The purpose of ART BSA is to develop cultural and artistic activities in the field of musical creativity and music education; to facilitate and carry out artistic activities in the field of classical music, to encourage creation and recreation, and to convey and protect musical and artistic values. In short: the primary aim of the association is to co-create contemporary Slovenian culture.
From the start, we have been working intergenerationally, networking and internationally. We encourage the exchange of experience between young and established, top soloists, we strive to choose innovative, less known or unknown repertoire in our concerts, thus broadening the horizons of music lovers and the performers themselves. We foster an attitude towards the sincere and consistent performance of music according to its musical-form and historical laws.
Throughout the years we have been intensively involved in attracting new audiences, which is why we also design our concert programmes in an interdisciplinary way. We weave other arts such as dance, poetry, theatre genres and film into our programmes to attract a wider audience. In recent years, the concerts have been broadcast live online. We are intensively working on models of education for young audiences, which we have so far implemented across Slovenia and also successfully presented in Europe.
We believe in the importance of the development and existence of Slovenian and European creativity and creativity because we are aware of the power of expression that musicians carry within themselves. Therefore, we want to continue in every way to dictate the belief in the strengthening of the beautiful, while at the same time encouraging a constructive outlook on musical Europe and the world.
ART BSA created a flow of musicians from Slovenia and abroad as part of the Festine concert series, which we performed in Maribor, Lendava and Ljubljana. We represent the link between top artists and young people who are just starting to make their mark. The concept has been confirmed over the years, when we have seen the progress of young musicians who have taken up this kind of challenge. ART BSA has launched unique children's programmes in the Slovenian music space under the title Festinice, which educate and guide the youngest in the art of music. At the same time, we have expanded our audience online with new audio-visual approaches.
Since 2006, the operation has been financed by the national urban institutions and the economy. Since 2009, we have been working intensively on international cooperation and projects supported by the European Commission or as part of the Creative Europe programme.
In 2009, for Maribor - European Capital of Culture 2012, we conceived an international music academy with the motto Connecting through Music, and within two years we had participants from 42 countries. Since then, we have organised the academy every year.
In 2016, at the invitation of national orchestras from Italy, Spain, France and the Netherlands, we became an official partner institution and part of the Music Up Close Network project (Creative Europe - Cooperation Project/Large).
According to the artistic director and conductor Živa Ploj Peršuh, a lot has changed over the years of networking, pursuing and studying European and local cultural strategies. "We musicians are torn between conservative traditions and the digital age. Within this we have to understand and learn that being a virtuoso is often no longer enough to get a job or permanent engagement. Independence, coupled with the ability to plan career steps prudently, has become one of the key tasks of an artist", he adds.
Equipped with this knowledge, we have developed a centre that has long-term goals and a focus that is precisely geared to the needs of the artist. It is about intergenerational networking, informal learning and career skills upgrading, participation of young people from different social backgrounds, and the implementation of activities at the highest European level. The target group is young artists who, through the activities of the centre, gain interdisciplinary breadth, contacts with peers and professional artists in several fields, from the technical refinement of their actual artistic skills to personal development that transcends local and regional environments, social statuses and political backgrounds.
The European Career Center for Artists Triple Bridge connects artists with audiences, tradition with the new digital age, entrepreneurship with culture and, last but not least, the city of Ljubljana with the world. It offers young talented artists not only professional skills, but also a range of tools and knowledge to launch a successful career in the modern world. The idea of creating such a career centre stems from the realisation that every great artist deserves a successful career. The centre therefore equips them with competences, courage and confidence. Triple Bridge promotes intercultural dialogue, international links, closer cooperation with partners, partner cities, companies, sponsors, art lovers and the media. Triple Bridge truly builds bridges between different groups connected by common interests. The European Career Centre is based in Ljubljana, a city whose landmark is the Triple Bridge. Hence the inspiration behind the name.
Every year (since 2009), the Ljubljana International Orchestra works with an average of 85 members from all over the world. So far it has performed in Croatia, Serbia, Austria, Spain, Great Britain, Italy and since 2009 it has been performing continuously in Slovenia.
In 2019, we founded the Slovenian Youth Orchestra (Slovenski Mladinski Orkester, SMO) in collaboration with international and local partners. We believe that the orchestra will become a cultural representative that will be able to stand alongside all the most prominent youth orchestras from most EU countries, as well as from around the world, that have been active for decades. The domestic and international collaborations to date have proved that we are on the right track.
The Slovenian Youth Orchestra is a project of cooperation, enthusiasm and a vision for the future that connects the whole of Slovenia. It gives our most promising musicians, aged 12 to 22, the chance to achieve their greatest results and to build musical, cultural and social bridges with drive, determination, courage and will.
To date, our activities have been attended by more than 40 world-class, world-renowned guest artists, who have served as mentors to more than 300 of our participants - young artists from at least 40 countries - annually.
We have performed more than 50 symphony concerts, 90 chamber concerts, 50 masterclasses and several guest appearances by our Ljubljana International Orchestra (LIO).
Our activities were held under the honourable patronage of the former Presidents of Slovenia, Dr Danilo Türk and Borut Pahor.
In 2018, we were awarded the medal of the Italian President, Sergio Mattarella, for our project to commemorate 100 years since the end of the First World War.
