AMARILLI

Classical and Modern Music

Format: Digitalno + CD

Code: 118500

EAN: 3838898118500

ZKP RTV Slovenia in cooperation with Radio Slovenia - ARS programme and with support of Slovenian Ministry of Culture is releasing the album Amarilli, on which baritone Jaka Mihelač and classical guitarist Jure Cerkovnik, who also wrote all the arrangements, perform a widely acclaimed repertoire of Lieder by Slovenian composers ranging from Benjamin Ipavec to Anton Lajovic and Lucijan Marija Škerjanc with musical setting of poems by Oton Župančič, Josip Murn, Cvetko Golar, Vojeslav Mole, Anton Aškerc and France Prešeren as well as famous Italian Baroque arias (from G. Caccini to A. Scarlatti) and songs, which include some rarely heard pieces.

Considering Slovenian Lieder as a specific genre fundamentally embedded in the Slovenian national memory and cultural heritage, the selected recordings bring insight into the music of the country, the homeland of both artists. A widely established repertoire of Lieder by composers ranging from Benjamin Ipavec to Anton Lajovic and Lucijan Marija Škerjanc form the musical core of the programme as an homage to the poetic-musical processes which marked the period between the end of the 19th and first half of the 20th century. The musical setting of poems by Oton Župančič, Josip Murn, Cvetko Golar, Vojeslav Molé, Anton Aškerc and also France Prešeren consolidated the array of late Romantic and impressionistic techniques that became characteristic of Slovenian Lieder centred around typical motifs of Romantic poetry such as moonlight, moon, love and also infatuation with nature and its wonders. This time, however, the famous repertoire is dressed in acoustically different attire and presented for the first time as an arrangement for voice and classical guitar (which replaces the piano); all arrangements were written by Jure Cerkovnik. This new instrumentation offers a more intimate sound and thus an innovative interpretation of traditionally stylised works, giving the mentioned poetic topoi a novel musical character. As a pillar of Slovenian art music, Slovenian Lieder are further intertwined with a selection of famous Italian Baroque arias (from G. Caccini to A. Scarlatti) and songs, which include some rarely heard pieces. Among these, special attention should be given to the rarely performed and recorded aria O morte gradita from the second act of the Roman religious opera Sant’Alessio by the Italian composer Stefano Landi from 1632/34 (libretto by Giulio Rospigliosi), where the accompaniment by violins and basso continuo instruments is replaced by guitar.

- musicologist Esma Cerkovnik

Jaka Mihelač

Slovenian baritone Jaka Mihelač began his singing education at the Conservatory of Music and Ballet in Ljubljana under Edita Garčević Koželj, after which he studied singing under the guidance of Matjaž Robavs at the Ljubljana Academy of Music. He has won numerous prizes at singing competitions, including first prize at the Slovenian national music competition TEMSIG 2016, first prize and Mozart Prize at the Ferruccio Tagliavini Competition, Wil Keune Prize at the Belvedere Competition 2018, and fourth prize at the Francisco Viñas Competition. He was also awarded the Prešeren Prize from the University of Ljubljana. In 2017, he successfully performed as an opera singer in Carl Orff's scenic cantata Carmina Burana, produced by Christoph Hagel in Berlin, on the stage of the Meistersingerhalle in Nuremberg and at the Prince Regent Theatre in Munich. Between 2019 and 2021, he appeared as a member of the Berlin State Opera Unter den Linden soloist ensemble in different productions and various roles such as Marullo/Rigoletto, Dancaïre/Carmen, Notary/Der Rosenkavalier and Wigmaker/Ariadne auf Naxos. He made his debut at the Montpellier National Opera and performed at the Berlin State Opera at the premiere of Peter Eötvös' opera Sleepless. He appeared as Harlequin in Ariadne auf Naxos and in the title role of The Barber of Seville. This year he will perform another title role in Eugene Onegin at the Slovene National Theatre in Ljubljana. His repertoire ranges from Bach's Passions to compositions by Benjamin Britten and Michael Tippett. As a soloist, he has performed with orchestras of Staatskapelle Berlin, Gran Teatre del Liceu, Teatro Real in Madrid, Ljubljana and Maribor national theatres, Berlin Symphony Orchestra, Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra and Symphony Orchestra of Serbian Radio Television. He has worked with renowned conductors such as Daniel Barenboim, Zubin Mehta, Vladimir Jurowski, Peter Ruzicka and Thomas Guggeis.

Jure Cerkovnik

Slovenian classical guitarist Jure Cerkovnik began studying guitar with Prof. Anton Črnugelj in Ljubljana. He then attended the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna under Prof. Alvaro Pierri, where he obtained his Master's degree. He continued his education at the Zurich University of the Arts under Prof. Anders Miolin and completed a Master's degree in Pedagogy and a special Master's degree in Performance. During his studies, he was awarded the Škerjanc Award and more than 15 prizes at national and international guitar competitions. As a musician and pedagogue, he works in numerous European and Asian countries. He performs at international guitar festivals in Vienna, Zagreb, Zurich, Lucerne, Aarhus, Sarajevo, Accera, Postojna and elsewhere. During 2018 and 2019, he toured Japan and Taiwan, performing as a soloist and in a duo with Toshiyuki Kumagai. In February 2017, he made his debut with a solo recital at the Vienna Konzerthaus, a central music venue in Vienna. In addition, he has performed at other renowned music venues such as Ehrbar Saal and Arnold Schönberg Center in Vienna, Slovenian Philharmonic Hall, Iwami Arts Centre in Japan, Euphrasian Basilica in Poreč, Sarajevo National Theatre, Helsingør Theatre and Werdenberg Castle. As a soloist, he has performed with the Karlovy Vary Symphony Orchestra, Ensemble Dissonance, symphony orchestra Simfonika and Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra. He has premiered several works by Slovenian and foreign composers, who also dedicated some of their works to him. In addition to that, he regularly performs as a chamber musician in different ensembles. In December 2017, he released his first album Palettes, which features works by Manuel Maria Ponce, Atanas Ourkouzounov, Ferdinand Rebay and Dušan Bogdanović. In the duo Aratik, he and guitarist Aljaž Cvirn recorded Johannes Brahms' Intermezzi, which are featured on the album Duality (2023).