The Palau de les Arts is organizing various educational activities around Rossini's L’italiana in Algeri.
04.03.2014
Joan Font, from Comediants, analyzes the particularities of this production with stage direction students
Primary school students discover through the VestuArts workshop the process of making the costumes created by Joan Guillén for this production
Valencia. The Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía has planned, on the occasion of the performances of L'italiana in Algeri , by Rossini, an intense educational activity around the various artistic disciplines that make up an operatic production.
The various activities are part of the Educational Program of the Valencian arts center, which allows students to complement classroom learning with the experience of renowned professionals who work at the Palau de les Arts.
Ottavio Dantone, musical director of Gioachino Rossini's dramma giocoso , held the first of two master classes with orchestral conducting students on February 13.
Trained as an organist and harpsichordist at the Verdi Conservatory in Milan and winner of the international harpsichord competitions in Paris (1985) and Bruges (1986), Ottavio Dantone began a successful concert career at a young age, focusing on early music. Since 1996, he has led the Accademia Bizantina orchestra in Ravenna and regularly collaborates with other ensembles such as the Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana.
The Italian maestro, in addition to addressing orchestral conducting techniques with the attendees, worked with them on the score of L'italiana in Algeri as well as the particularities of the composer's style and his historical moment.
The conductor will repeat the experience on March 4th for a concert with the Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana, featuring Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 and Harpsichord Concerto No. 1 , and Mozart's " Prague" Symphony . Dantone will discuss the specific characteristics of these works with students from the Conservatorio Superior de Valencia, among other topics, in this masterclass.
The staging of an opera is another of the disciplines addressed by the Didactic Project of the Palau de les Arts, on this occasion with Joan Font, director and founder of the Comediants theater group and author of the staging of L'italiana in Algeri .
The mastermind behind the ceremonies and parades of Expo '92 in Seville and the closing ceremony of the Barcelona Olympic Games, as well as numerous operatic productions around the world, the Catalan stage director starred in a colloquium with students of this subject on February 17.
After the master class, the students attended one of the joint rehearsals of this work in the Main Hall of the Valencian arts center to learn about Joan Font's work 'in situ'.
VestuArts
The Palau de les Arts has programmed a new educational workshop, VestuArts, for this opera, aimed at second cycle primary school students in the areas of music education and art education.
The main objectives of this activity are to familiarize students with the costume department's work area and the costume-making process. This time, the students are working with the colorful and vibrant costumes from L'italiana in Algeri , a play by Joan Guillén, produced by Comediants.
In total, the Valencian cultural enclave will host eleven sessions of this activity from March 3 to 8, which will be enjoyed by more than 350 students.
Likewise, the arts center continues in the 2013-2014 Season with its 'Feel the opera' program, aimed at students of Secondary School, High School and Special Regime education centers, who have the possibility of enjoying one of the programmed opera performances.
