XXII Safonov Academic Music Festival - a tribute to the memory of the great fellow countryman Automatic translate

KISLOVODSK. The resort city met the first participants and guests of the XXII Safonov International Festival of Academic Music.

The history of the old Safonovs is inextricably linked with the south of Russia. In the village of Ishcherskaya, the lieutenant general of the Cossack army Ilya Ivanovich Safonov was born. Here, on the banks of the Terek, his son Vasily was born - one of the best conductors of his time, a brilliant pianist, author of the textbook “Formula for Playing the Piano”. A teacher from God, he brought up many brilliant musicians, including Gedike, Scriabin, Leonid Nikolaev (future mentor of Shostakovich), Metner. Most of them graduated from the Moscow Conservatory, whose director and professor was Vasily Ilyich for a long time, with a gold medal.

Among the excellent students was Rosina Lhévinne, a teacher of Harvey Lavan “Van” Cliburn, a teacher at the Juilliard School of Music. The first winner of the Tchaikovsky competition called himself the grandson of the Moscow Conservatory and its terrific leader - Vasily Ilyich Safonov. Shortly before his death (Cliburn died in 2012 from a bone sarcoma), an American pianist transferred the proceeds from the sale of a family heirloom - an old piano, in favor of Juilliard School and the Moscow Conservatory.

In Kislovodsk, Safonov’s daughters were born - Anna Timireva, the last love of Admiral Kolchak, and Olga, actress, artist, student of Petrov-Vodkin. Here the great musician passed away in the tragic 1918 and is buried in one of the local cemeteries.

The appearance of the Spa Hall in Kislovodsk (project by Eugene Descubes) - a real cultural center with spacious rooms for theatrical performances, classical music concerts, dance evenings, with a restaurant and library - is the merit of Vasily Ilyich. After his appeal to the shareholders of the Vladikavkaz railway, sufficient funds were allocated to erect a magnificent building in the resort city. Today the State Philharmonic Hall with two concert halls is located here. The big one bears the name of Safonov, the Small one, attached in 1972, is the name of Scriabin. Rachmaninov and Chaliapin, Glazunov and Sobinov, Oistrakh and Rostropovich, Kuprin and Richter visited these walls.

Holding the annual memorial festival of academic music in Kislovodsk is a tribute to the great fellow countryman. On July 1, the opening of the XXII season took place under the name “Music is the time of genius”. At its opening, accompanied by the Academic Symphony Orchestra. Safonova with great success were the finalist of the television show "Grand Opera" Marika Machitidze and the winner of the 3rd prize Yuri Gorodetsky. They performed arias from the best operas of the world repertoire. Ahead are dozens of concerts and the main premiere of the season is Puccini’s Tosca, directed by Italian director Diego Willy Korn and Swiss conductor Peter Nikiforov.

Elena Tanakova © Gallerix.ru