The third concert in the Teatro Principal de Palma cycle of the Orquesta Sinfónica Illes Balears, on 31st March 2022, at 8 p.m., will be in aid of the Red Cross to help Ukrainian refugees in Spain and assist them. “Total solidarity is needed with all the people who have been forced to flee their homes as a result of the war in Ukraine,” said Pere Malondra, the Symphony’s managing director.

The Spanish Red Cross has launched an appeal to support the actions of the International Red Cross Movement in the region, as well as assistance to people of Ukrainian origin in vulnerable situations in Spain. In order to channel donations from people who wish to collaborate, they can do so through the current account ES57 0049 5755 402716320548 or Bizum: 03680.

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It should be remembered that the orchestra already performed the Ukrainian anthem at the concert on the 10th of March in the Auditorium of Palma, as a symbol of peace and to show its support for the victims of the war and condemn the Russian invasion.

The audience will witness the premiere of Simplicity by the Mallorcan composer Joan Valent. A sonic journey constructed with simple fractal progressions that, by superimposing layers of sound, immerses us in a very broad and explosive sound universe. It is a work that is at the same time reflective, that is to say, well in the centre of oneself and one’s emotions. The performance is part of “Illes sonores”, a joint programme between the Illes Balears Symphony Orchestra Foundation and the Directorate General of Culture with the aim of making the heritage of the Balearic Islands sound and giving a voice to new creation. It also highlights the work of composers and performers from the Balearic Islands with major repertoires.

Joan Valent, a Mallorcan composer, trained musically, studying cello, piano, analysis, composition and conducting in Palma de Mallorca, Barcelona and Los Angeles. In 1987 he premiered his first work Mort a la paraula for piano, violin, clarinet and mezzo-soprano. In Barcelona he furthered his studies with composers Carles Guinovart, Joan Guinjoan and David Padrós. He attended classes in composition, musical analysis, orchestration and instrumentation, as well as cello, piano and conducting. Later, he moved to Los Angeles (California), where he took courses in classical composition, film scoring and conducting at the University of Los Angeles (UCLA), under the tutelage of the composer Aurelio de la Vega, professor of composition at Nordrighe University (CSUN). In 1993 he began to premiere his works around the world and to collaborate as an arranger and symphonic composer with artists from other musical genres.

The young pianist Alexandra Dovgan, only fifteen years old, will be tonight’s soloist performing Frédéric Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2 op. 21 in F minor. A work of great beauty, melodic with more dramatic overtones than Piano Concerto No. 1.

Alexandra Dovgan was born in 2007 and began her piano studies at the age of four and a half. At the age of five, her talent emerged when she passed the extremely competitive entrance examinations to the Central Music School of the Moscow State Conservatory.

She has been a prize-winner at five international competitions, including the Vladimir Krainev International Piano Competition, the Astana International Competition and the International Television Competition “The Nutcracker”. In May 2018, when she was not yet eleven years old, Alexandra gained worldwide fame by winning the Grand Prix at the Second Moscow International Piano Competition.

Despite her age, Alexandra has already made her debut in some of the world’s most prestigious concert halls: the Philharmonie in Berlin and the Great Hall of the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, as part of Marco Riaskoff’s Meesterpianisten Series. In July 2019, the young pianist impressed critics and audiences alike with a highly acclaimed recital at the Salzburg Festival, culminating the year with a triumphant recital at the Théâtre des Champs Élysées in Paris.

The programme, conducted by the OSIB’s chief conductor Pablo Mielgo, will be completed with one of the most original symphonies of the 19th century, Aleksandr Borodin’s ‘Symphony No. 2, in B minor. The composer himself considered this symphony to be a portrait of his old Russia.

Tickets are already on sale and can be purchased on the Symphony’s website or at Palma’s Teatro Principal.