Opera at the Baltic Sea Festival at Kungliga Operan AB

This year's Baltic Sea Festival gets a flying start in the name of love. The opening concert will feature Hector Berlioz' passionate interpretation of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, his dramatic symphony with stunning soloist parties and evocative tone painting. The Royal Opera is participating in the festival for the sixth year. Playing the music of Romeo and Juliet is the Royal Opera Orchestra conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen, along with soloists Catherine Karnéus, Paul Groves, Pavlo Hunka and the Royal Opera Chorus.

The concert opens with a first European performance by this year's Polar Prize laureate, Finnish Kaija Saariaho. A group of eminent chamber musicians will perform Sombres, a piece inspired by the artist Mark Rothko soulfull paintings and Ezra Pound's Cantos