The point, indeed, is not about Syria. And not in the “bonus” 5 million rubles (a drop in the ocean of the conductor’s capital, which he earned in 2015, as follows from his declaration, 130 million rubles). Gergiev is one of those few people close to Putin who are sincerely welcomed all over the world. Gergiev is a genius conducting an ordinary toothpick. He is also wise and cunning in an oriental way. And he is excellent at capitalizing on his own talent.
Employed the whole family
For 20 years now, Valery Abisalovich has been the artistic director-director Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg. Since then, the conductor has employed almost all of his Ossetian relatives, acquired high-ranking friends, children (three were born in the current marriage. - Author) and everyday chores. As the musician himself noted, “I had to learn to negotiate - with sponsors and the state.”
Gergiev’s biggest headache was the construction of the Mariinsky Theater concert hall (its director is her husband younger sister maestro Svetlana Gergieva - Tamerlan Gugkaev. The elder sister, Larisa Gergieva, runs the Academy of Young Singers of the Mariinsky Theater) and the long-suffering Second Stage. Mariinsky-2, born with incredible difficulty (architects and contractors were changed more than once), cost the budget 22 billion rubles. The Auditors of the Accounts Chamber only gasped at the double increase in the original estimate. Following them, St. Petersburg residents gasped, including the expert Piotrovsky: how could they spend so much money on such an “ugliness”?! For what Alexey Kudrin without blinking an eye, he announced the allocation of an additional 25 million dollars for the maintenance of the theater: “Even after I left the Ministry of Finance, it continued to support the Mariinsky Theater.”
Hermitage, don't be jealous! There are things more valuable than money. For example, friendship. The newly approached Kudrin is a great friend of Gergiev. Like German Gref. They are co-chairs of the Mariinsky Board of Trustees and always, regardless of their positions, support charitable foundation Valeria Gergiev. The same one from which, in 2009–2010, its director Igor Zotov with his accomplice Kazbek Lakuti, according to investigators, stole 245 million rubles. Zotov claimed that he transferred the money to Gergiev’s account at the request of his boss (he denied everything), and was imprisoned for 8 years. “This is your time, Kazbek!” - Zotov shouted after the verdict was announced. Lakuti received a suspended sentence. There are things more important than evidence. For example, gratitude. Kazbek is Valery Gergiev's cousin. His father, Boris Lakuti, took care of the Gergiev family after Valery (at the age of 13) lost his father.
Black bathhouse with cello
Needless to say, for the past 20 years, Gergiev, thanks to the Mariinsky Theater, has been successfully using endless budget funds. But he also makes money. In 2015 net profit theater amounted to 800 million rubles. Against this background, a fresh, May, government contract with another relative of the maestro, 30-year-old nephew-conductor Zaurbek Gugkaev, for 585,000 rubles - pennies.
The state supports Gergiev's Stars of the White Nights festival. And also the “Moscow Easter Festival”, which appeared on the initiative of the maestro. The Mariinsky Orchestra with its main star - the conductor - travels around Russia on a special train every year, and the regions regularly conclude government contracts with the only performer (Gergiev Foundation). In 2016, the Udmurt Philharmonic forced 5,000,000 rubles, Sverdlovsk - at 2.547.500 rubles, Nizhny Novgorod - at 4.500,000 rubles, Tomsk - at 7,000,000 rubles, Kemerovskaya - by 3.000.000 rubles, Tatarstan - at 6,000.000.000.000.000.000 rubles, Perm - for 4,000,000 rubles, the Ministry of Culture is not a stranger to Gergiev North Ossetia- Alanya - only 2,100,000 “wooden”.
In 2015, the conductor headed the Munich Philharmonic orchestra (the contract was signed until 2020). But the maestro’s main source of income is his performances, mainly abroad - he receives fees for them in euros. Sobesednik.ru got acquainted with Gergiev’s tour schedule until the end of this year and couldn’t believe his eyes: he conducts every day! Moreover, he often gives two or even three (!) concerts in a day.
However, we did find one window for Gergiev: in mid-August he performs in Finland, followed by a two-week break. Then another concert in Sweden - and again a free week. According to Finnish media reports, Valery Abisalovich has long chosen a resort place on the shore of the lake - the cottage complex Härkäniemen Tuvat (“Bull Cape”) and brings his family here every summer. And also friends. This is what the maestro said on air at Posner: “I am the president of the Finnish Black Sauna Society... We accept one, maximum two per year as knights of the Black Sauna... from those people who have proven that they are worthy, at the piano or on the stage, with the violin or with cello in hand."
