The Miramon Matinées are back next Saturday 10 October
After the loss of six matinées of the previous season due to the pandemic, the series of concerts is back with renewed strength, with some of the proposals lost in spring; many of the orchestra's ensembles are preparing to offer their recitals, the Kup taldea and Suhar korua will be joining us, and the complete orchestra will offer a general rehearsal under the orders of its chief conductor, Robert Treviño.
The season will kick off next Saturday 10 October at 11:00 in Miramon with Belharra, comprised by musicians from the orchestra, who will perform two string quartets by Schubert and Beethoven.
The 2020/2021 Season of the Miramon Matinées will kick off at the Basque National Orchestra’s headquarters on Saturday 10 October. The orchestra’s chamber music season, which since its creation has been supported by Kutxa Fundazioa, has been a classic in weekend events for decades. The 16 events in this season cover a wide variety of music written for trios, quartets and quintets. There will be a lot of Beethoven; Bach, with three of his Brandenburg concertos; and also choral music and tango in the figure of Piazzola.
The Basque National Orchestra has put together a rich and varied schedule for the coming season, which will get under way by resurrecting several programmes that had to be cancelled between March and June 2020 as a result of the global Covid-19 pandemic.
From the fifth session, we will be treated – as we have come to except – to some surprises from various chamber groups comprising musicians from the Basque National Orchestra, such as Cuarteto Mefisto, Cuarteto Attacca, Bach Camerata Miramon or Trío Alma y Cía, and also from guest ensembles including two important choirs from our region: Kup Taldea and Suhar Korua. Differing from the standard small and intimate format of the Miramon Matinees is the open rehearsal of the full orchestra in mid-April, including works by Ravel: La valse, Alborada del gracioso and Bolero.
Beethoven and Schubert in this Saturday's first Matinée
With a concert titled ‘Classics?’, next Saturday at 11:00 the Belharra ensemble, comprised by Anne-Marie Harmat (violin), Mikel Ibañez (violin), Natacha Dupuy-Scordamaglia (viola) and Pascale Michaud (cello), members of the Basque National Orchestra, will perform two string quartets by renowned composers Franz Schubert and Ludwig Van Beethoven.
The concert will begin with the ‘Rosamunde’ quartet by Schubert, dedicated to Ignaz Schuppanzigh, first violin of Count Razumovsky’s quartet. The piece, composed in 1824, begins with an insistent accompaniment that symbolises destiny and the composer's ambivalence between his joy of life and anxiety about the illness consuming him.
The second and last piece will be Quartet No. 9, composed by Beethoven in 1806, when he was almost completely deaf. It is the third of the quartets the composer dedicated to ‘His Excellency Count Razumovsky’, who was one of his first patrons. This quartet is the most powerful and cheerful of the three.
An uncertain but safe edition
The season faces what is possibly its most uncertain edition after a 29-year uninterrupted history. Uncertain, because how it goes ahead hinges on the development of the Covid-19 pandemic and its prevalence in our region. However, this edition of the season will be run safely in strict accordance with the safety measures in place at all times.
The Miramon Auditorium will adopt the safety measures required by the current situation: the use of masks will be compulsory, the safety distance and indications of the venue's staff will be observed at the entrance and exit, and hand-washing with hydroalcoholic gel at the entrance will be obligatory. We recommend that you arrive at the venue ahead of time. The programme will not be handed out in physical format, but will be available via mobile devices using the QR codes that will be on display at the entrances to the auditorium.
No sales of tickets and season tickets until further notice
Due to the current capacity restrictions, there will be no sales of tickets or season tickets until further notice, as the venue’s full capacity is reached with current season ticket holders. If throughout the Season this circumstance changes, the tickets that become available for sale will continue to cost the single price of 7 euros and can be purchased on euskadikoorkestra.eus, at the ticket booth of the Kursaal Auditorium, and on the same day of the concert (starting at 10:30) if there is free capacity and the health situation allows it, at the ticket booth of the orchestra's headquarters in Miramon.
Bus service
The concerts will be held at 11:00 am, at the Basque National Orchestra’s headquarters in Miramon. In order to attend them, the orchestras will continue to provide a free public bus service. It leaves at 10:25 from Gipuzkoa Plaza 4 and stops at Sancho El Sabio 18 and Avda. de Madrid 34.
