Mutter and Petrenko Open XXXVII Ravenna Festival with Beethoven and Mahler

The 37th Ravenna Festival opened on May 21, 2026, at the Pala de Andrè in Ravenna, Italy, with a concert by Anne-Sophie Mutter and Vasily Petrenko leading the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. The program featured Beethoven's Violin Concerto and Mahler's Symphony No. 5. The festival, themed around the 800th anniversary of the death of Saint Francis of Assisi, includes over 100 performances and 1,000 artists across music, theater, dance, and thought. Highlights include Riccardo Muti conducting the Orchestra Cherubini in Hindemith's Nobilissima visione, the Philharmonic Brass from the Vienna and Berlin Philharmonics, and the 35th anniversary of Dulce Pontes. Other artists include Kent Nagano, Pat Metheny, Stefano Bollani, and Jeff Mills. The second edition of the Cantare amantis est project, involving over 300 choristers under Muti, will also take place. Mutter's performance of Beethoven's concerto was noted for its romantic interpretation, sometimes at odds with the work's classical balance. The Larghetto was the most convincing movement, while the finale regained lightness. As an encore, Mutter played Likoo by Aftab Darvishi, a lament inspired by Baluchistan traditions and reflecting on loss, exile, and the condition of Iranian women. Petrenko's Mahler Fifth was praised for structural clarity and narrative logic, though the Adagietto was taken at an extremely slow tempo that sacrificed dramatic tension. The Rondo-Finale was resolved with precision and contrapuntal lightness.