Licht Spiele
From June, 26 to July, 26, Styriarte will celebrate the light that inspires and delights us with a grand festival of joie de vivre and hope.
As soon as human beings see the light of day, their lives unfold in the rhythm of light and dark: between day and night, the springtide of love and the eventide of life, bright happiness and dark hours. In a grand festival of joie de vivre and hope, Styriarte 2026 celebrates the light that inspires and makes us happy. Key works of the Enlightenment provide the framework for this theme: as children of their time, Mozart and Haydn were convinced of the the triumph of light over darkness. Styriarte explores this theme in special versions of The Magic Flute and The Creation, as well as in Mozart's Requiem, conducted by Michael Hofstetter in Stainz. It took a great deal more effort on the part of Gustav Mahler to invoke the resurrection as humanity's ultimate hope in monumental soundscapes: his Second Symphony is the centerpiece of Styriarte 2026, performed by Mei-Ann Chen and her Styriarte Youth Orchestra.
The concept "through darkness to light" found its ultimate form in Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. And the light at the end of the tunnel plays a crucial role in other concerts in the festival: the dazzling streetlights of New York in the "Roaring Twenties", where persecuted Jewish musicians from Europe found a new home; Graz-born Robert Stolz and his "sky-blue" songs in times of distress; anthems of freedom from jazz magician Oscar Peterson, and radiant songs of hope with the Arnold Schoenberg Choir in Pöllau and with Voces8 in Helmut List Hall.
Sunlight is the elixir of life for mankind. For this, Huitzilopochtli, the sun god of the Aztecs, demanded human sacrifice: this is the story behind the brand new music theatre production of this year’s Styriarte Festival. In Versailles, Louis XIV declared himself "Sun King" and Jordi Savall evokes all his splendour with Charpentier's famous Te Deum. The Styriarte Baroque orchestra accompanies the Venetian Vivaldi on a beautiful summer's day, from sunrise into the night.
It remains to be seen whether the sun will beam down on the Styriarte audience members who set off up the Schöckl to watch it rise. However, our summer festival is guaranteed to fill the heart with sunshine from start to finish.
