Hong Kong City Hall, Central | PREMIERE PERFORMANCES - Sean Shibe and Ema Nikolovska: Orlando Variations

Description

“The experience felt like being awake in a vivid dream… their shared artistic purpose and daring made it gel…along with the melding of Sean Shibe’s endlessly nuanced playing and the expressive beauty of Nikolovska’s voice.”—The Times, London

Orlando Variations: an innovative exploration of the Orlando myth

Scottish guitarist Sean Shibe returns to Premiere Performances following his triumphant 2024 Hong Kong debut. Joined this time by mezzo-soprano Ema Nikolovska in her Hong Kong debut, these two imaginative and daringly original artists bring their genre-defying programme, Orlando Variations, to Hong Kong audiences. Both former BBC New Generation Artists and Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award winners, Shibe and Nikolovska are celebrated for their fearless artistry and virtuosity. Having received critical acclaim at major concert venues including Wigmore Hall and Pierre Boulez Saal, Orlando Variations arrives in Hong Kong before continuing its global tour across North America and Europe, including stops at New York’s 92NY, the Vancouver Recital Society and Elbphilharmonie Hamburg.

The programme traces the legendary troubadour Orlando’s journey across centuries and continents, mixing passages from Virginia Woolf’s fantastical novel with music spanning the centuries, from Renaissance composer John Dowland to romantic composers Jules Massenet and Franz Schubert to contemporary composers including Bob Dylan, Laurie Anderson and Thomas Adès. This immersive and imaginative programme blends historical storytelling with modern musical innovation, using acoustic and electric soundscapes to explore themes from courtly love to identity. Bold and boundary-pushing, this is an exciting and original musical experience that you won’t want to miss.