“Kremerata Baltica” Festival at Paliesius Manor | 2025

The marvelous “Kremerata Baltica” festival returns to Paliesius Manor! Hosted at the estate for the second time on July 11–12, this year’s festival will delight with even more concerts, an even greater array of talented performers, and a wealth of masterfully performed works, resounding with jazz, contemporary classical music, and fragments from the letters of Maestro Gidon Kremer.

The festival will feature one of today’s most renowned violinists, Gidon Kremer, alongside the Grammy-winning orchestra he founded, “Kremerata Baltica”, and a roster of distinguished guest soloists. Taking the stage will be the multi-award-winning, Grammy-laureated American saxophonist Joe Lovano; one of Finland’s most fascinating and instantly recognizable musicians, pianist Olli Mustonen; the young Belgian violinist Pauline van der Rest, a first-prize laureate of numerous national and international competitions; and the Ukrainian vibraphonist Andrei Pushkarev, who holds the position of principal percussionist for “Kremerata Baltica” and is hailed as a true musical magician. Texts will be read by the well-known actor, musician, and reader Giedrius Arbačiauskas. Do not miss this spectacular event, where world-class luminaries and exquisite compositions will conjure a musical miracle at Paliesius Manor!

Gidon Kremer was born on February 27, 1947, in Riga, Latvia. At the age of four, he began his musical studies under his father and grandfather, both distinguished string players. At seven, he entered the Riga Music School, where he progressed rapidly, and by sixteen he was awarded the First Prize of the Latvian Republic. Two years later, he began his studies at the Moscow Conservatory under David Oistrakh. G. Kremer has earned numerous prestigious accolades, including prizes at the 1967 Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels and the 1969 Montreal International Music Competition, as well as first prizes at the 1969 Paganini and 1970 Tchaikovsky International Competitions.

Over the past five decades, he has forged a worldwide reputation as one of the most original and compelling performers of his generation. He has graced the stages of nearly every major concert hall as a recitalist and alongside the most celebrated orchestras of Europe and North America, collaborating with many of the most prominent conductors of the last half-century.

The violinist’s repertoire is unusually broad and diverse, spanning the Classical and Romantic periods. He also possesses a profound mastery of 20th- and 21st-century compositions, including the works of A. Berg, H. W. Henze, and K. Stockhausen. Furthermore, G. Kremer’s name is closely associated with world-renowned composers such as Alfred Schnittke, Arvo Pärt, Giya Kanchel, Sofija Gubaidulina, Valentin Silvestrov, Luigi Nonu, Edison Denisov, Aribert Reimann, Pēteris Vasks, John Adams, Victor Kissine, Michael Nyman, Philip Glass, Leonid Desyatnikov, and Astor Piazzolla. When performing their works, the violinist honors musical traditions and roots while masterfully illuminating their freshness and modernity. It is fair to say that today, no other soloist of such a high caliber champions the violin works of modern and contemporary composers quite so extensively.

G. Kremer is an exceptionally prolific performer, having released more than 120 albums. Many of these albums have been heavily decorated: honors include the “Grand prix du Disque”, “Deutscher Schallplattenpreis”, “Ernst von Siemens Musikpreis”, “Bundesverdienstkreuz”, “Premio dell ‘Accademia Musicale Chigiana”, the “Triumph” prize in 2000 (Moscow), the “Unesco” Prize in 2001, the “Saeculum Glashütte Original MusikFestspielPreis” in 2007 (Dresden), the Rolf Schock Prize in 2008 (Stockholm), the Istanbul Music Festival “Lifetime Achievement” award received in 2010, and the “Una Vita Nella Musica – Artur Rubinstein” prize in 2011 (Venice). In 2016, Gidon Kremer was awarded the “Praemium Imperiale” prize, widely considered the Nobel Prize equivalent in the music world.

Founded in 1997 by the illustrious G. Kremer, the Grammy-winning chamber orchestra “Kremerata Baltica” is regarded as one of Europe’s most prominent international ensembles.

The Maestro deliberately selected young, enthusiastic musicians for this orchestra. A defining trait of “Kremerata Baltica”’s artistic identity is its highly creative approach to programming, which rarely conforms to mainstream trends and has included world premieres of works by composers such as Arvo Pärt, Giya Kancheli, Pēteris Vasks, Leonid Desyatnikov, and Alexander Raskatov. For the celebrated violinist, who serves as both founder and artistic director, “Kremerata Baltica” is a vehicle for sharing his artistic experience with a new generation. Together, the orchestra also fosters and inspires the musical and cultural life of the Baltic states.

