‘I am very sad to inform you that Daniel Barenboim is not yet well enough to come and play his recital in Monte-Carlo, which we had been looking forward to with such delight: I had planned to pay homage to his 80th birthday because I think of Daniel as one of the greatest artists of our time and a supportive friend. We send him our positive energy and wishes for a full recovery!’ – wrote Directrice Opéra de Monte-Carlo, Cecilia Bartoli.
‘Another dear friend of many years and one of my favorite instrumentalists, whom I consider a true musical genius, has kindly agreed to step in at short notice: violinist Maxim Vengerov’ – she continues.
‘I would like to thank Maxim for accepting our invitation at this time after an absence of some years at the Opéra de Monte-Carlo. Accompanied by pianist Roustem Saitkoulov, Maxim Vengerov will play a beautiful romantic recital with music by Beethoven, Franck, and Tchaikovsky’ – stated Bartoli.
Daniel Barenboim shared the following statement about his cancellation:
‘I have proudly followed Cecilia’s career since the earliest days and was excited when she became Director of the Opéra de Monte-Carlo and invited me for a recital in her first season.
Last year, I fell ill with a serious disease. While my health has fortunately improved greatly over the past weeks, allowing me to resume my conducting activities, I am very sorry to let you know that despite my best efforts, I have not yet built up the muscular strength to perform piano recital programmes. It saddens me deeply to cancel my upcoming recital in Monaco but as I keep working and my health improving, I am very much set upon returning to the Opéra de Monte-Carlo on the first possible occasion be it as a pianist or a conductor!”