Musical Theater named after. Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko dreamed of having his own children's choir for many years. Children’s participation was demanded by “Carmen”, “La Bohème”, “The Nutcracker”, “The Tale of Tsar Saltan”, “Tosca”... And in February 2004, two dozen excited parents brought two dozen frisky and much less excited children to an audition. The wish turned into reality, and children's voices began to ring in the classrooms and corridors of the theater, which had not yet been opened after the reconstruction. And soon the first performance took place. May 6, 2006 in the Hall. Tchaikovsky's opera troupe of the Musical Theater presented a concert performance of the opera "Carmen" in French and with spoken dialogues. This day became the birthday of the children's choir, its first participation in the play, albeit not yet on its native stage.
And since the fall of 2006, when the theater opened after reconstruction, classes, rehearsals and performances have become real adult work. They now perfectly understood what stage and orchestral rehearsals were, they learned to perform the most difficult director's tasks, they knew that they had to come to make-up in advance and also learned many other theatrical secrets.
Now, more than 10 years later, our children's choir is real, experienced artists. They themselves can tell a lot about the theater, introducing the choir recruits to the secrets. They not only take part in theatrical performances, but also perform solo choir concerts. And adult artists, directors, and conductors now know for sure that the theater cannot do without a children’s choir. The children's choir takes part in theater performances: "
"
, "
"
, "
"
,
" ", " ", "
"
, "
"
, "
"
, "
"
, "
"
.
Children's choir directors: Tatyana Leonova, Marina Oleynik, Alla Baykova.
The children's choir includes children aged 9 to 14 years.Class days: Tuesday and Saturday.
Schedule:
Tuesday:
17.00 – 18.30 (choir – junior and senior groups)
18.30 – choreography
Saturday:
16.00 – 17.00 (choir – junior group)
17.00 – general choir
ANNOUNCEMENTS AND SCHEDULE:
Dear parents, congratulations to everyone on the beginning of the new season! We wish you good health and creative energy throughout the year!
FOR NEW KINDS:
Bring children to class 10-15 minutes before the start. You need to have spare shoes and a choir folder with you. Parents are prohibited from entering the theater (except for parent-teacher meetings).
Performances of the first half of the year:
29.10 (Tuesday) – no classes
NOVEMBER
1.11 (Friday) – rehearsal of the play “Aladdin’s Magic Lamp” from 11:30 to 14:30
2.11 (Saturday) – no classes
9.11. (Saturday) - NO CHORUS CLASSES, performance "Aladdin's Magic Lamp" ("Tomboys" gathering at 12:00, busy until 4:30 p.m., "Emeralds" gathering at 2:00 p.m., busy until 4:30 p.m.)
13.11. (Wednesday) – performance “Tosca”
DECEMBER
07.12. (Saturday) – performance “The Queen of Spades”
11.12. (Wednesday) – performance "Othello"
12.12. (Thursday) – performance “The Nutcracker”
13.12. (Friday) – performance “The Nutcracker”
25.12. (Wednesday) – performance “Aida”
26.12. (Thursday) – performance “Aida”
27.12. (Friday) – performance “La Bohème”
28.12. (Saturday) – morning and evening performance of “The Nutcracker”
29.12. (Sunday) – morning and evening performance of “The Nutcracker”
30.12. (Monday) – morning and evening performance of “The Nutcracker”
31.12. (Tuesday) – morning and evening performance “The Nutcracker”
For questions, please email the choir inspector
All performances may have additional rehearsals. Class times and days are subject to change!
BIG THEATER
After returning from Germany, Rita found herself without work and without means of subsistence. By the time the singer arrived, another monetary reform in the country had devalued all her savings, which were in rubles. Friends at the conservatory suggested that she audition directly for the Bolshoi Theater. If they don’t accept you, you’ll go to another one.
“Rit, you just underestimate yourself,” they told her. - With such a voice you will shine on the stages of La Scala and Covent Garden.
But Rita was very self-critical of herself: “No, no,” she thought, “only very talented singers sing at the Bolshoi, such as Tamara Sinyavskaya, Elena Obraztsova, Evgeny Nesterenko, and who am I? No, that’s out of the question.” On one of these cloudy days, Rita received a call from her conservatory classmate Elena Bryleva. She was already singing at the Bolshoi Theater then, and says:
- Rita, we are starting a tour in Germany soon. Would you like to come with us? We are going under the heading: “Soloists of the Bolshoi Theater present!”.
