Off program
Chamber Concert
'Enigma' Ivan Mane Jarnović
Marija Bašić, violin
Ruta Bobić, violin 
Marija Lijović, violin
Ante Slišković, violin
Tomislav Špoljar, violin

I. M. Jarnović:        4 Koncertantna dueta
Duo Favorit

Concert in cooperation with Laus academy

ENIGMATIC JARNOVICH

A virtuoso with a fiddle bow and a sword

In the Republic of Ragusa, during the very beginnings of Classicism, composer and diplomat Luka Sorkočević (Dubrovnik 1734 – 1789) became more prominent. He was a spokesperson for the Republic of Ragusa in Vienna, in the court of King Joseph II. He spent time with Joseph Haydn, perhaps not only out of respect to the authority of the well-known musician but also the assumption that his mother was Croatian by descent, since Haydn used many folk songs from his place of birth in his symphonies and quartets, including the German national anthem. Another Croatian violinist and composer, Sorkočević’s contemporary, Ivan Mane Jarnović (Dubrovnik (?) 1747 – Saint Petersburg 1804) took part in the concerts that greeted Joseph Haydn into London in 1791. It is assumed that he was born in the waters surrounding Dubrovnik as his parents, who were Croatians by heritage, travelled to Italy. The genius violinist travelled throughout Europe, and his concerts in Vienna were heavily praised by Leopold Mozart for his clarity of sound and intonation, the ease with which he performed even the most technically demanding compositions and, above all, his cantilena. He composed mostly for the violin and was the first to call his concerts Romances, which was quickly adopted by his contemporaries. According to his memoirs, he had a quick temper and his life as a travelling performer was fraught with conflicts, disputes and even duels. Today we can say that he was one of the greatest violin virtuosos of the 18th century.