L' homme qui faisait des étoiles avec de la boue. (Julos Beaucarne about Max van der Linden)
Eight years ago, Irina Lankova, who is not only a kindred spirit but also, through her husband, Max van der Linden's grand-niece, launched her own festival. MAX is the musical and younger wing of Les Fêtes de la Saint-Martin, an annual art circuit in November that focuses on visual arts and, to a lesser extent, theater and music. Just like the art circuit and very much in the tradition and spirit of bridge-building Max van der Linden, Irina Lankova wants to share things she cares deeply about with others through this festival. She not only brings quality music from concert halls to the village, she wants to bring people into contact with each other."I am a moment that illuminates eternity"
Inspired by the artists she attracts, artistic director Lankova compiles a diverse concert program ranging from Gregorian chant to polyphony to chamber music for the connoisseur and the budding music lover alike. The red thread running through the 2023 edition is the annual theme INFINITY, entirely drawn from the mystical, messianic composer Alexander Scriabin (1871-1915), whose work Irina Lankova will perform on Saturday, September 16 during her piano recital.
Infinity refers both to eternity and to the greater whole, the All, of which everyone and everything is a part. The well-known Alexander Scriabin quote "I am a moment that illuminates eternity" touches, according to her, on the essence of music and the role of the artist. "On stage, I feel connected to the source of music while sharing it with the audience." Just as Max van der Linden managed to create heavenly works from clay, so Irina Lankova tries to bring the best musicians to the fertile ground around Tourinnes-la-Grosse. The project almost grows by itself.
Infinity program
Most concerts of the Max Festival, five in four days, take place in the Romanesque Sint-Maartenskerk of Tourinnes-la-Grosse, which offers excellent acoustics. The festival opens with timeless chamber music by Franz Schubert, Samuel Barber and Arvo Pärt, and yes, the hypnotic 'Spiegel im Spiegel' will be included. There is sacred music for Good Friday with Julie Gebhart, soprano Naomi Couquet, mezzo-soprano and the Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie conducted by Giancarlo De Lorenzo performing G.P. Pergolesi's Stabat Mater, supplemented with music by Francesco Durante and J.S. Bach.
In the only solo program of pianist Irina Lankova, she performs Alexander Scriabin, Frédéric Chopin and Sergej Rachmaninov, accompanying all pieces with personal commentary and giving listeners a key to how to listen.
Between light and dark, at 6 a.m., when the cosmos is a little purer, Cappella Pratensis searches for the eternal in music from the daily schedule of monastic life, from prime to compline. 'Aeterna Semper Quaerens' is a concert for early risers, for whom chaises longues will be brought into the church so they can lie back and listen. After the concert, a hearty breakfast awaits, as 'conviviality' seems to be part of the DNA of this festival du terroir.
Performers: Irina Lankova, Daniel Kogan, Elina Buksha, David Cohen, Joë Christophe, Léa Hennino, Julie Gebhart, Naomi Couquet, Ivan Paduart, Cappella Pratensis and the Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie.
Practical Information
Program
Festival pass €100 for the entire festival
Admission: €30, advance purchase: €25, under 26 advance purchase: €10
Max van der Linden (°1922 Nodebais – 1999) was a ceramicist, writer, cellist, music lover, collector, director, photographer, … a charismatic figure and bridge-builder who constantly brought people closer together. His entire life was devoted to art and his studio was a stopping point for many wanderers, seekers, including many young people. In 1965 he began, together with friends from the village, including singer and writer Julos Beaucarne, the Fêtes de la Saint Martin. Every year in November, the art trail attracts visitors to the private residences and churches of Tourinnes-la-Grosse, Nodebais, Beauvechain, Nethen…
Irina Lankova (°1977 Michurinsk, Russia) was six years old when she was moved to tears by Rachmaninov's Elegy, studied piano at the Gnessine School in Moscow. At 18, she came to Brussels to perfect her craft with Evgeny Mogilevsky (winner KEW 1964). She then lived and worked in London and Paris; since 2016 she has lived in Nodebais (Walloon Brabant) with her husband, who is a cousin of Max van der Linden and plays jazz music in his spare time. She speaks perfect English and French, calls herself not 'Russian' but 'Belgian-international'. Although she has a well-filled concert schedule (Carnegie Hall in New York, Salle Gaveau in Paris, Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, …), this international pianist is remarkably/strangely virtually unknown in Flanders.
"Her touch is genuinely poetic, and she works on a large tonal canvas, conjuring moods and atmospheres with compelling authority"The Independent, UK
photo of Irina Lankova @ Ger Spendel
photos of Nodebais and Tourinnes-la-Grosse:© Ernst Gülcher