Turkey business
Gergiev also has a completely unexpected business - the Eurodon company, the largest producer and processor of turkey meat in Russia. The musician received 15% of the shares, one might say, for a good service. He once introduced entrepreneur Vadim Vaneev, a native of South Ossetia, to the right person - Andrey Kostin, Chairman of the Board of VTB Bank. Things took off right away. Over the past 6 years, Eurodon, thanks to loans, has grown into a giant; in 2014, its net revenue amounted, according to SPARK, 333 million rubles. All the raspberries were almost ruined last year by the third shareholder - a member of the board of directors of Gazprom, former minister property relations in Russia Farit Gazizullin. He transferred his share to an offshore company, which sued Vaneev and almost took away the business. He, they say, again turned to the maestro, who allegedly reached the president himself. Did you get there or didn’t you get there? Who knows. But the conflict resolved. Suspects of attempts to take over Eurodon through fraudulent means detained. There are things stronger than any mafia. For example, common interests.
Imperial spirit
And back in 2013, Gergiev proposed to the president to revive the All-Russian Choral Society (before the revolution - the Imperial Russian musical society). And he himself headed the non-profit partnership. As follows from the protocols published on the website of the Ministry of Culture, NP “VHO” regularly wins competitions for subsidies. Thus, in 2013, Gergiev’s bid to host the All-Russian Show was won choir groups for the formation of the combined children's choir of Russia (9 million rubles) and preparation and provision of performance of the combined children's choir of Russia at the closing ceremony of the winter Olympic Games 2014 in Sochi (150 million rubles). In 2014, the WMO allocated another 8.4 million rubles for the performance Children's choir Russia in the Republic of Crimea. And 26.6 million rubles for holding the All-Russian Choir Festival. Another one profitable idea Gergiev, placed at the service of art, worked. And now Vladimir Medinsky promises to think “about transforming the All-Russian Choral Society into a public-state organization, which will allow us to take it to a qualitatively new level.” Simply put, open the way to the feeding trough.
The only enterprise in which Gergiev failed was the creation in St. Petersburg National Center arts The musician proposed to unite the Mariinsky Theater, the Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet, the St. Petersburg State Conservatory and the Russian Institute of Art History. The conductor emphasized the need to revive the Directorate imperial theaters. However, the expert community killed the “imperial” idea. Ex-director Russian Institute art history Tatyana Kalyavina saw to the root: “It is impossible to recreate the directorate without recreating the empire and the imperial leadership.”
Therefore, it’s a small matter.
From the editor
The editors of the newspaper Svobodny Vzglyad did not see any negative connotations in the publication of Sobesednik, and we decided to reprint it. This material is another confirmation of the aphorism “ Talented man“Talented in everything.” Besides the fact that Valery Abisalovich genius musician, he is also a successful businessman, knows how to be friends with top officials of the state, employs relatives...
A lot of money and a lot of “necessary connections” are exactly what is needed to finally begin construction of the Gergiev Music Center. Just not in the city center, but on its outskirts - as the absolute majority of Vladikavkaz residents want.
Therefore, it’s a small matter: listen to the voice of your people!
Larisa Gergieva is a frequent guest at our Opera and Ballet Theater. A legendary personality, no less famous than the “Chief Ossetian of the World” (we didn’t call it that, it was the audience who elevated him to that rank) - her brother Valery Gergiev. There is no particular need to introduce him: conductor, musician, director and artistic director Mariinsky Theater, chief conductor Munich Philharmonic Orchestra. But Larisa Abisalovna did not get lost in her brother’s shadow and wrote her name in world culture. Pianist, opera director, artistic director of the Mariinsky Theater Academy of Young Singers. It is difficult to remember anyone else who has done more for opera in Russia than she has.
Larisa Gergieva was born in Moldova, studied and worked in North Ossetia, received the title of People's Artist of Russia and Ukraine, and presented opera productions at all famous venues in the world. She is a person of peace. Moves across the planet, carrying on his shoulders the love of opera and uniting continents, peoples and cities. Three years ago she was awarded the Order of Friendship - for her personal contribution to the development of friendly relations between peoples, services in the development of global and national musical classics. Talking to her is like drinking from a spring. Calm, measured speech, deep voice, soft as a woman, but at the same time internally strong, she carries such a love for the art of opera that there is confidence: as long as Larisa Abisalovna Gergieva is doing this, there is no need to fear for this genre.
God grant that this lasts as long as possible.
