INTERNATIONAL MUSIC FESTIVAL “SULLE VIE DEL PROSECCO”

From 2013 to 2019, the Italian region of Veneto hosted the annual international music festival “Sulle vie del Prosecco” under the artistic direction of Yuri Bashmet. This festival was a unique example of the affinity and interaction between the musical cultures of Russia and Italy.

The festival concerts were an enduring success, inspiring musicians and audiences to maintain the tradition of holding the festival annually for several years.

Despite the Veneto region’s great historical importance to Italy, it did not host annual music festivals until 2013. “Sulle vie del Prosecco” was and remains the largest annual Italian festival under the direction of a Russian musician. During one of the festivals, maestro Yuri Bashmet was awarded a medal on behalf of the President of the Italian Republic for the development of cultural ties between Russia and Italy.

Yuri Bashmet’s festival “Sulle vie del Prosecco” featured brilliant musicians from Russia, Italy, and other countries. The festival was supported by the Veneto region and its province of Treviso and the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation.

The festival concerts were held in Conegliano, Vittorio Veneto, Cison di Valmarino, Treviso, Follina, and Col San Martino.

The festival program included both well-known classical pieces and world premieres. The 2018 festival saw the first performance of Kuzma Bodrov’s piece “Five Reflections on the Theme of Paganini’s Caprice No. 24” that was commissioned for the festival. The premiere took place during the prestigious Vittorio Veneto Violin Competition and engaged five of its winning violinists: Marco Fornaciari, Massimo Marin, Gabriele Pieranunzi, Giulio Plotino, and Laura Bortolotto. The success of “Five Reflections” contributed to its inclusion in the repertoire of the chamber ensemble “Soloists of Moscow.”

“I believe that our province of Prosecco, home of the legendary sparkling wine, is ideally suited to host the festival,”, – Floriano Zambon, Vice-President of the Province of Treviso, said in 2016. – “We have a rich history that dates back to the Middle Ages, a responsive public, and a wonderful climate. You can’t find a better place!”