A violinist in the bathtub, a world premiere, a murder in live broadcast, a mafia saga from the industrial city of Brno. The tourist industry and the live performing arts industry unite in Please do not Disturb (Prosím, nerušit) a creepy ode to empty hotels.
The Brno Contemporary Orchestra is just over midway through its online series of short films, collectively titled Please do not Disturb, presenting seven new compositions in seven different hotels in the Moravian city of Brno. The orchestra teamed up with Terén, a performance art troupe, to launch the series of film, which remind one of site-specific performances; some of the hotels were designed in the cold style of socialist realism and others remain beautiful testaments to the decorative arts.
According to the organizers, the series of 7 short films will tell „the story of a world-class chamber orchestra, which set out on a dangerous tour of seven empty hotels during a pandemic.” In each hotel, the orchestra plays a single composition. All but one of the compositions were written in the last decade, and include several pieces commissioned by the orchestra and one world premiere. The exception, the 1967 Kyvadlo času (Time Pendulum) for cello, four orchestral groups, and electronic organ by Zbyňek Vostřák opens the series at the Hotel Continental. The other composer-hotel pairings are Martin Burlas at the Grandhotel Brno, Michal Wroblewski at the Barceló Brno Palace, Mario Buzzi at the former hotel at the Padowetz palace, Miroslav Tóth at the Grandezza Hotel Luxury Palace, Josef Klíč at the Cosmopolitan Bobycentrum hotel and Pavel Zlámal at the Orea Hotel Santon.
Three films have already premiered. The next premiere is tonight (March 19th at 6pm Central EU time), followed by two more on the 20th and 21st at the same time. All past and future broadcasts can be accessed on the YouTube channel of the Brno Contemporary Orchestra (here). While the events are free to watch, viewers may support the orchestra through voluntary ticket purchases (here.)
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