New Year eve trip to Sevilla and Beijing
The Tatarstan State Symphony Orchestra gathered a full house in the pre-holiday concert
The Tatarstan Symphony Orchestra gave a traditional concert dedicated to New Year holidays and Christmas. This time our orchestra presented a programme together with the Galina Vishnevskaya Opera Singing Centre. Realnoe Vremya tells the details.
Not Vienna, but still
In fact, our main Tatarstan orchestra respects Vienna traditions of New Year and Christmas concerts. A rare music fan will yield to the temptation of watching a concert from the Vienna Philharmonic on the first New Year day, at midday after the sleepless New Year night. From its Golden Hall adorned with garlands. Moreover, the programme is transmitted live.
Our symphony orchestra played chaired by maestro Aleksandr Sladkovsky in this emblematic hall some time ago, and played very successfully. So the Vienna traditions of New Year concerts, which are light and bright and full of joyful expectations of the holiday aren't foreign to it. The Tatarstan State Symphony Orchestra just launched an amazing tradition to present such programmes to Kazan music lovers shortly before New Year. This December wasn't an exception.
A smartly dressed audience were idling in the foyer. Thank God, there is now a dress code for visiting Tatarstan State Symphony Orchestra's concerts, and few people will dare to come to the concert hall in jeans, our orchestra taught it. New Year trees were shining with fire in the foyer of the S. Saydashev State Big Concert Hall, an amber-coloured curtain was reflected in the huge mirror. There was a long queue near the buffet counter, champagne was especially popular – the most typical New Year beverage.
The audience crawled to the hall after the first bell where boxes were also adorned with green garlands, tinsel, glass balls of different colours. ''The arrival of New Year isn't felt without the New Year concert of our symphony orchestra,'' two ladies in long dresses were talking. The third bell rang, and the main secular event with the Tatarstan State Symphony Orchestra kicked off.
'Next title' will certainly be given
The concert consisted of two parts. But art director of the orchestra, chief conductor Aleksandr Sladkovsky wasn't behind the conductor's desk, unfortunately, which made the audience sad a bit. The energy, temper and artistry of the maestro are one of the components of our orchestra's success.
His young colleague, winner of Golden Mask Andrey Lebedev occupied his place behind the desk. The Mask was given in Opera. Conductor's Work nomination two years ago for the work on Charles Gounod's Romeo and Juliette. Generally speaking, Lebedev collaborating with many orchestras and staffs is now a conductor of New Opera. He has a character and highly skilled.
The first part began with Rossini's overture to Il Barbiere di Siviglia, and it was completely dedicated to foreign music. Maria Buynosova and Aleksandr Aliyev performed the arias of Gilda and Rigoletto from Verdi's opera. The drama of Aliyev in a complex monologue of ashamed, suffering jester Rigolleto should be noted. The duo of Gilda and Rigoletto that finished the first part was certainly the singers' success.
The Bolshoi Theatre's soloist Oleg Dolgov was very good in the major aria of Calaf from Puccini's Turandot when the Tatar prince wanders along Beijing and feels sad. And it hurt that he was less convincing in the second part in Herman's aria from The Queen of Spades
Maria Pakhar in the aria of Leonora from Verdi's Il Trovatore was amazing. The Bolshoi Theatre's soloist Oleg Dolgov was very good in the major aria of Calaf from Puccini's Turandot when the Tatar prince wanders along Beijing and feels sad. And it hurt that he was less convincing in the second part in Herman's aria from The Queen of Spades.
However, it was impossible to make any complaint in terms of both vocal and drama on the scene near the fountain from the ''Polish scene'' from Boris Godunov where Svetlana Shilova Maryna Mniszech was Dolgov's partner.
As for the orchestra, its play was delicate and full of energy. And here an old Russian naval rule comes to my mind where a ship captain got the next title if his team did its job successfully and worked perfectly in his absence.
Aleksandr Sladkovsky has such a team that he would certainly be given a new title.
P.S. The Tatarstan State Symphony Orchestra will celebrate New Year in China – its first tour to this country will be in Nanjing. In January, the season pass of the orchestra and maestro Sladkovsky in the Moscow Philharmonic will open, which is the best hall of Moscow named after Tchaikovsky. A season pass in Moscow is a sensation for a regional collective.