Bard Music Festival Explores Life and Times of Seminal Russian Romantic Rimsky-Korsakov (Aug 10-19) as Centerpiece of 2018 Bard SummerScape Festival

ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y., April 9, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- This summer, 20 years since its celebration of Tchaikovsky, the 29th annual Bard Music Festival once again trains its focus on one of Russian Romanticism's most seminal composers, with a two-week, in-depth exploration of "Rimsky-Korsakov and His World." In twelve themed concert programs, complemented by pre-concert lectures, panel discussions, and expert commentary, Bard examines Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844–1908), and sets out to solve the Rimsky-Korsakov riddle: Why does the composer remain so woefully underappreciated outside his homeland, despite the paramount part he played in defining the style we now recognize as Russian? Offering an immersion in the great musical flourishing of Tsarist Russia's final decades, Weekend One considers the matter of Inventing Russian Music: The Mighty Five (August 10–12), while Weekend Two investigates Rimsky-Korsakov and His Followers (August 17–19). Enriched by a wealth of compositions from Rimsky-Korsakov's predecessors, contemporaries, and successors, all events take place in the striking Frank Gehry-designed Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts and other venues on Bard College's glorious Hudson River campus. There, as in previous seasons, the Bard Music Festival is set not only to help provide creative inspiration for Bard SummerScape 2018, but also to prove itself once again "the summer's most stimulating music festival" (Los Angeles Times).

As the New York Times observes, since its inception nearly three decades ago, "the Bard Music Festival has managed more than its fair share of ambitious feats in its immersive annual examinations of classical music's major composers," offering a "rich web of context" for a full appreciation of their inspirations and significance. This is in large part thanks to festival co-founder and co-artistic director Leon Botstein, "one of the most remarkable figures in the worlds of arts and culture" (THIRTEEN/WNET).

Full Schedule:
For a complete schedule of SummerScape and Bard Music Festival events (subject to change), follow the links given below. Updates are posted at the festival web sites:

Bard SummerScape: fishercenter.bard.edu/summerscape

Bard Music Festival: fishercenter.bard.edu/bmf

Tickets and Subscriptions: fishercenter.bard.edu/boxoffice; or by phone at 845-758-7900. Tickets to all mainstage events start at $25.

SOURCE Bard College