Music will be played in the famous palaces of St. Petersburg and its suburbs, which formerly belonged to the royal family and notable aristocrats, the Hermitage Theater, Menshikov Palace, Sheremetev Palace, Smolny Cathedral, Mikhailovsky, Catherine and Peterhof Palaces and the Lutheran Church of Sts. Peter and Paul.
All in all, 15 concerts will be held during this month. Soloists and bands from 10 countries, including France, the U.S., Lithuania, Estonia, Germany and Italy. Among them are the Russian State Academic Chamber Orchestra conducted by Konstantin Orbelyan, the Five Style ensemble of Russian folk instruments, Armenian duduka-player Dzhivan Gasparyan, French pianist Jean-Bernard Pommier, saxophonist Federico Mondelci, violinist Hillary Hahn, singers Vasily Gerello and Oleg Bezinskikh.
The concert in the grand hall of the Menshikov Palace, the residence of the first governor-general of St. Petersburg, on July 15 is the highlight of the festival's program. The organizers intend to turn back to the atmosphere of the 18th century's gatherings. Germany's Consul General Reinhart Kraus, a remarkable viola-player, will participate in this concert.
The festival will close with a baroque music concert performed by the Estonian Baroque Soloists and Internationales Ensemble der Akademie fur Alte Musik on July 19.
The St. Petersburg Palaces festival was founded in 1990 by pianist, chief conductor and artistic director of the Russian State Academic Chamber Orchestra Konstantin Orbelyan. The festival's message is to remind that St. Petersburg has always been a world music center.
