Konvergencie 2025

The 26th edition of the international chamber music festival Convergences will take place from 13 to 28 March and will offer eight musical evenings with non-traditional solo recitals.

Avi Avital, the first mandolinist to be nominated for a Grammy Award in six years, will once again perform on the festival stage in the Moyzes Hall.

The Convergences programme will include works by Slovak composers and a number of premieres. Violinist Milan Paľa will make his debut at the festival with his own composition. Works by Petr Zagar (Three Theatrical Dances), Miloš Železňák (Trifid) and Marek Piaček (Speranza) will also be premiered by accordionist Boris Lenk, who will also premiere several of his own compositions at the recital. Guitarist Daniel Salontay will also perform an original programme.

Other guests will be Norwegian double bassist, composer and singer Steinar Raknes, Norwegian violinist, Hardanger violin and viola d’amore player Nils Økland and Estonian performer Anna-Liisa Eller, who plays the non-traditional instrument kannel. In addition to the aforementioned guests, cellist Jozef Lupták will perform works by Vladimir Godár and Johann Sebastian Bach.

The festival will culminate in a two-day performance of Sergei Prokofiev’s complete piano sonatas interpreted by the renowned Finnish pianist Olli Mustonen. The festival’s special guest will be Prokofiev’s grandson, Gabriel Prokofiev – a composer with an innovative approach to contemporary classical music who has also built a career as a producer of dance, grime, electronic and hip-hop music.

Convergences offer not only musical experiences, but also a space to reflect on the role of art in society. That is why the festival will open on 13 March with a discussion and musical evening in the Great Evangelical Church, where Prague professor, theologian and writer Tomáš Halík will meet with Slovak preacher, artist and writer Daniel Pastirčák.