PAiR Residency in Pāvilosta as a Prelude to the Liepāja Art Forum Festival

On July 25 at 18:00, the Pāvilosta Artists’ Residency “PAiR” invites everyone to a special prelude event for the “Liepāja Art Forum” festival titled “In This and Another Life: Conversations and Music on the Way to Liepāja Art Forum.” This event will feature pianists Rihards Plešanovs and Roberts Flaics, poetess Madara Gruntmane, joined by the music critic and artistic director of the Great Amber Concert Hall, Orests Silabriedis.

From September 27 to 29, Liepāja will host the tenth edition of the contemporary art festival “Liepāja Art Forum,” culminating in the premiere of an innovative new composition. In anticipation of this event, both pianists together with Madra Gruntmane will convene at the PAiR residency in late July for an intensive collaborative retreat. During their residency, they will engage in in-depth musical discussions, meticulously develop the dramaturgy, and exchange artistic perspectives to create "Requiem for the Afterlife."

The prelude event will provide a preview of the themes and process behind the new composition, focusing on humanity’s relationship with the life after life and speculations about a possible afterlife.

“We will explore the ways composers across the ages have pondered the afterlife, encompassing the mystical phenomena of healing and death dances, the ascetic rigor of the medieval period, the profound intimacy with death in Baroque German compositions, the resigned melancholy of Romanticism, the existential despair of Expressionism, the delicate fragility of Impressionism, the serene reconciliation of modern simplicity and other intriguing aspects”, says Orests Silabriedis about the event.

Roberts Flaics and Rihards Plešanovs will guide the audience through the instrumental mapping of their work, while Madara Gruntmane will read poems related to the theme. The event will take place in the garden of the residency, so attendees are advised to dress appropriately for the weather.

This event is organized by “Lielais Dzintars” Ltd. in collaboration with “VV Foundation.” Venue: “PAiR” Artists’ Residence, Ernesta Šneiders laukums 11, Pāvilosta. Admission is free. For more information about the Liepāja Art Forum, please visit: www.lielaisdzintars.lv/en

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