“Richard’s Women”

On October 24, Paliesius Manor welcomes three artists to present the concert program “Richard’s Women“.

They will perform the music of German innovators Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss, who composed during the Romantic and early Modernist periods. These well-known works, performed for the first time in Lithuania, will reveal a portrait of women through the stylistic methods of these eras. The program features opera excerpts, chamber music masterpieces, and works for violin and piano filled with virtuosity, maturity, and feminine sensitivity.

Soprano Kristina Zmailaitė earned her Master of Arts degree from the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre. Since 2000, she has been actively working as a freelance artist, singing at the Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre, Kaunas State Musical Theatre, Klaipėda State Musical Theatre, and Panevėžys Musical Theatre. She frequently participates in international music festivals in Lithuania, including the International Mykolas Oginskis Festival and the Pažaislis Music Festival. Since 2015, she has been involved in organizing the festival “Šv. Jurgio meno sezonas” in Marijampolė.

Over her 23 years in theater and music, she has participated in more than 20 opera and operetta productions, performed numerous oratorios, and prepared several successful concert programs. She has worked with J. Domarkas, G. Rinkevičius, J. Aleksa, M. Staškus, S. Domarkas, J. Geniušas, M. Barkauskas, and other Lithuanian conductors, as well as with A. Anissimov, A. D’Anto, and S. Goeckeritz. Her repertoire ranges from Baroque to modern music. The singer has presented several global premieres by Lithuanian composers.

Kristina Zmailaitė actively participates in masterclasses (with Katia Ricciarelli, Waldemar Wild, Paolo di Napoli, Michael Paul, and Elena Kerl) and has been teaching children and adults for seven years. Since 2019, she has served as a vocal teacher and chair of the methodical group at the Vilnius Karoliniškės Music School.

In recent years, pianist Milda Umbrusevičiūtė‘s solo programs have been performed at St. James’s Church, the Kristupas Festival, the Rudolf Steiner Haus hall, and the festivals “Pasaulio balsai,” “Lietuvos pianisčių pavasaris,” and “Gelgaudiškio muzikiniai penktadieniai.” The pianist has held recitals at the Kaunas State Philharmonic, Klaipėda Concert Hall, Organum Hall, the “Muzikos magijos klubas” in Vilnius, and others. Her solo concerts have been broadcast and recorded by LRT Klasika radio. She has performed in the Czech Republic, Finland, Great Britain, Italy, and Germany.

She also performs actively as a chamber ensemble member. Her recent stage partners include opera soloists Asta Krikščiūnaitė and Dovilė Kazonaitė, cellists Elena Daunytė and Gleb Pyšniak, birbynė player Vytautas Kiminius, and violinist Myroslava Kotorovych. Together, they have performed various thematic programs in different concert halls across Lithuania. The pianist expands her repertoire not only by playing in ensembles with various instruments but also by participating as an accompanist and orchestral musician in international projects: at the “Citta della Pieve” opera theater, the “PromFest” festival, “Trumpets Talents Talinn,” and “Musica in Vivo.” She was awarded a letter of appreciation by the President of the Republic of Lithuania, Valdas Adamkus, for her achievements in international competitions.

Violinist Barbora Domarkaitė graduated from the violin class of Prof. Ingrida Armonaitė at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre. Currently, B. Domarkaitė is the second concertmaster of the first violins in the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra.

The violinist has performed as a soloist with the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra and the Kaunas City Chamber Orchestra, and she actively plays in chamber ensembles of various formations. Over 25 years of her musical career, she has toured with concerts across various European and South American countries, as well as Japan.