The
20th
Century Song Foundation(Stichting
Het 20ste-eeuwse Lied), settled in Amsterdam
(The Netherlands), aims at fanning the flames of enthusiasm
for the extensive repertory of songs written during the
last century. Many of these, especially those composed
between the World Wars, have fallen into oblivion. The
Foundation tries systematically to champion the 'forgotten'
masterpieces by uniting musicians, scholars, concert halls,
CD-producers and the public.
In 2004 the Szymanowski
CD's won the FRYDERYK AWARD, the most prestigious
music award in Poland for the best recording of
Polish music.
In
order to appeal to a larger audience, a new form of recital
has been developed: ‘SPOTLIGHTS
concerts’.
The 20th Century Song Foundation presents a series of
various concert
programs which strike a different note, the
music being enhanced by light effects, declamation, direction,
the exposition of photographs and the projection of slides.
Gone is the old-fashioned recital during which the soprano
or baritone was singing like a frozen statue while the
public were ruining their eyesight trying to read, in
the dim light, the lyrics in their booklets.
