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International Chamber Music Festival
Classiche Forme, International Chamber Music Festival founded and directed by Beatrice Rana and produced by Associazione Musicale Opera Prima, reached its 7th edition.
Classiche Forme stood out since its first edition as such a prestigious event that it received the Medal from the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella, testifying the high value of Festival for the musical culture of the region and for the promotion and nurture of young talents. It also received the prestigious EFFE Label, Europe’s quality stamp for remarkable arts festivals, from the European Festivals Association, supported by the European Commission and Parliament.
The characteristic of Classiche Forme is exactly the presence of young artists in residence in Lecce. Prize-winners in remarkable international competitions, with a career that brought them to perform as soloists in the most important venues and the most significant concert series, among the artists of the past editions there are such important names as Renaud Capuçon, Alessandro Carbonare, Silvia Careddu, Enrico Fagone, Pablo Ferrández, Sara Ferrández, Benedetto Lupo, Solenne Païdassi, Daniel Palmizio, Liya Petrova, Vittorio Prato, Aylen Pritchin, Ludovica Rana, Anne-Luisa Kramb, Ella Van Pouck, Eivind Holtsmark Ringstad, Simone Rubino, Gabriella Sborgi, Giovanni Sollima, Massimo Spada, Elena Urioste, Grégoire Vecchioni, Quartetto Modigliani, Georgy Kovalev.
Classiche Forme wants to be the occasion to listen to the big names of the international music scenario alongside young talents who represent its future.
“I have always imagined Classiche Forme as a residency for musicians, where a group of friends, whom I share the stage with during my concerts around the world, can meet and live the same atmosphere, in a place outside of time, as a historical farm in Salento can be. My musical activity leads me to meet different people who are in this environment, establishing good friendships: combining them in original ways can create something which arises curiosity more than traditional concert series. This is the true ambition of ClassicheFORME, and if we look at the outcome of the past editions, we are probably on the right path” – says Beatrice.
Classiche Forme, with its underpinning idea of cultural promotion, pays great attention to contemporary music, commissioning specific works for the themes of the Festival: composer Francesco Antonioni was invited in 2017, Marcello Panni in 2018, Silvia Colasanti in 2019, Giovanni Sollima in 2020, Carlo Boccadoro in 2021, Fabio Massimo Capogrosso in 2022 and Domenico Turi in 2023.
All the concerts are recorded and broadcasted on RadioRAI3.
The Festival is a fascinating itinerary which combines the beauty of great music with the historical charm and marvel of ancient and noble residencies, such as Palazzo Bacile di Castiglione in Spongano, location of the first two editions, the Chiostro dell’Antico Seminario in Lecce, location of the third edition, the Abbey of Santa Maria in Cerrate in 2020 and the Chiostro del Rettorato in Lecce for the last three editions.