“Kremerata Baltica” has toured in over 50 countries, performing more than 1,000 concerts in 600 cities. The sheer breadth of the ensemble’s repertoire is reflected in its award-winning discography. An album of Mieczysław Weinberg’s works released by ECM was nominated for a 2015 Grammy Award, while their recording of Shostakovich’s piano concertos with Anna Vinnickaja won the 2016 “ECHO Klassik” award. Their recording of Weinberg’s Symphonies No. 2 and No. 21, performed alongside the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Mirga Gražinyte-Tyla, secured a 2020 “Gramophone” Award.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions in 2020, the orchestra was unable to gather, rehearse, perform, and travel the globe as usual. Yet, scattered across different countries, the orchestra’s members never lost their desire to make music and bring joy to audiences. The members of “Kremerata Baltica” residing in Lithuania began preparing programs and performing locally, while those residing in Latvia began concertizing across Latvia and Estonia. Thus, “Kremerata Lithuanica” and “Kremerata Lettonica” were born.

Joe Lovano is a saxophonist, composer, and producer who fearlessly seeks out new avenues of artistic expression. He earned a Grammy Award for his album “52nd Street Themes” and has received 14 additional nominations. Moreover, he is a multiple-time winner of both critics’ and readers’ polls in the premier jazz magazine “DownBeat”, alongside receiving “JazzTimes” and Jazz Journalists Association awards for tenor saxophonist, musician of the year, and jazz album of the year. He has released a vast array of albums—including no fewer than 25 as a primary artist under the legendary “Blue Note Records” label. He has also collaborated with countless distinguished artists, lectures at universities, and holds an honorary doctorate.

Olli Mustonen is a pianist, composer, and conductor. For him, all of these are one and the same: he is, simply, a musician. Seeing no reason to compartmentalize these roles, he has masterfully honed all three disciplines, occupying an exceptional place in the contemporary music world. Characterized by boundless energy and a deeply creative, highly reflective approach to music, Olli Mustonen is one of the rare pianists whose distinct style is instantly recognizable. Known for the vivid expressiveness and intensity of his playing, as well as a crystal-clear, almost percussive touch, his interpretations are defined by an interplay of explosive outbursts and sensitive restraint. “He is not only one of Finland’s most interesting musicians but also someone who creates a sense of surprise, intensity, and wonder that is all too rare in the music business” (daily newspaper “Süddeutsche Zeitung”).

Belgian violinist Pauline van der Rest was born in Brussels in 2004 and has been playing the violin since the age of 6. She has successfully participated in various national and international competitions and won many first prizes: for instance, in 2018 alone, she won first place at the Grumiaux Competition, the Odesa International Violin Competition, and the Classical Academy Competition in Liège, where she played with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of Liège and won the audience prize. She has performed in prestigious halls such as “Flagey” and “Bozar” in Brussels, Hamburg’s “Laeiszhalle”, and others, appearing alongside various orchestras.

Born in Kyiv, vibraphonist Andrei Pushkarev became the youngest principal timpanist of the Ukrainian Symphony Orchestra at the age of 22. In 1999, the musician joined the chamber orchestra “Kremerata Baltica” and continues to hold the status of acclaimed soloist and principal percussionist for the ensemble. With the orchestra, he tours worldwide and records with major labels—for example, he participated as a soloist on the Grammy-winning album “After Mozart”. A tremendous jazz enthusiast, he developed the “Bach Vibrations” project initiated by G. Kremer, interpreting the works of Bach in a jazz style. “Andrei Pushkarev and his vibrations are extraordinary—he is not merely a fine musician, but a true magician,” states G. Kremer.

The reader for the festival’s opening concert, “Gyvenimo fragmentai laiškuose”, Giedrius Arbačiauskas is a well-known Lithuanian actor, voice actor, musician, singer-songwriter, and master of a wide-ranging vocal register. He has starred in several films (“Kai apkabinsiu tave”, “Neskubėk gyventi”), participated in the TV projects “Žvaigždžių duetai” and “Auksinis balsas”, and makes regular appearances in concerts and theatrical performances.