Rita initially began to refuse:
- Lena, due to the fact that I am not a soloist of the Bolshoi, I will not be able to go. How to deceive people?
- Come on, be modest! You'll sing the best there. Nobody will notice. You see, we urgently need to replace one singer!
And Bryleva showed the conservatory recordings of the impresario, Rita was approved for the concert program. In Germany, she performed individual arias from operas and romances no worse than theater soloists. Therefore, during the tour, the guys from the troupe liked her so much that upon returning home, they took her under their wing and brought her to the theater to audition. It was the middle of the year. All competitions have long passed. But eminent soloists, especially Vladimir Bogachev, insisted to K. I. Baskov and E. T. Raikov, the leaders of the opera troupe, that they meet with Rita. And after a successful audition, she was accepted into the Bolshoi Theater as a trainee, but without a salary.
- You sing for now as a trainee, and by spring you will pass the competition along with everyone else.
There was no limit to the joy in her soul. A wave of feelings and emotions splashed out. This was a very big milestone that she had to take on the path of her solo career. At home she shouted from the doorway:
- Mom, I was accepted as an intern at the Bolshoi Theater!!!
“It can’t be,” said the mother and sat down on a chair.
...Big theater! So that's what you are, a giant with a front colonnade and a quadriga on the pediment, ruled by Apollo. One of the best theaters in the world, a treasure of musical art.
“To be an opera singer today is to be able to re-create the stage image of the era when the opera was written, to convey to the viewer the embodiment of the synthesis of music and drama. - Rita thought. - One voice is not enough, you also have to be a real artist. You just have to imagine that more than two thousand people are looking at you from a gilded hall with numerous tiers, it’s so breathtaking. Will I be able to show myself adequately on stage? And Rita plunged headlong into the difficult life of the theater, with all its intrigues, undercurrents, and the struggle for survival.
The Bolshoi Theater has always been under the patronage of the state. No wonder it was called Imperial, and now Academic, State. At one time, Stalin loved to patronize the theater, like the Tsar Father to his serf artists. Then the Tsar died. Long live the new Tsar! But serfdom towards the soloists of the theater troupe remained.
In subsequent years, the attitude towards the Bolshoi changed for the worse: the high rates for the first soloists disappeared, and the size of the pension dropped significantly. For the same money it was possible to go on stage less often, and leading artists flocked to the theater clinic to get sick leave. Then the same “school” of the best voices in Russia began to fly to “warmer regions” - to the west, where the artist’s material conditions are an order of magnitude higher. There was a “drain” of brains, voices and other important organs of the human factor in the country. What will remain? But what remains is what we will live with! And since that time, the Bolshoi Theater has been slowly going downhill: the ill-conceived repertoire policy of the opera directors, the low level of vocalists. As the new artistic director and chief conductor of the theater Gennady Rozhdestvensky said, spectators come to the theater mainly not to watch the performance, but to admire the gilded walls of the hall and the huge crystal chandelier."
...But six months have passed since Rita has been working here. During this time, she played various small roles on stage in operas. However, in Iolanta, which was performed two or three times a week, she managed to sing the part of Laura. The conductors already knew her vocal abilities and, when it came to the competition in the spring of 1993, she was allowed to come straight to the third round, bypassing the two previous qualifying rounds. The day before the competition, a bell rang in the apartment. Rita picked up the phone; a friend of the theater soloists was calling. There are disservices, and this is some kind of crocodile advice:
- If you don’t give money to someone who needs it, then know that they won’t accept you!
- But I don’t have them! - Rita answered in a fallen voice.
And how can they be if an intern in a theater works without any salary at all? My parents never had extra money. Maybe borrow from friends? No, I won't! Come what may! And in upset feelings I went to the competition.
