There is much to say in favour of festivals. They frequently act as the great equaliser, as people from all walks of life congregate to celebrate the history, traditions and culture of a place. Not infrequently, I plan a journey to a distant land around a festival time, if only to be transported off the straight-and-narrow, into a world that deviates from the routine of the everyday and invites new ways of being. The talent and passion on display at the festivals listed here, is a reminder that an enthusiastic youthful spirit can be awakened in us all.
Bayreuth, Germany, Musical Chairs— July 24 to August 28
Each year, the Richard Wagner Opera Festival unfolds in Bayreuth. This hugely popular event, a dominant feature of Bayreuth’s cultural calendar, has been a summer fixture for over 140 years. Regarded by music aficionados the world over as the pinnacle Wagner event, an intense rush for tickets is a given. If you do manage to secure one of the highly coveted tickets, the soundtrack that accompanies your stay in Bayreuth, will be a sequence of masterpieces by the 19th century composer.
The canon of Wagner’s works that make up the repertoire include, Der Fliegende Hollander, Der Ring des Nibelungen, and Parsifal. The main venue for the event is the Festspielhaus. This substantial edifice constructed in 1872 with the backing of King Ludwig, to accommodate Wagner’s enormous theatrical sets, is still one of the largest opera houses in the world. Crafted with simplicity, stark interiors and pared to the essentials, it is driven by one of a kind acoustics and a complete focus on the work of the composer. A quarter-of-anhour before the start of the programme, regardless of the weather, intermission musicians step onto the balcony of the Festspielhaus and produce a fanfare composed especially for the occasion, a tradition practiced since 1876.
Denne historien er fra June 17, 2024-utgaven av India Today.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra June 17, 2024-utgaven av India Today.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Sporting Q+A Fella
IN NETFLIX’S VIJAY 69, ANUPAM KHER PLAYS A 69-YEAR-OLD WHO DECIDES TO COMPETE IN A TRIATHLON. THE ACTOR TALKS ABOUT WHY HE CONTINUES TO CHALLENGE HIMSELF
Museum Under the Sky
Photographer Ahtushi Deshpande's passion project, Speaking Stones documents the threatened rock art of Ladakh
Reclaiming Our Archives
Sumana Roy contests the negative connotations regarding provincials in this thought-provoking book
TRAVEL AND ITS DISCONTENTS
Shahnaz Habib's Airplane Mode is asensitive dive into the complex and contentious activity that modern-day travel has devolved into
CELEBRATING WORDS
The sixth edition of the Dehradun Literature Festival promises a convergence of literature, cinema and societal issues
MORE THAN A FILM FESTIVAL
The 13th edition of the Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF) is being held November 7-10 at McLeod Ganj in Dharamshala.
HOLDING THE FORT
PANORAMA EDITIONS, AN INTERNATIONAL ART SALON CURATED BY ARTIST SARAH SINGH, RETURNS WITH A UNIQUE THEATRICAL STAGING AND EXHIBITION IN GWALIOR
A HOMECOMING OF SORTS
Indian contemporary artist Subodh Gupta’s exhibition The Way Home pays homage to Bihar, where his roots lie
Art and the City
Mumbai's leading art fair, Art Mumbai, returns to the iconic Mahalaxmi Racecourse, promising a \"bigger, brighter, and more inventive\" experience for art enthusiasts with a thoughtfully curated display of modern and contemporary art from India, South Asia and beyond.
PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST AS AN OLD MAN
At 99 and still painting, Krishen Khanna is one of our most venerable artists ever