The Liszt Garden in Bratislava (source: Courtesy of National Trust)
It might have been the beauty of Countess Julie “Giulietta” Guicciardi as well as of the park at the manor house in Dolná Krupá near Trnava, which inspired Ludwig van Beethoven to compose one of his most popular compositions for the piano, Moonlight Sonata. While there is no written, only oral, evidence that the musical genius wrote the piece in Dolná Krupá in his early thirties, music lovers can enjoy it at the manor house on Sunday, June 4.
A performance of Moonlight Sonata is one of events held as part of the 15th Weekend of Open Parks and Gardens event. A record 120 parks, gardens and other green areas across Slovakia will open to the public on the first weekend of June. This year, the theme of the event will be “Garden Melodies”.
“The sounds of nature, such as the singing of birds, the buzzing of insects, the rustling of wind or water, but also the music itself, which was an important part of social life in the gardens, are elements that connect people from different cultures and different nations,” Kubíková says.
Garden melodies is a universal theme applicable in any garden and landscape, she noted, and one of the reasons why organisers of Rendez-vous aux Jardins, a pan-European initiative to make parks and gardens accessible to the public, might have chosen this theme for this year’s edition.
Weekend of Open Parks and Gardens
Takes place between June 2 and 4 across Slovakia
almost all participating parks and gardens have a short summary in English on its website www.vopz.sk
some parks and gardens are subject to registration and a fee, check the website
the main infopoint will be at Rómer’s House on Zámočnícka Street in Bratislava, the office of the National Trust
for guided thematic tours it is necessary to register online in advance and buy a ticket
check the exact dates and times when the parks and gardens are open
there will be one English tour: Music in the Gardens and Palaces of Bratislava’s Old Town (June 3, Saturday) - 10:00 - 12:30
there will be one tour in Russian: Palace Gardens – Famous Gardens of Hungary
more information at www.vopz.sk (only in Slovak)
Owners of parks and gardens across Slovakia who have joined the event this year have embraced this year’s theme with enthusiasm. They have prepared a range of activities to reflect this - from guided tours with ornithologists and various concerts prepared in collaboration with primary art schools, to concerts with professional artists. For example, the Geisberg brothers will perform at Červený Kameň Castle and Andrea Bučko will sing in the garden of the Slovak Catholic Charity in Bratislava. Some venues have taken a more creative approach to this year’s theme and prepared a guided tour on the theme on whether we can hear trees, for example.
But each of the registered parks, gardens, orchards, green squares, historic cemeteries, arboretums and botanical gardens has something interesting - its history, unusual story, garden design, ecological approach or a collection of diverse greenery, noted Kubíková.