The third round took place on the main stage of the theater. You have to sing with an orchestra without rehearsal, just look at the conductor, who will show all the introductions and determine the tempo. This competition is held throughout the country. Hundreds of vocalists take part in it, but only a few people reach the third round, who were sitting in the hall and tremblingly awaiting their fate. Rita decided to sing Rosina's aria from the opera The Barber of Seville. The excitement did not go away, but rather grew as the entrance to the stage approached. It's no joke to become a soloist of the Bolshoi Theater. She tried to focus only on the aria, but all sorts of disturbing thoughts kept popping into her head. Damn this money! Forward, and with your head held high! And Rita did as her teacher Nina Lvovna taught her: she got up early (she still couldn’t sleep), came to the theater two hours before and sang for about an hour. Before going on stage, her voice already sounded great, but excitement took over again when her appearance was announced. Her legs became weak, internal tension grew, and she thought to herself: “Lord, just don’t forget the words!” The aria was learned three days before the competition. But the experience of performing in the Children's Choir and from the stage of the Bolshoi Theater as an intern took its toll. Rita pulled herself together, calmed down and put so much emotion and inspiration into the aria that her voice sounded beautiful and bright. She pronounced every word clearly, sending the sound to the farthest point of the hall.
“In the silence of midnight, your voice sang sweetly to me, It awakened many new dormant forces in my heart...” Rita performed Rosina’s Cavatina in Italian at a calm “Moderato” tempo and felt how the hall froze, how attentively the jury members listened. The voice disintegrated into a thousand small discords. The major turned to minor, then a sad adagio began. And after the quiet sounds of the night, a new wave of sounds of a sunny day came. “I don’t care about obstacles, I’ll put them on my own!” I will get along with my guardian, he will be my slave! Oh, Lindor, my gentle friend, I will not part with you!..” When she finished singing the last note, there was literally a dead pause in the hall for just a second, which seemed like an eternity to Rita, and the next moment it seemed to explode with applause. Stomping, screaming. The orchestra gave her a standing ovation: “Bravo, Maruna!” And Rita realized - this is a victory! Luck did not betray her this time either: contrary to all the forecasts of various “well-wishers,” fortune was on her side. She left the stage like in a dream. They asked her something, they congratulated her, but she didn’t remember anything. And when the jury announced that mezzo-soprano Margarita Maruna had been accepted immediately as a soloist into the theater’s opera troupe, without having to undergo an internship, Rita was simply shocked. As if all this was not happening to her. She couldn’t believe what had happened, or her success.
- Has the miracle that I wished for the New Year really happened?!
At the time of admission, Rita was already twenty-eight years old. Great opportunities lay ahead. Which path will she choose? How favorable will fate be to her in the future? These and other questions swarmed in her head. Olga Kurzhumova (soprano) entered the theater competition together with Rita. They will become friends. Rita will introduce her to a wonderful young musician from the theater - Stas Katenin, and will be the godmother of their little Klim...
Rita came to the theater at a time when the next wave of emigration of the best singers abroad had ended. There are still patriots at the Bolshoi who continue the traditions of the Russian school, despite all sorts of difficulties.
From the first days of working in the theater as a soloist, Rita studied new parts intensely at daily rehearsals. Over the next year, she played and sang such roles at the Bolshoi Theater as Laura in Iolanta by P. Tchaikovsky, Flora in La Traviata by G. Verdi, Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro by W. A. Mozart, Laura in The Stone Guest "A. Dargomyzhsky, Olga in "Eugene Onegin" by P. Tchaikovsky, Smeraldina the Blacka in "Love for Three Oranges" by S. Prokofiev. After listening to the parts of Lyubasha from the opera “The Tsar’s Bride” and Polina from “The Queen of Spades,” the theater conductor Andrei Nikolaevich Chistyakov invited Rita to go to the conductor’s room. He asked her to tell about herself, where she studied, who was her teacher. And then he said:
- Rita, you sing excellently. I would take you to all my performances right now, but I can’t: they’ll just devour me. Please wait a few years. Your time will come, and we will definitely work with you again.
Rita was accepted into the theater when V.M. Kokonin was its General Director, and A.N. Lazarev was the Chief Conductor. Then he was replaced by V.V. Vasiliev, and in 2000 G.N. Rozhdestvensky came. G. Iksanov became the General Director. A., and the main conductor of the theater is Ermler M.F.
