Konvergencie 2026 / Vladimír GODÁR 70

Vladimír GODÁR 70
SUNDAY / 22/03/2026 / Great concert studio of Slovak Radio / 18:00


"Art is the greatest gift that a person gives to himself."
Ján ALBRECHT

Vladimir GODÁR (1956)
Sonata for cello and piano In memoriam Viktor Šklovskij (1985)
Talisman, nocturne for piano trio (1979/1983)
Déploration sur la mort de Witold Lutosławski (1994)
Ave Maria (2026, premiere)
Dormi Jesu (2008)
Sweet and Low, lullaby (2009/2017)

– break –

Bikit Gilgamesh (1999)
La canzona refrigerativa dell arpa di Davide (1999)
Emmeleia for solo violin, string orchestra, harp and rattles (1993/1996)
Lullabies (2002/2017)
Barcarola for cello, harp, 12 string instruments and harpsichord (1993)

Peter MIKULÁŠ, bass
Jozef LUPTÁK, cello
Nora SKUTA, piano
Michaela HRUBÁ, violin
Daniel RUMLER, violin
Martin RUMAN, viola
Mária KMEŤKOVÁ, harp
Eva ŠUŠKOVÁ, vocals
Martin KRAJČO, guitar
Adam ŠTEFUNKO, harpsichord
Hilaris Chamber Orchestra / Alan VIZVÁRY, art. Leader
Spevácky zbor Technik / Petra TORKOŠOVÁ, choir master
Andrew PARROTT, conductor


The international chamber music festival Konvergencie has prepared a pair of musical portraits in the spring of 2026. The first will present the chamber work of Marek Brezovský (March 8, 2026, Slovak Radio), the second will be dedicated to the jubilee of the composer, musicologist and editor Vladmír Godár. Vladimír Godár (1956) belongs to the most prominent figures of Slovak culture of the 20th century. Godár's unique compositional poetics was formed during the years he spent working on the scores of the old masters in the vicinity of the violist, musicologist and aesthetician Ján Albrecht (1919-1996). The composer himself often talks about his work as a dialogue with tradition. It also includes Béla Bartók's music and Beatles songs. However, in the context of classical music, Godár's compositions did not only dialogue with the past, but simultaneously with the creative activities of his spiritual companions Alfred Schnittke, Arvo Pärt or Gija Kančeli. The musical dialogue in his compositions thus arises at the junction of the past and the present, as a result of the knowledge that only that music has a future that also has a past. Intense experiences from Godár's music, described as suggestiveness, meditativeness or concentrated expression, are the result of a rare symbiosis of the structural, emotional and meaning levels of his works.

"Art is supposed to expand the space of human independence and freedom."
Vladimír GODÁR

Vladimír Godár, who is the author of several key works of Slovak music, is also known to the public thanks to his successful collaboration with the director Martin Šulík (Neha, Krajinka, Záhrada, Orbis pictus, Gygán, Tlmočník, Emília and others). In 2001, he received the Georges Delerue Award in Belgium for the music for the film Krajinka, also known as the Oscar for film music. Godár's music for the films Return of the Idiot (directed by Saša Gedeon) and Sunny State (directed by Martin Šulík) won the Czech Lion award. The record Mater (Pavian Records, 2006) with Iva Bittová, Marek Štryncl and Solamente naturali, which was also released by the German publishing house ECM, met with unprecedented interest abroad in the work of a contemporary Slovak composer.

"I have a very personal relationship with Vlad Godár's music, his early works, even those recently composed, still appeal to me. I respect him as a composer, but also as the author of important texts. His compositions have an irreplaceable place in my repertoire, and I am happy that we are preparing a special concert for him at Convergences for his jubilee. How else? After all, he is the most played Slovak composer at convergences, as well as my concerts," says the artistic director of Convergences, cellist Jozef Lupták, who recorded and premiered several of the composer's opuses. Many of them at the Convergence festival. Convergence premieres include the compositions for cello Pieta (2025), Suníčko (2018, with Iva Bittová), Passacaglia (2007), Variations on a Slovak folk song (2006, with Robert Cohen), Bikít Gilgameš (2003, with Petr Mikuláš) and the choir Sweet and Low (2009). In 2026, the Cello Sonata no. 2. Art as a space for the expansion of human freedom, music as a conversation and a gift, the works of Vladimír Godár resonate with Convergences for more than two decades.
Albrechtina with a concert on March 18, 2026 at 6 p.m. in Moyzesová hall.

Thanks to the cooperation of the organizers of both events, you have the opportunity to purchase a special discounted ticket valid for both concerts 👉 www.albrechtina.sk/buduce-koncerty-1/Vlado_Godar_70

We greatly appreciate your patronage. If the ticket price seems low to you, we will look forward to financial support. Thank you

The mayor of Bratislava, Matúš Vallo, took over the patronage of the event.