with the powerful sound of the Russian cello school: a deep, rich, enveloping tone that contrasts with the current European trend toward restrained, half-bow playing.

"French cellist Christian Lafont is a musician of incredible sensitivity."
– Philippe Roger, Radio Canut