In Classical Music Talks, we will be exploring the ethics, ideas and values expressed in great works in music. Our focus will be on the meaning of the music, and how it is expressed. We will be looking at how structure, harmony and dynamic expression shed light on deeper concepts conveyed by the composer.
Even though our content will be in the form of video “lectures," our goal is to stimulate thought and conversation by engaging with you through whatever questions or ideas you leave here. This is why we refer to our videos as ‘Talks’.
We encourage you to also read about Our Philosophy to further understand our vision.
All the content on this page has been written, presented and recorded by Eduardo Chibás
The content of great works of art has always been a subject of great interest during my life. This has drawn me closer to artists whose works have extensive ethical content, expressing ideas and values, such as Beethoven, Michelangelo, Homer, Aeschylus, Wagner and Bruckner, among others. These Talks are an expression of a lifetime of searching for meaning in art.
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Since 1992, when he conducted the Orquesta Sinfónica de Venezuela in Wagner’s Meistersinger Prelude, Eduardo Chibás has carved out a solid trajectory as an orchestral conductor that is now recognized internationally.
An example of this is the first CD set of all Beethoven symphonies made in Venezuela, all recorded live with the Orquesta Sinfónica de Carabobo.
Sándor Végh, who was music director of the Camerata Salzburg and was twice in Caracas wrote: “Eduardo Chibás has a very tight relation to Beethoven and his special message.” Later he was invited to conduct The Camerata Salzburg on a visit to Caracas.
In 2005 he recorded, also live, Beethoven’s five Piano Concertos with the Brazilian pianist Luiz de Moura Castro and the Orquesta Sinfónica de Venezuela.
In November of 2007, Eduardo Chibás travelled to Germany, where he was invited to conduct Beethoven’s Fourth and Seventh Symphonies at Regensburg, Bavaria, with excellent reviews in the local press. The Donaupost wrote: "Eduardo Chibás sparked impressive energies in the orchestra".
While Eduardo Chibás is well known for his interpretations of Beethoven’s symphonies and concertos, his name is now also linked with another great symphonic composer: Anton Bruckner. In May of 2004, Eduardo Chibás conducted Bruckner’s Seventh Symphony with the Orquesta Sinfónica de Venezuela. It was the first time the orchestra had performed the work. In 2005 he conducted the Eighth Symphony with the same orchestra, this event marking the premiere in Venezuela of this great work. Another Venezuelan premiere followed in 2007 with Bruckner’s Ninth.
The live recordings of the Seventh and Eighth Symphonies have been praised by international publications such as Fanfare Magazine. In the January/February 2007 edition said: “Eduardo Chibás proves a thoroughly sympathetic and powerful interpreter of Anton Bruckner’s music. His vision is distinctly his own, but it rivals in quality those of legendary conductors whose names come up most often when we think of great interpreters of Bruckner, for example Furtwängler, Jochum, Karajan, Klemperer, Knappertsbusch, Tintner, and Wand.”
In 2008, the Venezuelan newspaper El Universal poblushed a collection of 10 CD’s of Eduardo Chibás and the Orquesta Sinfónica de Venezuela with sales of almost 200,000 units.
In 2018, Chibás completed a new cycle of Beethoven Symphonies with the Orquesta Sinfónica de Venezuela. In 2019, this cycle was published in Japan, which has a very demanding classical music public. Soon after, the set of the 5 Beethoven Piano Concertos with Luiz de Moura Castro and Bruckner’s last 3 symphonies were also published in Japan.
Simultaneous with his development as an orchestra conductor, he has also had a career as a lecturer in music as well as other subjects.
Eduardo Chibás was born in Havana, Cuba. He received a BS and MS in Applied Mathematics and Operations Research from Columbia University, New York. He lives in Venezuela since 1971. In 1976, he founded the advertising agency AW Nazca Saatchi & Saatchi, today Eliaschev Saatchi & Saatchi. He is President of the Wagner Society of Venezuela.
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Beethoven- Sym. No. 1 - It Begins
Beethoven: Sym. No. 2 - A Symphony of Fire
Beethoven: Sym. No. 3 - The Hero as Creator
Beethoven: Sym. No. 4 - Exuberant creativity
Beethoven: Sym. No. 5 & 7 - Heroic Individualism
Beethoven: Sym. No. 6 - Relationships
Beethoven: Sym. No. 8 - Crisis
Beethoven: Sym. No. 9 - Ode to Freedom
Bruckner: Sym. No. 7 - The Search for the Ideal
Bruckner: Sym. No. 8 - The Sublime Experience