Lithuanian Wind Orchestra Presents Anniversary Edition of Vilnius Winds Festival

Vilnius Winds returns to the Lithuanian capital for its fifth edition with a program designed to push wind music into unexpected settings. The festival, organized by the Lithuanian Symphonic Wind Orchestra, runs from Sept. 24 through Oct. 17.

The orchestra arrives after winning first place this summer at the 138th Certamen Internacional de Bandas de Música Ciudad de València, an international wind-band competition in Valencia. Its anniversary festival will present concerts built around film-inspired music, instrumental theater, Irish traditional music and a Norwegian ensemble that challenges the image of brass performance as a male-dominated field.

The opening concert on Sept. 24 will focus on the music of Spanish composer Óscar Navarro, conducted by Navarro himself. His work combines symphonic scale with the dramatic language of film soundtracks, bringing together Spanish musical character and broader international traditions.

On Oct. 2, chief conductor Karolis Variakojis will lead “Marches and Manipulations,” a contemporary program at the Kablys cultural space. The project draws on Mauricio Kagel’s instrumental theater piece “Der Tribun,” deconstructing marches and political rhetoric. Actor Vainius Sodeika will read the text and provide the stage presence.

The festival’s Oct. 14 centerpiece, organized with the Irish Embassy to mark Ireland’s presidency of the Council of the European Union, will feature the world premiere of a large-scale work by Shaun Davey for symphonic wind orchestra and Irish uilleann pipes. Soloist Mark Redmond, described as one of today’s leading Irish pipers, will perform the part. The festival will conclude on Oct. 17 with tenThing, a Norwegian all-women brass ensemble known for performing in concert halls around the world.