CIMF 2022 - C10 The Great Divide

Canberra International Music Festival’s concert 16 The Great Divide is on Tuesday 3 May. Photo: CIMF.

The expeditions of Colombus and Vasco da Gama altered the map of the world for once and all. In order to keep some order, the Pope had to draw a straight line 370 leagues beyond the Cape Verde Islands, north to south, pole to pole. This artificial border from 1494 designated the ‘West’ to Spain and the ‘East’ to Portugal. Centuries later, in the aftermath of WWII, our much expanded world was held in precarious balance between the US and the USSR.

This concert features four musical realms. Spain’s medieval cantigas, earthy and seductive still today, contrast with the sumptuous polyphony of Portugal’s Golden Age. Steve Reich’s New York eighties vibe provides the perfect foil for Shostakovich’s sixth quartet, a masterpiece of Soviet optimism post-Stalin.

Program

Cantigas de Santa Maria (Spain)

Manuel Cardoso and Dom Pedro de Cristo (Portugal), motets

–Interval–

Steve Reich, New York Counterpoint

Dimitri Shostakovich, String Quartet no. 6

Artists

Luminescence Chamber Singers

Orava String Quartet

The details

What: Canberra International Music Festival’s Concert 10 – The Great Divide
When: Tuesday 3 May 2022, 7:30 pm to 9 pm
Where: Fitters’ Workshop, Printers Way Kingston ACT 2604
Cost: $80 general admission, $72 concession. Tickets at CIMF.

For more information and to view the whole program, visit CIMF.