Each summer, the Orchestra of Monte-Carlo puts on six performances in the courtyard of the Prince’s Palace, blending warm evenings and a regal setting with excellent music to make for unforgettable experiences.
The annual concert series put on by the Philharmonic Orchestra of Monte-Carlo in the courtyard of the Prince’s Palace is special for many reasons.
They celebrate a tradition that has been in effect since 1959 and are held in a place rarely open to the public. The courtyard enjoys incredible acoustics due to its shape, making the event not only pleasurable from a location standpoint, but from an auditory one as well, and the open-air setting takes full advantage of the balmy Monaco summer evenings, creating evenings of magic for all who are lucky enough to attend.
The summer concerts were brought to modern Monaco by Prince Rainier III in 1959, who was a great lover and patron of the arts. He had the courtyard completely renovated and restored to welcome his guests and put the palace completely in charge of running the event. This has continued to this day, and every year, people look forward to this wonderful series of nights.
The first concert will be held on 15th July for an evening of works by Claude Debussy and Hector Berlioz conducted by Velery Gergiev.
This is followed on the 18th with a night of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart performed by the Choeur de L’Orcherstre de Paris accompanied by Soprano Chen Reiss, Mezzo-Soprano Marianna Pizzolato, Tenor Paolo Fanale, and BassNahuel Di Pierro under the conducting skills of Václav Luks.
Piano lovers will have a treat on 22nd July when Katia and Marielle Labèque perform pieces by Francis Poulenc and Bedrich Smetana, conducted by Tomáš Netopil.
Conductor Thomas Hengelbrock will lead the soloists of the OPMC featuring music by Mozart and Félix Mendelssohn. The players on this evening will be Matthieu Petitjean on oboe, Marie-B. Barrière Bilote on clarinet, Franck Lavogez on bassoon and Andrea Cesari on the horn.
August opens on the 1st with a concert led by Kazuki Yamada with violinist Sergey Khachatryan playing works by Toru Takemitsu, Jean Sibelius and Franz Schubert.
The final concert of the series will be held on 5th August with pianist Alexandre Kantorow being conducted by Kazuki Yamada. Pieces by Camille Saint-Saëns and Georges Bizet are on the bill.
All concerts begin at 9:30pm and end promptly at midnight, with doors opening at 8:45pm. Jacket and tie are required for gentlemen and appropriate comparable attire for ladies.
In the case of bad weather, the concert will be cancelled, and tickets refunded. Additionally, social distancing and other health protocols will be in effect.
Tickets can be purchased from the opmc.mc website.
Photo by G. Luci, Prince’s Palace