Pianist Ratimir Martinović at SBCC
Montenegran Musician Visits as Part of Sister-City Program
Outside the upper echelon of international leadership consulting, the name Ichak Adizes may not produce much recognition, but within that community, the Macedonian-born, Carpinteria-based scholar and professional is considered one of the top experts in the world on engineering organizational change. Dr. Adizes has consulted with large corporations, foreign governments, and heads of state for 40 years, and the consulting firm he founded, the Adizes Institute, has offices in 15 countries. However, its headquarters and Dr. Adizes himself are based here, and, as a result, he takes a special interest in Santa Barbara, and in how Santa Barbara fits into the largest of world pictures.
In 2008, Adizes, along with George Lilly and a committee of fellow internationalists, forged a sister-city link between Santa Barbara and Kotor, Montenegro, a beautiful and historic walled city across the Adriatic Sea from Italy. Since then, several cultural-exchange projects have taken place, and groups of Santa Barbarans ranging from business leaders to high school musical-theater geeks have traveled to Montenegro to observe and participate in the local culture.
On Sunday, February 19, the flow reverses as acclaimed Montenegrin pianist Ratimir Martinović makes his Santa Barbara debut in a public show at SBCC’s Fé Bland Forum at 5 p.m. For tickets and info, call 969-9278. I recently spoke with Lilly, and he offered three great reasons to get out and hear Martinović play.
1) He’s Big in Belgrade and in Berlin: The Berlin Philharmonic and the Belgrade Philharmonic are just two of the many important orchestras with which Martinović has appeared as a soloist.
2) He Plays the Best Music There Is: Sunday’s recital features works by Mozart, Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, and César Franck, and Martinović made his reputation with performances of Bach’s Goldberg Variations and Beethoven’s Hammerklavier Sonata.
3) It’s the Sisterly Thing to Do: This recital marks the beginning of a new phase for the sister-city relationship with Kotor, in which established artists will work on cross-cultural collaborations. Martinović has a reputation for his teaching and for his classical-music-incorporating multimedia work, and as the founder of the KotorArt Music Festival, he’s in a position to make things happen for Santa Barbara musicians interested in visiting Kotor.