Classic Culture Strikes all the Right Chords
Volvo is amongst the most committed corporate partners of the performing arts in its home city of Gothenburg, supporting both the city’s cultural icons, the
Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and the
Gothenburg Opera.
Göteborg Symfoniker – Time to Face the Music
Having recently celebrated its anniversary in 2005, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra has risen from a small regional ensemble to become the National Orchestra of Sweden, internationally respected and an icon of Swedish national life.
With a passion for Scandinavian and Russian music, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra has played all over the world and, closer to home, its Gothenburg Concert House base is one of the most acoustically acclaimed anywhere venues in the world.
Renowned for making world-class classical music readily accessible to residents of and visitors to Gothenburg, the GSO is also famed for its free mid-summer outdoor concerts, played in the park in the city’s Slottsskogen Park.
For its part, Volvo has supported the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra for many years, investing in the refurbishment of the Konsert Hus and enabling Sweden’s national orchestra to tour extensively and play to packed houses at home.
“There is no doubt that Volvo’s patronage over very many years has helped transform the Göteborg Symfoniker into a Swedish National Orchestra worthy of the title and to enjoy the privilege not only of playing in a magnificent home venue, but also to tour extensively exporting excellence all over the world.” Neeme Järvi, Principal Conductor Emeritus, Göteborg Symfoniker.
Amongst the highlights of the early 2008 season includes concerts celebrating the works of Strauss and Handel and to demonstrate its diversity, the Big Band sound of Glenn Miller and the traditional Slottsskogen på nationaldagen, a free open-air concert in the city of Gothenburg.
GöteborgsOperan – Making a Song and Dance
Meanwhile, on Gothenburg’s evocative harbour-front, the one of the city’s landmark buildings, the opera house is home to the Gothenburg Opera.
Volvo has been a long-term patron of GöteborgsOperan and was a principal investor in the state-of-the-art opera house, a world-class waterfront venue which opened in 1994.
The Göthenburg Opera, of which Volvo is a long-term patron is a multi-disciplinary company producing and presenting a wide portfolio from classic opera to more populist musicals which are music to the ears to traditional ballet and contemporary dance in step with every artistic taste.
And, when not staging shows on the various stages in its magnificent Göthenburg home, GöteborgsOperan takes many of its productions around Sweden, from the capital Stockholm to some of the smallest community venues around.
From full-scale operas to arias, musicals and ballet, the GöteborgsOperan is certainly something to make a song and dance about.
“From financial and emotional support to the supply of Volvo trucks to take our productions to communities all over Sweden, the sponsorship of Volvo is crucial to the continuing development of GöteborgsOperan, right across the spectrum of its productions.” Peter Hansson, Managing Director, GöteborgsOperan.
The 2008 programme includes a tribute to the late Marilyn Monroe, a production of My Fair lady, Shakespeare’s Macbeth and Grymt!, a newly created pop and rock musical by Rikard Bergqvist.
Volvo’s commitment to culture, classical and popular, traditional and contemporary is strong and steadfast which is music to the ears of fans of GöteborgsOperan and Göteborg Symfoniker, dual jewels in Sweden’s crown, at home and all around the world.
www.gso.se
www.opera.se