Liepāja Discovers That Classical Music Is Like Beach Wind - Both Beautiful and Harsh

While cultural people in Riga are still pondering whether classical music is elitist or accessible, Liepāja has long solved this dilemma – they simply play it so loud that even the Baltic Sea wind can't outcry it. This time the Liepāja Symphony Orchestra organized a special event that proved – if a composer can't finish his work, you can always find someone who will do it for him.

Agris Engelmanis, to whom the concert was dedicated, was one of those composers who never looked for easy paths. As one concert attendee said: "He wrote music the way our beach looks in winter – beautiful, but cold even in summer, and definitely not for everyone." Engelmanis's "Requiem" remained unfinished, but this didn't scare Ēriks Ešenvalds, who decided to add his "In Paradisum" as "a little ray of light."

Andris Vecumnieks, meanwhile, created "Sinfonia G," where G is sol, sol is sun, and the sun in Liepāja appears exactly as often as needed to appreciate every sunny day. "Maximum art edge expressions motivated me," explained Vecumnieks, apparently talking about the same feeling every Liepāja resident experiences when going outside on a March morning.

The concert's result was that listeners experienced a true artistic experience – both sad and bright, just like our climate. As one concert attendee said: "Finally someone understood that Liepāja musicians can create the same contrast as our nature – one moment you're bathed in sunlight, the next you're already fighting the wind." And that's exactly what Engelmanis wanted – music that doesn't hide the truth about life by the sea.