The third day of the Elena Obraztsova International Festival of Classical Music “Carmen” gave the audience a meeting with performing artists of the Chelyabinsk State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater named after M. I. Glinka. 

Two musical “poles”

On December 2, the first part of the concert on the stage of Magnezit Cultural Center offered the opera Mozart and Salieri.

– “The annual Carmen Festival is always a memorable event. Taking part in it is a delight. A few years ago, Yuri Rozum and us played Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto on the stage of this magnificent venue. The symphonic program of the festival was then received very well, very warmly. This is always a good thing. It makes the performers feel great, so they instantly reveal their talent when they feel a friendly atmosphere,” says Aleksandr Matushkin, the conductor of the symphony orchestra of the Chelyabinsk State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater named after M. I. Glinka. – “This year is the 180th anniversary of the birth of our wonderful Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. This is why we included his single-act opera Mozart and Salieri in the program for this year’s festival. This music is rarely performed, which is a big mistake I believe. The opera kind of stands apart from its big “sisters” – the operas Sadko, The Tsar’s Bride, The Snow Maiden and The Tale of Tsar Saltan, but those are very grand operas. However, in the genre of chamber opera, the composer proved to be a fine musical psychologist and artist in the depiction of the two memorable characters. That’s a most laborious and meticulous work. We are happy to present it to Satka residents.

The story of this compact opera by Rimsky-Korsakov is focused on one of the most destructive vices of the human sole – jealousy – through the prism of art. The agonizing jealousy of an artisan towards a true talent ruins the killer as well as his victim. The story has asked the audience the question whether a genius is capable of evil-doing? The famous tragedy is enacted by only two singers, as the composer meant it to be. The audience meets two creators. Two musical “poles”. Two different views on the world, art and success. Two incredible creative forces – the force of Mozart’s extraordinary talent and inexhaustible inspiration and the force of Salieri’s fanatical thirst for recognition and his indefatigable diligence...

Presenting this story on the small stage of the cultural center required some adjustments.

– “Normally, the orchestra is behind the stage. Today, we were sitting behind the singers and the props. This aspect required maximum attention from us. We had to feel the soloists with our backs. But this was an interesting experience, and we didn’t do this for the first time. Back in 2019, we toured French and Dutch cities with The Swan Lake ballet. At some of the venues, we had to place the orchestra behind the ballet, which was difficult because all variations and solo parts have to start with an eye contact with the performer,” Aleksandr Matushkin remarked.

– “To me, Mozart and Salieri is of special significance. I wrote my MA thesis about this piece as an example of a chamber opera. Then I did my own production of Mozart and Salieri at the P.I. Tchaikovsky South-Ural State Arts Institute. I persuaded my teacher to play Salieri while I played Mozart. Just three months later, I was invited to a sing Mozart at a chamber opera festival in Germany. Besides, our theater produced Mozart and Salieri just after my return. This is the work by the stage director Vadim Keish, which we showed you today. However, some minor changes have been made because you don’t have a revolving stage. We filled the static space with movements of the soloists themselves,” added Pavel Chikanovsky, a soloist of the Chelyabinsk State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater named after M. I. Glinka.

This was not the first time at the Carmen Festival for Pavel either. He had his debut on a Satka stage as José as part of the company of the Magnitogorsk Opera and Ballet Theater.

– I was amazed at the abundance of fresh flowers then. I hadn’t seen so many fresh flowers before. It’s great that this festival is held in Satka. It has become a major event both for the city and for the region on the whole. I’m pleased to be a part of it. You’ve got an amazing cultural center with excellent acoustics. By the way, just today, my colleagues and I were called it the best of all the cultural centers we’ve been too.” Pavel said.

Singing on the stage is a joy

The second part of the concert included arias from P. Tchaikovsky’s operas Eugene Onegin and Iolanta, I. Kalman’s Silva, J. Offenbach’s Tales of Hoffmann, G. Verdi’s Un Ballo in Maschera, etc., performed by young soloists of the Chelyabinsk State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater named after M. I. Glinka.

– “I’m taking part in this festival for the first time. I like it a lot. It’s beautiful and atmospheric. And the fresh flowers just stole my heart! Elena Obraztsova is a legend of the world opera. She made a tremendous contribution to the Russian culture. It’s Elena Obraztsova’s energy that I personally find amazing. Unfortunately, I never had the chance to attend any of her recitals. I know that she has been here. People say her performance was fire! I find her amazing as a person and as a woman. That’s why today, it’s a double joy to me to take part in the festival dedicated to the memory of the great singer,” said Natalya Goncharova, a soloist of the theater. Tatyana Bogdanyuk, the co-hostess of the night, reminded us about the epigraph to the day – Elena Obraztsova’s quote that “the greatest joy in the world is to sing on the stage, to open your heart to other people.” As continuation of this thought, the program of this festival night touched all the hearts in the audience and filled them with warmth and light, with the joy of experiencing high art, the diversity of its genres and manifestations. All the performers were part of this success: the audience kept exclaiming “Bravo!” and “Encore!”

The final piece was Johann Strauss Sr.’s Radetzky March, played by the symphony orchestra and...the audience which was also “conducted” by Aleksandr Matushkin who invited them to applaud now piano then crescendo to the beat of the stately melody.

– “I don’t always have the chance to travel to Chelyabinsk to go the theater. That’s why I’m grateful to the organizers of the festival for the opportunity to experience the great art by attending such a major event. I’d like to thank all the performers for their wonderful art,” said Anna Filatova.

– I love live music, live performances. Unfortunately, I don’t go to theaters very often. I try to attend events such as this one when they are held in Satka. As for the Carmen Festival, our whole family are looking forward to it every year. Here, we always get quite a lot of impressions and emotions,” added Andrey Svechnikov.

Source: Magnezitovets Photo by Vasily Maksimov.