A full house at every concert with legendary artists of the country

For a few days, the Krasnoyarsk Region became the main stage for the world-famous chamber orchestra «Moscow Virtuosi» under the baton of maestro Vladimir Spivakov. Spectators bought all tickets for the programme in advance at the regional Philharmonic Hall, and pupils of music schools had a chance to attend master classes for free with the leading artists of the orchestra. We show the best moments of the festival.

Speech at Carnegie Hall level

For the first time, Vladimir Spivakov and the Moscow Virtuosi Orchestra visited the Krasnoyarsk region with their programme as part of the Ministry of Culture’s All-Russian Philharmonic Seasons Music Festival. Their tour was supported by RUSAL.

The Moscow Virtuosi Orchestra is considered to be the benchmark of the highest performing culture, which is equally evident in music of different genres and styles – from the oldest to the newest. In 2019, the orchestra celebrated its 40th anniversary.

«The Company has been supporting culture and science in the Krasnoyarsk region for several years now. I think the people of Krasnoyarsk have first-hand knowledge of our RUSAL Festival with its rich theatre programme. This year, together with the country’s Ministry of Culture, we managed to organise a visit by the Moscow Virtuosi chamber orchestra under the baton of outstanding musician Vladimir Spivakov. This was a real premiere in the region and the tickets were bought within a week», said Elena Yuzhakova, Director of Public Relations of RUSAL’s aluminium division.

On the first day of the festival, 12 February, «Moscow Virtuosi» presented to the public works by Mozart and Shostakovich, the work «Summa» by Estonian composer Arvo Pärt, the play «Little Daneliade» by Giya Kancheli and Wolf songs performed by soloist Nadezhda Gulitskaya. The Krasnoyarsk audience was delighted to see the musicians. And maestro Spivakov went out for an encore to the accompaniment of the long applause of the filled hall four times.

«It is a great luck for Krasnoyarsk residents to get acquainted with Spivakov’s work and the orchestra of virtuosos. All the works in their performance are very rich in content and understandable both to people close to art and those who have just decided to imbue themselves with music for the first time. Everyone will leave the concerts inspired. The programme that the virtuosos perform will not be seen even in Moscow posters. Such events include the Krasnoyarsk Philharmonic Society in the international cultural agenda and, of course, it became possible only thanks to the support of our friends – RUSAL», said General Director of the Krasnoyarsk Regional Philharmonic Society Evgeny Stodushny.

The programme featured brilliant musicians: winner of international competitions Peter Nikiforov, Honoured Artist of Russia cellist Vyacheslav Marinyuk, graduate of the Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory flute musician Ekaterina Kornishina and Nadezhda Gulitskaya (soprano).

«The schedule is tight, but Krasnoyarsk has taken a very warm approach. That is why we would like not only to introduce our multifaceted programme to Siberian spectators, but also to see the city. We take a very responsible approach to each performance, be it Carnegie Hall in New York or any Russian stage. Of course, we will play here with a special feeling also because it is the birthplace of Hvorostovsky. And at the master classes we will try to share our experience with the guys and be useful for their teachers», Alexei Lundin, artist of the Moscow Virtuosi Orchestra.

Spivakov himself also played the solo violin in Kancheli’s «Quiet Prayer» on the Philharmonic stage.

«I wanted to visit you a long time ago because I was friends with Dmitry Khvorostovsky, and he always spoke with great warmth about his city, people and teachers. After he was gone, I thought it was my duty to come here. The first concert we gave in Krasnoyarsk represented a portrait of an opera singer and your countryman. The audience received each melody very reverently, I think we all experienced mutual happiness from such a great memory», said Vladimir Spivakov.

On 14 February, the Moscow Virtuosi concert took place in the city’s Achinsk Palace of Culture.

The programme ended with a children’s concert «Around the World for… 80 minutes» in the Small Concert Hall of the Regional Philharmonic Society.

Lessons from masters

As part of the tour, on 15 February, artists from Moscow Virtuosi held master classes for students of Krasnoyarsk musical institutions.

Lessons at the Philharmonic Hall were arranged so that pupils from 11 music schools in Krasnoyarsk and students from the Hvorostovsky Siberian Institute of Arts could work as productively as possible with experienced musicians and teachers. A master class for wind instruments was organised in one hall and young violinists gathered in the second. Everybody’s impressions turned out to be much stronger than expectations, nobody left without the advice of their mentors.

«Children are our continuation, we must pass on to them the skill, the light and eternal, to which we ourselves have dedicated our lives. All children are very talented, the main thing is to find an individual special approach and to see their strengths. For my part, I tried to help the young musicians put their breath into it so that they could already be set up for productive long-term work without harming their health», Sergei Korobov, an artist with the Moscow Virtuosi Orchestra.

«We learned about new techniques of breathing, melody presentation. It was a bit exciting, despite the fact that I have been playing this work for a long time», said Kolya Trofimenko, a lesson participant from virtuosos. «We went to such a master class on purpose to St. Petersburg. Touring Krasnoyarsk for musicians of this level caused a real stir at art schools», his mother Irina Trofimenko added.

Such master classes have also proved useful for teachers of music institutions in Krasnoyarsk. «Although we give our children all our knowledge, this does not cancel out constant improvement. Often the process becomes mechanical, some important moments are overlooked and a fresh look from the outside is important», Lyudmila Shapovalova, a teacher at Krasnoyarsk Children’s Music School No 10, shared her opinion after the master classes.

Anastasia Shchepetsova, photo by Alexander Grebennikov