Teodor Currentzis and MusicAeterna

Dubai Opera describes this as “a landmark musical event certain to leave an indelible imprint on the region’s artistic tapestry”. With allowances for hyperbole, the PR writer could be right; the MusicAeterna orchestra (and its associated choir) is been the primary vehicle for expressing the orchestral ideas of the unorthodox Greek-born Russian conductor Teodor Currentzis.

He has had a reputation for dramatic interpretation and an unconventional, punkish appearance; while he’s toned down the stage garb of lace-up boots, skinny jeans and a T-shirt, he retains his flair with romantic classics and works that get the most out of the ensemble.

Currentzis founded MusicAeterna in Russia in 2004, when he was serving as principal conductor of the Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theatre and subsequently of the Perm Opera and Ballet Theatre; the players were handpicked from around Russia and persuaded to move to his base in Siberia, where they underwent a gruelling schedule of rehearsal and recording.

MusicAeterna retains that focus, though not so much in Siberia these days: the orchestra has long been in demand on the concert circuit and for operatic productions. It has two consecutive evenings in Dubai with different programmes – for the 28th it’s Wagner, but tonight we have Tchaikovsky:

“Francesca da Rimini”, Symphonic Fantasy after Dante, op.32
“Capriccio Italien” on folk tunes for orchestra, op.45
“Romeo and Juliet”, Fantasy-Overture after Shakespeare, TH 42