Litvak Days in London are an annual event which explore the rich cultural legacy of Lithuanian Jews in the UK and beyond.
This year, which marks the 14th Litvak Days event, join us for a panel discussion dedicated to a centenary of the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, a global movement which included participation of the most important intellectual figures of the 20th century. The institute was established in Vilnius, had its branch in the UK, and currently operates in New York. This will be followed by a concert.
In the spring of 1925 the Yidisher visnshaftlekher institut (Yiddish Scientific Institute), known as YIVO, was established in Vilnius. At this time Yiddish was the native language of approximately 11 million people, and Jewish Vilna was world renowned as a centre of Yiddish culture.
In Eastern Europe, secular Jewish Diaspora Nationalists promoted their own national life in the countries of their residence, creating a new movement that gave rise to a network of innovative cultural institutions. These culminated in the creation of YIVO, which became the centre of a global network of scholars and support groups.
The efforts to rescue a portion of the institute’s collections during the Holocaust and transfer them to New York was no less of a monumental achievement. While YIVO continues its work today in New York, it remains a symbol of the rich heritage of the Vilna Jewish community.
Panel speakers will include Dr. Lara Lempertienė, head of the Judaica Research Centre of Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania, Dr. William Pimlott, researcher at the Birbeck Institute Study of Antisemitism and Laimonas Briedis, a writer and scholar of the history, literature and geographical imagination of Vilnius, Lithuania. The panel will be moderated by Vivi Lachs, a historian of Jewish London and also a Yiddish performer who is running the Yiddish Open Mic Café in London.
The panel will be followed by a concert performed by two internationally emerging and awarded London based Lithuanian musicians – a pianist Gabrielė Sutkutė and violinist Ugnė Liepa Žuklytė.
The concert programme features works by composers of Jewish and Litvak heritage, such as George Gerswin, Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Anatolijus Šenderovas and Joseph Achron, presented in a variety of settings including solo violin, solo piano, and violin–piano duo.
Lithuanian pianist Gabrielė Sutkutė has been praised for her “acute musical intuition, impeccable sense of style and genuine charisma’’. She has performed in prestigious venues throughout Europe, including Wigmore, Bridgewater and Cadogan Halls. For achievements in music, Gabrielė received Lithuanian Republic Presidents’ certificates of appreciation six times. A graduate of the Royal Academy and Royal College of Music, she is now pursuing an Artist Diploma with Gabriela Montero at the OAcademy.
Lithuanian violinist Ugnė Liepa Žuklytė is a laureate of numerous national and international violin competitions, having made her orchestral debut at the age of eight. Honorary conductor of the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra, Juozas Domarkas has praised her as “an exceptionally gifted young artist, distinguished by remarkable technical and emotional depth, and a mature respect for the composer’s vision.” Ugnė is currently pursuing her Master’s studies at the Royal College of Music in London. Ugnė’s studies are supported by four different scholarships, including the ABRSM Scholarship and the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) Conservatoire Scholarship.
This event will take place both in the building and online. To attend in building, click the "Book Now" button on this page. To attend in online, click the button below.
