Pan-National musical competition ends

Tirana Times
By Tirana Times December 21, 2018 10:30

Pan-National musical competition ends

Story Highlights

  • The Pan-National Competition for Musical Composition for the genres of opera, ballet, and musical about the figure of Skanderbeg concluded with a participation of three composers, proving the worrying situation in the operatic scene in Albania.

Related Articles

On Apr. 2018 the Ministry of Culture opened the Pan-National Competition for Musical Composition for the genres of opera, ballet, and musical. The theme was concerning the figure of Skanderbeg, since 2018 was declared the year of Skanderbeg as it coincided with his 550th anniversary of death.

The application deadline was by Oct. 10, however the Ministry postponed this date a few times so more composers and works could participate in the competition. Yet, the contest was left with the initial three competitors, Vasil Tole with his opera ‘’Skanderbeg: Suzerain of Arberia’’ from Fan Noli’s book, Fatos Qerimaj with his ballet ‘’Skanderbegian Eho’’ adapted from Petrit Ruka’s book, and Jetmir Zaganjoni with ‘’Balkan Express Ballet’’ based on Stefan Capaliku’s libretto.

The lack of participation shows two sides of the story. One of them obviously is that there is a lack of genuine Albanian composers in the operatic scene. Tole said that there are only a few composers, while Qerimaj said there are fewer certified, institutional pieces. This can come due to the time consuming process and lack of funding from the corresponding institutions.

The lack of competitors showed the other side of the coin, which implies that this sort of competition is time consuming, requires commitment and professionalism. But it was also noticed a lack of motivating politics and support from the corresponding institutions and the state. The contest itself shouldn’t stand as the only motivating activity for musical composition. So, in that sense it portrays the lack of interest from the Culture Ministry and other state institutions for this cultural aspect of Albania.

Tole won the first award for the genre of opera, Qerimaj the first place for ballet, and Zaganjori was given the Encouraging award for his ballet piece. The contemporary Albanian musical repertoire for opera and ballet is now expanded by the contribution of the aforementioned composers.

‘’In his [Skanderbeg] 550th anniversary of death, I ascertain that in our musical tradition we don’t have one piece in which honors the memory of Skanderbeg, our national hero, as it is in European traditions where such personalities are honored in great musical pieces dedicated just for them,’’ said Tole regarding the event and its theme.

The awarding process happened on Dec. 14, when the pieces were partially performed for the jury and public. The full performances will take place on years 2019 and 2020. The jury was formed by Thomas Simaku, Nicole LeFanu dhe Pedro Amaral.

Tirana Times
By Tirana Times December 21, 2018 10:30