The Bolshoi Theater is like a huge golden beehive, united into a single creative team. Here every person is a professional in his field. For more than two centuries, the theater has developed its own conservative laws and established strict rules. It seemed that behind the oak doors a completely different life was taking place, distinguished by its dynamics, bustle, and changes in power. It's just a state within a state.
The chief conductor and directors of opera and ballet have unlimited power over the artists, who can afford a lot in relation to their subordinates: early dismissal, despite the contract, and rudeness, regardless of the age, experience and skill of the soloist. Artists are people with exposed nerves, with “thin skin.” They are very sensitive to any manifestations: both good and bad addressed to them. And therefore, for the slightest positive attitude towards himself, the artist is ready to turn himself inside out while working on the role. And, on the contrary, with every unfair attitude towards himself, he can get a nervous breakdown or even a heart attack, which leads to loss of voice in singers or non-closure of ligaments or other occupational diseases, and in ballet dancers - pain in the back, arms and legs. How many times have soloists become hysterical after a performance because of rude, even fair, management? No one knows about this and will never know, but it happens to almost everyone. It is not without reason that they say that any artist must first be praised, praised and praised, and only then, very gently, pointed out his mistakes in his work.
For some time now, an unusual and difficult situation has developed in the theater. Why did this happen at the Bolshoi? Maybe someone will benefit from this!?! Conservative forms of government and the absence of a multi-talented leader - the new Diaghilev - led the once best theater in the country into decline.
Rita studied and recognized the artists and employees. She liked some, some didn’t, but she tried to stay on level terms with everyone, taking from them everything positive and valuable. She had to perform in performances with such famous soloists as M. Kasrashvili (soprano), V. Motorin, E. Nesterenko (bass), Y. Mazurok (baritone), Z. Sotkilava, V. Tarashchenko, V. Voinorovsky (tenor) and other wonderful vocalists. I had to work with such conductors as Chistyakov, P. Sorokin, A. Stepanov, P. Ferants, F. Mansurov and many other wonderful musicians.
For some time now, a contract system on Western principles has been introduced at the Bolshoi Theater, although it is of a formal nature. The contract is concluded for a season, that is, for ten months. The soloist must be constantly prepared for the fact that he will be called to a rehearsal or to replace a sick artist in a performance at any time of the day, so everyone must be within telephone or mobile communication with the theater office.
To participate in the performance, the artist must audition at the competition and, after approval of your candidacy by the director or theater conductor, sign a contract. In the theater there are no restrictions on rehearsals or lessons with accompanists; study as much as you need. Rita worked mainly with pianists Valery Gerasimov, Alla Osipenko and Marina Agafonnikova - excellent musicians. After a few years, she knew almost all the parts written for her voice. There is a bad omen for soloists: if in an opera you stumble on a note once, then almost always the soloist will have a quirk at this point, and he will overcome this line with great difficulty. One day one of the employees at the theater asked Rita:
- What is your interesting surname? Ma-ru-na!? Are you by any chance Moldovan?
- Almost yes! The gypsy blood just boils in me! I sing and play Carmen without makeup!
“Carmen” is Rita’s favorite part, and the pearl in it is “Habanera”. Every woman is Carmen at heart. But Wiese's Carmen does not love Jose until her last breath. A woman like Carmen cannot love a man for long. She is a gypsy and loves freedom more than Jose.
Rita perceived the new role as another offer of a new life. She reproduced the feelings and emotions of her hero, experiencing his life with him. Stanislavsky’s system is a system of “experience”, this is how they were trained at the conservatory, and experience came from performance to performance.
Performing on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater or at concerts, Rita always sought to instill a love of classical music in her listeners with her performance. She sang with her soul, captivating the audience. Of course, she understood that opera is mainly for the rich and intelligentsia; the audience for opera has always been small: not everyone understands classical vocals. The difficult legacy of communist times, when classical music was played mainly when one of the leaders of the CPSU died, also has an impact. And today it is difficult to rebuild the subconscious of the Russian people, who sometimes associate the classics with a funeral march. But, nevertheless, the public gladly goes to concerts to listen to opera singers Lyubov Kazarnovskaya and Nikolai Baskov. Opera is a very expensive and expensive pleasure. Even sold-out performances do not pay for themselves, so they must be subsidized in order to somehow stay afloat.
