Ljubljana Festival is the biggest, oldest and most important festival in both Slovenia and the wider region. Over the years, it has become a way of life during the summer holidays for residents and visitors of Ljubljana alike; and for visitors not only from surrounding countries but from far beyond as well. With its colourful cosmopolitan spirit, the festival contributes a great deal to the life and energy of the Slovenian capital, itself considered one of the liveliest cities in Europe.
The main goal of the Ljubljana Festival has always been to present a carefully selected programme with outstanding performers who are driven by excellence, creative energy and a desire to provide audiences with the best possible performance experience. Indeed the Ljubljana Festival has become an important reference for artists, and they often come back to perform, sometimes again and again.
Some years ago it was awarded the Golden Honorary Medal of Freedom – the highest award of the President of the Republic of Slovenia – for its value in organising and presenting national and international artistic activities.
In its more than 61-year history, the festival has hosted numerous internationally recognised and celebrated names, among them:
Orchestras, Opera Houses: Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Mariinsky Theatre of St Petersburg, Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, La Scala Theatre Philharmonic Orchestra, State Academic Bolshoi Theatre of Russia, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of London, Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Chinese Philharmonic Orchestra Hangzhou, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig
Ballet Companies: Béjart Ballet Lausanne, St Petersburg Boris Eifman State Ballet, Teatro alla Scala Ballet Company, Bolshoi Ballet, Wiener Staatsballett
Conductors: Valery Gergiev, Sir Simon Rattle, Lorin Maazel, Daniel Harding, Zubin Mehta, Ennio Morricone, Riccardo Muti, Mstislav Rostropovich, En Shao, Krzysztof Penderecki, Fuat Mansurov, Michael Nyman, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Ivan Repušić, Riccardo Chailly
Soloists (Instrumentalists): Yuri Bashmet, Denis Macujev, Yehudi Menuhin, Julian Rachlin, Vadim Repin, Alexander Rudin, Ramin Bahrami, Ning Feng, Misha Maisky, Gautier Capuçon, Stefan Milenković, Vinko Globokar, Dubravka Tomšič, Mojca Zlobko, Miloš Karadaglić, 2 Cellos
Soloists (Vocalists): Paata Burchuladze, José Cura, Jose Carreras, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Inva Mula, Leo Nucci, Ramón Vargas, Joseph Calleja, Bernarda Fink, Marjana Lipovšek
