For this year’s festival we have – long before the absurd and brutal war in Ukraine had started – chosen the theme: ‘Our Neighbours and Us’. We believe that lively cultural bonds and exchange are enriching us, promote understanding, they are a necessity. Closer contacts with our neighbours also make us understand our own identity better. The recent political developments and war events shed a challenging light on this: What does neighbourhood in our world mean? The overwhelming willingness to help our Ukranian neighbours gives a convincing answer to this question!

We invited the "Virtuosi of Lviv" Academic Chamber Orchestra to participate in the first concert of the Leo Festival, devoted to Ukrainian musicians and the music of this nation. We had planned to perform the Serenade for double string orchestra op. 10 by Gottfried von Einem. Unfortunately, due to the barbaric attack by Russian troops on Ukraine, the participation of the Lviv team ensemble out to be impossible - the men cannot leave the territory of the country. However, we managed to organize the arrival of the female representation of the Lviv National Symphony Orchestra, which we are very happy about. We hope that nothing will stand in the way of the artists, and they will be able to perform with us.

In the second programme, we focus on our western neighbors and will present the energetic Concertino for piano trio and strings by Bohuslav Martinů and the charming Suite op. 3 by Leoš Janaček. The line-up includes an interesting instrument that marks the beginning of electronic music and is not often heard at concerts: Carolina Eyck will play music for theremin and instrumental ensemble. Theremin was invented only 100 years ago by Lev Sergeyevich Termen, later known as Leon Teremin.
By the way, the soloist Carolina Eyck belongs to the Sorbian ethnic group, also our neighbours, who live in Lower Lusatia, northwest of Poland.

In the third programme we present key works of Polish string music of the last 100 years. Looking into the biographies of these Polish composers, we again see how close the bonds between neighbouring countries are.

We are very grateful to all who have helped to make the LEO Festival possible in these tough times! And we trust that the spiritual power of music will help to persevere.

NFM Orchestra Leopoldinum & Ernst Kovacic