An artist does not necessarily need to have his own theater. You can work with different teams under a contract. But an artist must have his own audience, which adores him and without which the artist is not an artist.
Lately, Rita has increasingly come to the conclusion that a good modern singer can and should work in different musical genres: classics, romance, folk songs, with a chamber choir, lyrical pop music. The repertoire at the Bolshoi Theater opera is limited; young soloists also want modern music.
One leading singer was told every time after her performance: “You sang great today as always!” However, professionals know that no singer sings great all the time, and there are many reasons for this, especially for women.
Opera soloist Sergei Gaidei (tenor) recalled that once in the performance one pretty soprano diligently sang to the audience in a love scene with a cold gaze, turning away from her lover. Who will believe her that she loves him?
A star should not only shine from the stage, but also warm the viewer’s soul with its singing.
And yet, fans and soloists of the Bolshoi live in the hope that along with the major renovation of the theater, not only the foundation and walls will be renewed, but the level of the best theater in the country will rise to the proper height.
Currently, the choir successfully combines theatrical performances with independent...
The Bolshoi Theater Children's Choir has existed as an independent group since 1920. The team took part in many opera and ballet productions of the theater: “The Queen of Spades”, “Eugene Onegin”, “The Nutcracker”, “Khovanshchina”, “Boris Godunov”, “That’s What Everybody Do”, “Carmen”, “La Boheme”, “Tosca” ", "Turandot", "Der Rosenkavalier", "Wozzeck", "Fire Angel", "Child and Magic", "Moidodyr", "Ivan the Terrible" and others.
Currently, the choir successfully combines theatrical performances with independent concert activities. The unique sound of the voices of young artists of the Bolshoi Theater was heard in all the halls of the Moscow Conservatory, in the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall, the Moscow International House of Music, the Central House of Artists, in the halls of the museums named after A. S. Pushkin, named after M. I. Glinka and other audiences. The team is constantly invited to participate in special events, government concerts and other cultural events (Day of Slavic Literature, Year of Culture in Russia, etc.). The choir's tours in Germany, Italy, Estonia, Japan, South Korea and other countries were a great success.
Leading soloists of the Bolshoi Theater take part in many concerts of the Children's Choir. The team collaborated with famous Russian orchestras - the Russian National Orchestra, the Moscow Symphony Orchestra "Russian Philharmonic", the National Academic Orchestra of Folk Instruments of Russia named after N.P. Osipov and, of course, the Bolshoi Theater Symphony Orchestra.
The choir's repertoire includes European and Russian, sacred and secular music of the 15th-20th centuries. The Bolshoi Theater Children's Choir has recorded several CDs, including two albums of Christmas carols, and concert programs with pianists V. Krainev and M. Bank.
Classes in the choir allow its students to enter higher musical educational institutions. Many of them become laureates of vocal competitions, many among former children's choir artists and leading soloists of opera houses, including soloists of the Bolshoi Theater.
Leads the choir Yulia Molchanova. A graduate of the Moscow Conservatory (class of Professor B.I. Kulikov), since 2000 she has been the choirmaster of the Bolshoi Theater, and since 2004 she has headed the Children's Choir. She took part as a choirmaster of adult and children's choirs in all repertoire performances and concert activities of the choir. She performed as a conductor in all halls of the Moscow Conservatory. Awarded a certificate of honor from the Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation.
On the eve of the anniversary of the Department of Choral Conducting of the Moscow Conservatory. P.I. Tchaikovsky, celebrating its 90th anniversary next year, the Orpheus radio station is beginning a series of interviews with artists and graduates of the renowned department. In the first issue of the anniversary series - a meeting with Yulia Molchanova, the director of the children's choir at the Bolshoi Theater.
- Yulia Igorevna, please tell us what is the history of the children’s choir at the Bolshoi Theater?
The children's choir is one of the oldest groups of the Bolshoi Theater, almost 90 years old. The appearance of the children's choir dates back to 1925-1930. Initially, it was a group of children of theater artists who took part in opera performances, because almost every opera performance has a part for a children's choir. Later, when the theater was evacuated during the Great Patriotic War, a professional creative group of the Bolshoi Theater children's choir was formed, and a strict selection process began for its groups. After which the choir received powerful creative development, and today it is a bright, strong group, which, in addition to participating in theatrical performances, now also performs in concert halls not only with the Bolshoi Theater orchestra, but also with other famous orchestras and conductors.
