Colours of Ostrava is an international, multi-genre music festival organised annually in Ostrava since 2002. In 2012, the festival was moved to the entrancing surroundings of Dolní Vítkovice – an area that used to belong to metallurgical works, mines and ironworks. We are a free and independent festival for free and independent artists and festivalgoers. We don’t subscribe to any genre and are only open to showcasing sensitive, dynamic as well as uplifting projects with a similar philosophy to our own.
Fryderyk Chopin's company in the Czech Republic is one of the oldest music companies in the world - it was founded on June 10, 1959 at the initiative of several people who did not even know about themselves at first. However, they dealt with the Chopin theme and especially Chopin's stay in our territory, especially in Prague, Karlovy Vary and Mariánské Lázně.
The efforts of these researchers came together to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the birth of Fryderyk Chopin, which fell in 1960 and was commemorated by the whole world under the auspices of UNESCO. The deepest expression of respect for the Polish composer and a living reminder of his stay in Mariánské Lázně is his music. The idea of presenting the Company with a music festival was born. It sounds every year in the second half of August. From the beginning it was the "Festive Chopin Days", since 1969 it has been a well-known name Chopin Festival. Chopin International Festival is the third oldest music festival in our country.
After 1990, the Fryderyk Chopin Society in Mariánské Lázně became a member of the International Federation of Chopin Societies (IFCS). The federation, based in Vienna, has been registered as a musical, world community under the auspices of UNESCO. Thanks to its membership in the International Federation of Chopin Societies (IFCS), the company is listed as the only Czech music company on this list.
Since 1992, the famous piano star - professor Ivan Klánský - has been winning the festival with an artistic feeling. Pianist MgA. Martin Kasík, vice-chairman of the Society and artistic director of the festival, has been preparing the festival's dramaturgy since 2004. In addition to increasing the artistic and social prestige of the Chopin Festival in Mariánské Lázně, the company's priority is also extraordinary support and care for young talents in piano art.
In 2009, the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Poland presented the "Gloria Artis" award to the 50th anniversary of the Fryderyk Chopin Society. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland awarded prof. Ivan Klánský in 2014 on the occasion of the 55th anniversary of the F. Chopin Company, an honorary Bene Merito badge for merits in promoting Polish culture. In 2017, prof. Ivan Klánský is the prestigious Antonín Dvořák Award, which is awarded annually by the Academy of Classical Music to personalities who, with their life's work or extraordinary artistic achievement, have significantly contributed to the promotion and popularization of Czech classical music at home and abroad. Prof. On May 1, 2018, Ivan Klánský received a Garnet Star awarded by the Bohemian Heritage Fund (BHF) at his concert in Prague's Rudolfinum. "I was extremely pleased with the news of my Grenade Star award in the year of my life anniversary. I consider it a great honor to be in the company of two such great personalities of our musical life who received this award before me - professors Zuzana Růžičková and Mrs. Soňa Červená. I really appreciate this important award ", said prof. Ivan Klánský.
The company cooperates intensively on the preparations for the festival and other events with the Polish Institute and the City of Mariánské Lázně, which is already the traditional co-organizer of the Chopin Festival.
Angličtina
Festival Klášterní hudební slavnosti je mezinárodní hudební festival s tradicí, který svou vysokou dramaturgickou a uměleckou úrovní zaujímá místo jednoho z nejvýznamnějších a nejzajímavějších hudebních festivalů současnosti, na Moravě se již tímto superlativem může v daném období pochlubit beze zbytku. Jak již z názvu vyplývá, koncertuje festival především v sakrálních skladbách nebo v prostředí, která jsou s církevními institucemi historicky nějakým způsobem spojena (kostely, bývalý nebo i současný majetek církví apod.), ale nevyhýbáme se i občasnému vybočení, ať už z důvodu kapacity, organizace nebo podmínek.
O věhlasu akce, ale také o zájmu posluchačů svědčí i fakt, že se návštěvnická úroveň rok co rok zvyšuje. Festival je nejenom pevnou součástí kulturního života Olomouckého kraje (kde se koná naprostá většina koncertů) s přesahem do krajů Moravskoslezského a Pardubického, ale stává se důležitým hybatelem festivalové turistiky. Za koncerty posluchači cestují z různých koutů a podporují tím také turistický průmysl. Návštěvníkům koncertů nabízí koncerty českých i zahraničních umělců mimořádné umělecké úrovně. Za dobu své existence navštívilo koncerty přes 33 tisíc posluchačů, kteří se mohou těšit na dramaturgicky pestrou a vyváženou skladbu koncertů, ať již formou komorních recitálů či koncertů komorních i větších těles nebo pěveckých sborů. Na festivalu se představují zásadní díla symfonické, operní, oratorní ale i komorní hudby.
The Klášterní hudební slavnosti festival is an international music festival with a tradition, which with its high dramaturgical and artistic level occupies the place of one of the most important and interesting music festivals of today, in Moravia it can already boast of this superlative in the given period. As the name implies, the festival performs mainly in sacred compositions or in environments that are historically connected with church institutions in some way (churches, former or current property of churches, etc.), but we do not avoid occasional deviations, either because of capacity , organization or conditions.
The fame of the event, but also the interest of the audience is evidenced by the fact that the visitor level is increasing year by year. The festival is not only an integral part of the cultural life of the Olomouc region (where the vast majority of concerts take place) with an overlap to the Moravian-Silesian and Pardubice regions, but it is also becoming an important driver of festival tourism. During the concerts, the listeners travel from different corners and thus also support the tourism industry. It offers concertgoers concerts of Czech and foreign artists of extraordinary artistic level. During its existence, over 33,000 listeners have attended concerts, who can look forward to a dramaturgically varied and balanced composition of concerts, whether in the form of chamber recitals or concerts of chamber and larger ensembles or choirs. The festival presents major works of symphonic, opera, oratorio and chamber music.
The St. Wenceslas Music Festival (SHF) is the largest international festival of sacred and so-called early music in the Czech Republic. Since its inception in 2004, SHF has been held annually not only in Ostrava, but also in many churches throughout the Moravian-Silesian Region during the month of September (the first 10 years took place between two public holidays, September 28 - October 28). Traditionally, more than thirty concerts are celebrated by the feast of St. Wenceslas, representing the symbol of Czech statehood.
The main goal of SHF is the presentation of the so-called informed interpretation of early and sacred music in sacred spaces, in an effort to restore this music to its original meaning. High quality festival dramaturgy of the director of SHF doc. Mgr. Igor Františák, Ph.D. is guided by three main lines: monumental vocal-instrumental concerts, programs focused on the so-called authentic interpretation of early music and chamber and solo projects, which are annually supplemented by non-traditional and crossover projects. SHF systematically supports the talents of the young generation, presents the winners of prestigious competitions, modern premieres and unique projects (crossover projects, ballet, video art or film in the church). He also patriotistly takes care of the genius loci by presenting concerts by Moravian-Silesian natives of European artistic parameters and works by forgotten composers who have lived and created in the region since the Baroque period. The prestigious SHF residential ensembles are Collegium 1704, Collegium Marianum, Czech Philharmonic Choir Brno.
