Maggio Musicale Fiorentino 2016

Launch of the 79th edition of the Festival with concerts, operas and many side shows

From 24 April 2016 to 04 July 2016

Lovers of classical music and bel canto, take a pen and paper and make a note of these dates in your diary: from 24 April to 4 July 2016 Maggio Musicale Fiorentino Festival 2016 will host the highly anticipated opera in Florence! The music festival of Florence will host classical music concerts, ballet, opera and theatre works while numerous side events will take place at other theatres, conservatory halls and other rooms in the historic centre.

This prestigious event, founded in 1937 by composer and orchestra conductor Vittorio Gui, is one of the oldest and most prestigious festivals in Europe, thanks to the cultural and stylistic choices of the organizers, that each year attract thousands of spectators in the Tuscan capital. First among these, the great importance given to visual exposure in the operas, which has led to a valuable partnership with the most famous film and theatre directors in the world. We should also underline the constant presence of great performers who, year after year, have contributed to the prestige of this great and highly anticipated event.

Are you ready to discover the rich program of the 79th Maggio Musicale FiorentinoFestival?

The opening concert will be entrusted to the expert baton of one of the most famous conductors, Zubin Mehta who will conduct the Orchestra of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino 2016 festival, and will be accompanied by the famous soloist Andras Schiff.

During the program of the Opera in Florence, 22 concerts will take place that range from classical to contemporary music up to the so-called 'open music', a new way of thinking and composing music using new digital technologies.

As for the works of the MaggioMusicale Fiorentino 2016, there are three appointments that should not to be missed this year:

• 'Iolanta' by Pëtr Il'ič Čajkovskij - Opera of Florence - 28 and 30 April, 3 and 5 May 2016
  Clearly inspired by the Duchess Yolande of Anjou, the touching opera tells the story of a young woman who lives in the darkness locked in a flourishing garden in the French mountains, until the arrival of a noble man who will reveal the miracle of sight and the joy of love.

• 'The magic mirror' by Fabio Vacchi - Opera of Florence - Saturday, May 7, 2016
  A premiere, including classical music, ethnic references and the Millelemmi rap, an incredible journey in time that unites countries thousands of kilometres apart and which has as its protagonist a magic mirror.

• 'Halbert Herring' by Benjamin Britten - Teatro alla Pergola - 21,27,29 and 31 May 2016
  After 48 years of absence, the so called 'greatest comic opera of the Century' returns to the scene. Loosely based on a short story by Guy de Maupassant, the opera tells the story of a small boy considered the ideal 'King of May' of the imaginary town of Loxford.

FLORENCE, OPERA ... AND MORE!

As mentioned above, every year the main event is enriched by a substantial program of events and parallel shows. The 79th edition of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino is pleased to present 'Around the Festival', a series of free initiatives linked by a common thread, that of Ludwig van Beethoven's music. Let's see together what it is:

As part of the now customary CONCERTS IN MUSEUMS, Casa Martinelli proposes an unusual version of Egmont, the beautiful sonatas for cello and piano, and a concert dedicated to the vocal pages of Britten, the author of the Albert Herring opera at the Teatro della Pergola.
The Stibbert Museum will instead pay homage to Čajkovskij, composer of Iolanta, the work that will usher in the new edition of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino.
The 20th century Museum proposes the words and music of 'war': after the Great War, it is now the turn of the Second World War.
At Palazzo Davanzati you can watch instead a special concert of plectrum orchestral music composed in Florence in the late 19th century.

MUSICAL WALKS. Two routes on one side and the other of the River Arno, that will take you to beautiful and magical places where you can rediscover the sound of the ancient organs of the city, newly restored precious instruments.

SUNDAY OF THE BANDS. Five appointments with Tuscan bands in the large Piazzale Vittorio Gui in front of the Opera Theatre in Florence: a wonderful opportunity to rediscover the beauty of authentic folk music!

Amici del of Teatro del Maggio are the organizers of STUDY DAY, this year dedicated to the Florentine critic Leonardo Pinzauti, who died recently, an important witness to the Italian musical life of the 20th century.

It's called 'Lucia Valentini Terrani, diva and woman' the ROUND TABLE dedicated to the mezzosoprano who this year would have been seventy. There will be the presence of her husband Alberto Terrani, the critics Alessandro Mormile and Giancarlo Landini and the Florentine baritone Rolando Panerai, Valentini's scene mate in the two editions of Werther.
This occasion will see the presentation of the new series Maggio Live, based on the legendary production of Werther directed by Georges Pretre.

And these are the fixed appointments of the program 'Around the Festival': the MUSIC CONVERSATION taking place in libraries promoted by the Friends of the Teatro del Maggio, MEETINGS WITH THE PUBLIC organized by the Florence Opera and by The Foyer and GUIDE TO LISTENING edited by Marialuisa Pepiù and Katiuscia Manetta.

MAY CINEMA this year presents the cycle 'Controcampo Beethoven': at the Alfieri Space, five screenings to understand the relationship between the composer and the cinema.

There are many and varied proposals of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino - 2016 program: the choice is yours!

To discover the other great events in Tuscany and the traditional shows of this beautiful region, simply see the dedicated section on our site!