- That is, the children's choir is not tied only to theater performances?
Of course, the choir is closely connected with the theater, but in addition to theatrical activities, it also conducts active independent concert activities. We perform with major Moscow orchestras, we are invited to significant concerts both in Russia and abroad. The choir has its own solo program, with which we have traveled abroad several times: to Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Japan.
- Does the choir go on tour with the theater?
No not always. Since it is quite difficult to take a children’s troupe on theater tours. On tour, the theater usually performs with a local children's group. To do this, I arrive in advance, and in about a week or a week and a half I study with the local children’s choir, learn the parts with them, and introduce them into the performance. And by the time our theater troupe arrives, local children are already well versed in the repertoire. This is also part of my job as a choirmaster.
- Are there many people in the Bolshoi Theater children’s choir today?
Today there are about 60 people in the choir. It is clear that all the guys go to performances together extremely rarely, because different performances require a completely different number of choir members.
- What composition does the team usually have on tour?
The optimal number is 40-45 people. It doesn’t make sense to take a smaller roster (after all, you need to understand that someone may get sick, someone for some reason will suddenly not be able to perform), and taking more than 45 people is also not good - this is already overload.
- How do you resolve the issue of parental permission for children under 18 to travel?
Here, of course, we have worked out everything for a long time. We take children abroad from the age of six. In addition to the conductor, a doctor, an inspector and an administrator must travel with the group. Of course, touring greatly brings the team together. Whenever there is preparation for a tour and the tour itself, the children become friendlier and more independent. Although, of course, we generally have a very friendly team; the children have a common goal and idea, which they treat very touchingly and with care.
As you know, the process of “breaking your voice” goes differently for everyone. We have very good sound performers in the theater, and children have the opportunity to attend them. In addition, I myself also monitor this moment very carefully, and if the withdrawal is quite serious and is difficult, then, of course, you need to be silent for a while.. In this case, the children really go on a short academic leave. If the withdrawal occurs smoothly, then we gradually transfer the child to lower voices. For example, if a boy sang soprano and had a treble, and then his voice gradually lowers, then the child switches to altos. Usually this process occurs quite calmly. In girls, if they sing with the correct sound production and if their breathing is correct, as a rule, no problems with “voice breaking” arise.
Has it ever happened that the children of your group, who in principle are aimed at the classical repertoire, suddenly start going to pop vocal studios? Or is this basically impossible?
Here, rather, the opposite happens. There have been cases when people from various children's pop groups came to audition for us and we even took some children into our team. It is clear that pop and classical vocal directions are still different, so it is impossible to combine them. This is difficult for a child too because of the difference in singing style. Let me note that we are not talking now which style of singing is better or worse. We are only talking about the fact that the directions are different, so it is almost impossible to combine them, and I don’t think it’s necessary.
- Yulia Igorevna, please tell us about the rehearsal schedule?
We, of course, try to adhere to a single schedule; most of our rehearsals take place in the evening. But situations are different. We, of course, are very tied to the theater schedule, so if there are orchestral rehearsals (for example, morning ones), then it is quite understandable that children are called to them. Or if children are involved in a production, they are also called to the performance according to the schedule in which it appears on the playbill. Example: when the opera “Turandot” was on (in which some of the children sing, and some of the children dance on stage), the children were busy literally every other day. And there's nothing you can do about it. But when the production is over, we, of course, give the children a few days to rest.
- It is clear that the choir is for children. There are probably some organizational difficulties associated with this?
Of course, there are certain difficulties in the organization, but I want to emphasize that despite the fact that the team is for children, I immediately try to accustom them to the fact that they are already adults. Since they came to the theater, they are already artists, which means that they already have a certain share of responsibility. I try to raise them in such a way that here they should behave like adult artists. Firstly, it has to do with going on stage, the scenery, and discipline. That is, with great responsibility. Because when you go out somewhere in a kindergarten or at school to read a poem, it’s one thing, and completely different when you go on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater. In any case, this is very obliging. That is why they should feel like adult artists, feel responsible for every movement made and word sung and it seems to me that even small children at 6-7 years old very quickly become adults and, in general, feel their responsibility.