ELITE IS THE PRESENCE OF AN OPERA THEATER
- Larisa Abisalovna, you are coming to Yakutsk for the fifth time. Bring opera performers from your academy, conduct master classes, audition our artists. Has anything changed since your first visit? Is there any progress or are we “stuck” in our Yakut opera school?- I always come to your republic with pleasure, because I know that meetings with interesting voices. The voices are truly rich in timbre, high quality, truly operatic in scale. I meet young people who want to succeed, who are passionate about opera, who dream of becoming professionals. You have a large number of singers and voices, with which your theater is rich.
And I would like to express this wish: that, despite the difficult times, the situation in which our country finds itself - let me emphasize! - first of all, it was culture, when it was especially difficult for provincial theaters to survive, that they paid more attention to these young talented guys who are not looking for an easy way, who do not go to sing karaoke, in nightclubs, having a voice. I travel around the country a lot and encounter this all the time.
The elite culture of a city, republic, region is primarily determined by the presence opera house. Exactly operatic! - as himself high genre an art in which many come together. It seems to me that, having an opera house, the authorities need to make as much effort as possible to make it flourish. So that young singers can go on internships, have the opportunity to receive consultations, creative assistance from the highest rank of specialists. It's about not only about specialists from St. Petersburg and Moscow, but also about foreign coaches - masters of Italian, German, French styles, if you are staging an opera in this language. The opportunity to invite not just native speakers, but people who are directly related to the art of opera will pay off handsomely in the future.
Now a special word has appeared - coaches, that is, trainers and tutors, but of the highest class.
She interrupts herself and begins to speak quickly:
- I am very worried that you will write my words of praise, and most importantly, omit them. And the most important thing is that they need help!
- Don’t worry, we won’t just voice praise...
- Now the management of the Yakut Opera Theater is making a lot of efforts to make your theater more famous in our country. There are several interesting ones, I would say tempting offers bring and show what you are rich in, in Moscow, in St. Petersburg - on the stage of the Mariinsky Theater, in Minsk. This is simply wonderful! Your Andrei Savvich, a wonderful director (Borisov - L.T.), staged the opera “Prince Igor”. It is described as a stunning epic performance. And now negotiations are underway to show it in the fall in St. Petersburg.
- But you understand that this is very large-scale and...
- This is very large-scale, and we must not take it lightly! We need to prepare for this, because the Mariinsky Theater is greatest theater in Europe, and the very first Russian operas were first shown on this stage.
And if the tour of the opera “Prince Igor” is scheduled for the fall, then we need to start now, right today, prepare very carefully: nurture the singers, polish the parts, do training, rehearse the parts-movements, check and clean every intonation! I want to say that you are far from big cities, it’s not easy to fly here, and accordingly, it’s not easy to take out the staff, costumes and scenery either. The preparation must be no less ambitious than the production itself. I really hope that the tour will be successful!
TATYANA LARINA CANNOT BE 50 YEARS OLD!
- You rush around the world like a rocket. Take singers, work with actors, stage performances. You came to Yakutsk from Europe.- Yes, I just returned from Bulgaria, I took part in the production of the opera “Eugene Onegin”, I was musical director international project with the participation of Russian, Bulgarian, Chinese and Romanian singers. It must be said that the interest in Russian opera in the world is now greater than ever! I really want to know, listen, and watch not only the operas that are staged in Moscow and St. Petersburg. I would like to see what life is like in other cities. Such visits on tour allow not only the audience to get acquainted with the theaters of the regions, but also the actors to breathe fresh air, present your art. I would like to say that among music lovers and connoisseurs of the opera genre, there is an opinion that Yakutia, like Buryatia, is rich in voices. And this is a completely correct opinion.
But this is not enough! It is also necessary to show culture and artistry, not just professional performing skills. And this is a real school specifically for young singers. It is very important for them not to stew in their own juices, to present themselves as best as possible more spectators, that’s what tours and creative trips are for. Show your artists to the world!
- In addition to the fact that you are a musician, accompanist, director, you are also an opera director...
Here Larisa Abisalovna begins to protest violently:
- Not the director, no!
- But you have a lot of opera productions! And what kind! All the cream of the musical classics: “The Tales of Hoffmann”, “Iolanta”, “The Snow Maiden”, “The Stone Guest”, “The Magic Flute”, “Il Trovatore”, “Carmen”... Yes, I can list them until the evening. (Larisa Abisalovna condescendingly agrees - well, yes, they say, I’ll bet). Tell me, which one is your favorite? Your brainchild, your pride.
