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Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis turns 150 in 2025. A creator of rare versatility, he left a fascinating legacy of extraordinary paintings, musical compositions, and literary works. Čiurlionis' oeuvre has not only laid the foundations of modern Lithuanian culture but also positions him as a unique creator in the history of European art, whose creative explorations were often ahead of the artistic achievements of his time.

The eldest of nine children of a church organist, Čiurlionis was a child prodigy, a pianist by the age of five and organist by the age of six. After musical studies in Warsaw and Leipzig, he discovered painting, enrolling in Warsaw School of Fine Arts. During his tragically short lifetime, Čiurlionis created 400 musical pieces and 300 works of art. In 1910, diagnosed with severe exhaustion and struggling with his mental health, he was admitted to a sanatorium, where he died of pneumonia at the age of 35.

Čiurlionis was equally at home painting and composing music. Lithuania’s first modern composer, he wrote the first Lithuanian symphonic works. In painting, he proved to be a particular innovator, creating new forms of artwork – pictorial sonatas, preludes and fugues. Fusing painting and music, these pioneering works place Čiurlionis somewhere between Symbolism and Abstract Expressionism and predate the synesthetic works of early twentieth century masters like Robert Delaunay.

What also makes Čiurlionis’ art stand out is his unique visual language, where forms and symbols bring together mythological and religious motifs from across cultures and times. This is hardly surprising considering Čiurlionis’ deep interest in theosophy, cosmology, philosophy, and ancient Eastern cultures. Lithuania’s position as one of the last pagan cultures to fall to Christianity made it especially ripe for such mystical explorations and imbued Čiurlionis’ work with universal mythic quality.

Čiurlionis was also a profoundly Lithuanian painter. Inspired by the natural beauty of his homeland, Čiurlionis’ work is imbued with the soul of Lithuanian nature – a respect and adoration for the natural world that is intrinsic to what it means to be Lithuanian. To explore his art is to explore the heart of the Lithuanian experience – a peculiar kind of bucolic melancholy that resounds deeply with those who spend some time with his work.

Although his works contain symbols and archetypes that date back millennia, Čiurlionis’ art resonates with anyone who longs for spirituality today. It engages with the idea of our relationship with the celestial and the cosmos. For Čiurlionis, the world is not chaos, but a harmonious totality of human, earthly and otherworldly connections. In his fantastical visions, art and music, abstraction and figuration, light and dark, nature and the spiritual coexist in unity. And the viewer is invited to not only observe but to participate in that unity.

As an explorer of ideas and disciplines, Čiurlionis was close to Leonardo Da Vinci in spirit. His work clearly transcends its Baltic setting, yet he remained on the fringes of Western art, in part because he lived away from Europe’s main artistic centres. The occasion of Čiurlionis’ jubilee gives art lovers all over the world an excellent opportunity to discover the visionary quality of his work that not only breaks down the boundaries between art forms, but also reveals the extraordinary spirituality of the world around us.

The first chord of the celebration of Čiurlionis' anniversary will be struck at the end of this year, when the Vilnius University Chamber Orchestra, under the direction of conductor and artistic director Modestas Jankūnas, will be touring the Czech Republic. Always young and full of enthusiasm, the ensemble is already 45 years old and brings together youth studying at various faculties.

During its lifetime, the orchestra has performed more than 800 concerts not only in Lithuania, but also abroad – from Mexico City, across the continent of Europe, across the Great Wall of China and all the way to Shanghai. In 2017, the orchestra was named the best ensemble at the World Orchestra Festival in Vienna and was awarded the Gold Prize and a special Diploma of Honour.

Modestas Jankūnas began his musical career in his native Klaipėda, studying conducting at the Stasys Šimkus Conservatoire under Tomas Ambrozaitis. Later he studied choir conducting at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre under Associate Professor Gintautas Venislovas and symphonic conducting with Associate Professor Modestas Pitrėnas. Since 2009 he has been the choirmaster of the Vilnius University Alumni Choir “Pro Musica”, since 2015 - assistant director of the Vilnius University Chamber Orchestra, and since 2019 - artistic director and conductor of the orchestra. He has conducted the orchestra at renowned concert halls in Lithuania, Vienna, Bologna, Beijing, Shanghai and elsewhere. In addition to these activities, he is also active as a soloist and participates in various projects conducting orchestras and choirs.

The concerts are named Friendship – as one of Čiurlionis' paintings – not by chance, since the programme will include works by Čiurlionis as well as compositions by Czech composers (Antonín Dvořák, Leoš Janáček). In 2024, the Czech Republic is celebrating the Year of Czech Music, so it is symbolic that they will be passing on the baton to the jubilee year of Čiurlionis.

We invite you to the Friendship concerts on 6 December at 19:00 in Prague at the Czech Music Museum (Karmelitská 2, Prague 1 - Malá Strana) and on 8 December at 17:00 in Brno at the Faculty of Philosophy of Masaryk University (Arna Nováka 1, Brno).