- Are there any restrictions on food before a rehearsal or performance? Can they eat everything?
Of course, in ordinary life they eat everything, like ordinary children. Although during performances, when the theater feeds them (children are given special coupons for which they can take some food for a certain amount). These days I specifically go to the buffet and warn that the children have a performance today, so I categorically forbid selling sparkling water and chips to children. As you know, this is what children usually buy at the buffet instead of, for example, taking a full lunch.
This is bad for the ligaments; chips cause a sore throat, hoarseness, and carbonated sweet water really “harms the voice”; the voice becomes hoarse.
- Besides serious everyday life, there are probably some funny incidents?
Yes, of course, there are a lot of such cases. For example, during the opera Boris Godunov, children participate in a scene at St. Basil's Cathedral (where they sing with the Holy Fool). In this scene, children play beggars, ragamuffins, and they are made up accordingly they are dressed in special rags, bruises, abrasions, and characteristic pallor are painted on them And before this exit there is a scene of a completely different nature a ball at Marina Mnishek, a scene at the fountain with very magnificent in solemn outfits depicting the richest audience, and in the middle of the stage there is a beautiful fountain. Before the start of this picture, the curtain, of course, is closed and so the children, having already dressed up as ragamuffins for their next appearance, went backstage - they are interested in seeing - there is a real fountain here! And so they, in their costumes of beggars, ran up to the fountain and began splashing in the water, catching something from there and the stage director, not seeing the children on stage, gave the command to raise the curtain And now imagine the curtain opens - the secular audience, the expensive decoration of the palace, everything sparkles and there are about ten hungry people washing and splashing in this fountain.. it was very funny
- I wonder if there is also a make-up artist for children?
Make-up artists and costume designers are a must. Everything is like in adults. They are made up in a special way, they are helped to dress and figure out the costume. The costume designers, of course, make sure that all the children are ready to go for the required scene. Moreover! When a new production comes out, each of them has their own costume made, the children go to fittings, this is also always very interesting for them.
- Have there been cases when a children’s choir grew into soloists?
Certainly! It’s quite natural - children who start working here become very attached to the theater. After all, the theater is very attractive. And, as a rule, many children who came here try to further connect their fate with music. Therefore, many then enter music schools, conservatories, and institutes. Children here sing very well, have the opportunity to listen to leading opera stars, sing with them in the same performance, and learn stage skills from them. Some from the children's choir then move on to the adult choir, some become a soloist, some become an orchestra artist In general, many return to the theater in one way or another, or simply connect their lives with music.
- Until what age can a young artist sing in a children's choir?
Up to 17-18 years old. If there is a desire to continue singing, already in an adult choir, then in this case, of course, they need, just like everyone else, to pass the qualifying competition for an adult choir. To join an adult choir, you must already have a musical education. At least a music school. And you can join an adult choir from the age of 20.
- Probably all members of the children's choir receive music education in music schools?
Of course, definitely. Almost all children study in music schools. This is, after all, a theater, not a music school. The choir is an absolutely concert group and, of course, we do not have such subjects as solfeggio, rhythmics, harmony in our program Naturally, children should study at a music school, and it is very good when they study there.
- As far as I know, you yourself also sang in the Bolshoi Theater choir as a child?
Yes, for quite a long time I sang in the children's choir of the Bolshoi Theater. In addition, the director of the adult choir, Elena Uzkaya, was also an artist in the Bolshoi Theater children's choir as a child. For me personally, singing in a children's choir largely determined my future destiny.
- Yulia Igorevna, are your parents musicians?
No. Although my dad is a very talented person. Plays the piano beautifully and improvises. He is very musical. Although he has a completely technical education.
- What was your path to the profession?
I studied piano at regular music school No. 50, then through a competition (there was a very serious competition several rounds) I entered the children's choir of the Bolshoi Theater. Then she began to study more seriously, first entered the music school and then the Moscow Conservatory as a choir conductor (to class of Professor Boris IvanovichKulikova, - approx. author).
Children are busy all the time on different days different groups, you call separate ensembles for rehearsals Do you personally have fixed days off?
Yes. I have one day off like in the whole theater Monday.
Interviewed by special correspondent of Radio Orpheus Ekaterina Andreas
