Duo Moirai (Switzerland, USA)
St. Michael's Church, Šmihel (Nova Gorica)
DUO MOIRAI
(Switzerland, USA)
Hanna Marti, voice, harp
Mara Winter, wooden and bone flutes, voice
The concert is organised in collaboration with
KS Ozeljan-Šmihel and KINOkašča / CINEMattick.
A guided tour of the St. Michael's Church is scheduled one hour before the concert.
The duo Moirai was established in Reykjavik in 2015 by Swiss singer and harpist Hanna Marti and American flutist Mara Winter. They focus on the research and the reconstruction of music from early and high Middle Ages. The programme revolves around legends taken from Edda – a collection of Old Norse poems from the 13th century. But the stories about dragons, cursed gold, courtly intrigues, vengeful Valkyries, courageous heroes, prophets and clairvoyants are probably much older.
ST. MICHAEL'S CHURCH, ŠMIHEL
The Church of St. Michael in Šmihel is one of the architectural gems that will host this year's festival edition. It is located in the parish of Šempas near Nova Gorica and is the oldest church in the parish. This is also reflected in the fact that churches dedicated to St. Michael were constructed as a symbol of Christian triumph over paganism. The original small church with no bell tower was built in the 15th century and has been rebuilt three times in its history. The bell tower and the sacristy were added in the 18th century. The Gothic chancel dates back to the 15th century. It is decorated with frescoes depicting scenes from the Bible, saints and symbols. They were restored between 1906 and 1909. In 1962, the frescoes were copied and are now kept in the National Gallery in Ljubljana. The Baroque marble and stone altar decorated with the coat-of-arms at the top was later added. In the alcove behind the altar is the statue of Saint Michael dating back to the 15th century, a work of the Friulian "Tolmezzo school". Saint Michael holds a sword in one hand, a symbol of an army leader, which he used to defeat Satan that lies at his feet. In his other hand, he holds a pair of scales in which he weighs the souls in the name of God, judging whether they are worthy of heaven or not.
