Two major Slovak anniversaries and a celebration of musical diversity
All this and more in the program of the 21st Viva Musica! festival.

Bratislava, May 5, 2025

Slovak violin virtuoso Dalibor Karvay will celebrate his 40th birthday at the Viva Musica! festival, and the legendary Moyzes Quartet will also mark an important anniversary. The festival’s closing concert will feature passionate Italian music performed by world-renowned mandolinist Avi Avital and his ensemble, Between Worlds Ensemble.

Virtuoso mandolinist Avi Avital will arrive in Bratislava with his Between Worlds Ensemble, which he founded in 2023 to explore and discover connections between classical, folk, and traditional music from different regions of the world. One of their first projects is the program Italy, dedicated to Italian music. “I’m thrilled to return to Bratislava and perform for an audience that holds a special place in my heart — this time with the most ambitious project I’ve created to date. Between Worlds brings together a rich mixture of musical languages and traditions, woven with emotion and energy — a truly electrifying experience,” said Avi Avital. The exclusive guest of the concert will be the outstanding Italian world music singer, Alessia Tondo. “I’m so proud of this opportunity to share this prestigious stage with a very special ensemble directed by amazing Maestro Avi Avital. I will try to bring with me all the warmth belonging to the popular music of my land in south of Italy, in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea. It will be a very special concert full of energy,” Alessia added.

The rich program will include traditional songs, passionate tarantellas, energetic Salento dances, as well as famous classical works inspired by traditional Italian melodies and rhythms. Alongside traditional music from the Apulia region, the concert will feature music by Neapolitan Baroque composer Emanuele Barbella, selections from Italian Suite by Igor Stravinsky, and music from Viaggio in Italia, a suite by contemporary Italian composer Giovanni Sollima. The result will be a celebration of musical diversity: a meeting of old and new, classical and traditional, local and universal. In addition to enjoying the beauty of music, audiences will be invited to explore hidden corners, uncover subtle connections, and reimagine our shared sense of home in the world. The closing concert of the 21st Viva Musica! festival will take place on August 8, 2025, at 8:00 PM at Slovak Radio.

Dalibor Karvay in an unusual role as conductor

Thanks to his exceptional virtuosity, absolute precision, and musical maturity, Dalibor Karvay ranks among the most prominent and internationally successful Slovak artists of his generation. He will celebrate his 40th birthday this summer, and Viva Musica! will be part of it. For this special concert, he will be joined by two friends – Dutch cellist Harriet Krijgh and Austrian pianist Markus Schirmer – performing with the Viva Musica! Orchestra. Together they will present Beethoven’s Triple Concerto for Piano, Violin and Cello in C major, Op. 56. The second half of the evening will feature Beethoven’s Symphony No. 4 in B-flat major, performed under the artistic direction and musical leadership of Dalibor Karvay.

“This concert is special for me – not only because I’ll be celebrating my 40th birthday this summer, but especially because I’ll be performing with two outstanding musicians and dear friends – Harriet and Markus, whom I deeply respect. We will perform Beethoven’s Triple Concerto and Fourth Symphony with the Viva Musica! Orchestra without a conductor, which I see as a beautiful challenge and a celebration of musical understanding and mutual trust,” said Dalibor Karvay, who performs on an Antonio Stradivari violin, Cremona 1694, “ex Benecke.” The concert will take place on July 25, 2025, at 8:00 PM at Slovak Radio and will offer not only a virtuosic interpretation of one of the greatest classical composers, Ludwig van Beethoven, but also a personal statement about friendship and the joy of music.

What’s fifty years?

This year, not only Dalibor Karvay celebrates a special anniversary – so does the Moyzes Quartet. Fifty years on stage is not only a confirmation of the unique artistic journey of this important ensemble but also an opportunity to reflect on its rich history and remember its impact on musical life, which it has helped shape over decades. Few ensembles in our country boast such a long tradition. The quartet was founded in 1975 during the studies of its founding members at the Bratislava Conservatory and adopted the name of the prominent Slovak composer Alexander Moyzes in 1981. At the Viva Musica! festival, the quartet will present a program featuring works by three composers – Joseph Haydn, the innovator widely regarded as the father of the string quartet form; Ladislav Kupkovič, who had a long-standing friendship and collaboration with the quartet; and Alexander Moyzes, after whom the ensemble is named.

“We are pleased to celebrate our anniversary also at the exceptional Viva Musica! festival. To open the concert, we will perform the well-known ‘Bird’ Quartet by Joseph Haydn, which will soon be released on our new album. Ladislav Kupkovič studied violin in Bratislava, just like most of us, in the class of the prominent Slovak pedagogue Albín Vrteľ, at whose initiative our quartet was founded. Ladislav was our friend, and we are happy to remember him with the piece Initials. The music of Alexander Moyzes is undoubtedly one of the fundamental pillars of our ensemble's repertoire. His magnificent composition of twelve pieces on folk tunes, The Four Fiddlers, will surely enhance a beautiful summer evening. We are very much looking forward to seeing you!" said the members of the Moyzes Quartet. The concert will take place on July 5, 2025, at 8:00 PM in the beautiful garden of the Albrecht House on Kapitulská Street. 

The programming of this year’s Viva Musica! festival once again offers a diverse lineup featuring top-tier artists, including exclusive premieres, garden and park concerts, the #NextGeneration series, and international week-long summer masterclasses in Pezinok.