- (Laughs). I want to say this: this is what I'm into this moment I do - that’s what I’m in love with. I am often invited to work on various world platforms precisely as a specialist in Russian classics and Russian style. Just in Sofia, for the thousandth time, I got carried away and fell in love with the opera “Eugene Onegin”. I think that this is one of the most brilliant Russian operas, and I am always simply happy to work on it. I hope that fate will give me this opportunity more than once. I also really love " Queen of Spades» Tchaikovsky. Probably, for the creator it is... like for a sculptor who sculpts a sculpture and cannot help but love it, like for anyone creative person what matters is what he is doing here and now.
- About “here”...
- Maybe someday I will be able to do something on your stage, who knows!
- You can’t imagine how happy we would be! We are happy for your every visit, you always bring amazing artists, but if you also stage a production here, the audience will be in seventh heaven! And our singers too.
- To be honest, I didn’t even expect that you had such amazing guys. One “but”: many, despite the presence of wonderful voices, lack finishing. It seems to me that it would be nice to strengthen the work of vocal accompanists who prepare the parts. More wishes to preparatory work, it determines the quality, the success of the performance depends on it. The accompanist is now a dying profession. They pay little, but the work is enormous! There is a lot of work, and I would like your accompanists to be supported: given the opportunity to go to seminars, so that they can travel with vocalists to competitions, communicate with colleagues, and grow to a world level. The most important thing is that you have votes, believe me!
But there is a flip side to this coin: when a person with much more modest vocal abilities, thanks to support and his hard work, achieves much greater success than his more talented colleague, you need to think about it. What was missing from a great voice? Don't be happy just because you have these treasures. They need to be cut, polished and placed in a decent frame.
- Any art changes, even classical art. Have the requirements for opera performers changed?
- Without a doubt. The audience loves it when they sing “stylishly.” Yes, the concept of style is multifaceted: a lot depends on how you know the traditions, how you present the part, what kind of charisma you have, what kind of artist you are. And another mandatory requirement for young singer: you have to look very good! Gone are the days when a portly singer aged “well over forty” played the role of Juliet, and Romeo could be short, bald and with a paunch. You need to take care of your appearance. Imagine 17-year-old Tatyana from Onegin. She can no longer be 50, she must be a young, graceful girl, and directors are very attentive to this now. So it’s very difficult for young singers now.
- Everyone knows that you have musical family, your brother Valery Gergiev is the pride of culture. Your husband, Hrayr Hrayrovich Hanedanyan, - famous musician, artist and composer, Opera singer, - also works at the Mariinsky Theater. How did you meet?
- Oh, yes, you know everything! We met my husband in Vladikavkaz, his dad is an Armenian from the Turkish city of Trebizond. Hrayr spent his entire childhood and youth in Lvov. He became a professional singer, came to Vladikavkaz to perform the opera “Pagliacci”, main role Canio, and since then we have been together for more than 40 years. Living with a tenor husband, of course, is not easy (laughs), but at the same time creative union people close in spirit are becoming stronger. The good thing about it is that it unites common goals and interests, and we had the opportunity to always be together, go on tour, prepare operas and parts. Now Hrayr teaches at the Mariinsky Theater Academy, at the Conservatory, and he does it very well. And today, in a concert on the stage of the Opera and Ballet Theater in Yakutsk, the guys with whom he worked will sing (the performances took place on Wednesday and Thursday last week. - L. T.). I hope you enjoy the concert.
- Let's go back to your family. Unlike you and your brother, little is known about your sister Svetlana...
- Oh, she helps us a lot, supports us in all our endeavors! Svetlana is our younger sister, she does a lot for us, she has a big family, three sons. And her younger son Zaurbek Gugkaev - conductor of the Mariinsky Theater. He is still very young, but has already made his debut abroad in the opera “Eugene Onegin”, a very talented, subtle musician. I am very glad that he followed our path, let him comprehend this profession to the end. I hope someday he will come to perform on your stage.
- Our audience always looks forward to the arrival of the Mariinsky Theater!
Olga Saburova
Valery Gergiev is a unique example of how art can become business, and business can become art. On Russia Day, the maestro received the third State Prize from the hands of the President - for outstanding achievements in the field of humanitarian work. Gergiev immediately, without leaving Putin, stated that he did not associate the award with the “liberation” (joint with the cellist Roldugin) concert in Palmyra.
It's really not about Syria. And not in the “bonus” 5 million rubles (a drop in the ocean of the conductor’s capital, which he earned in 2015, as follows from his declaration, 130 million rubles). Gergiev is one of those few people close to Putin who are sincerely welcomed all over the world. Gergiev is a genius conducting an ordinary toothpick. He is also wise and cunning in an oriental way. And he knows how to capitalize on his own talent.
Employed the whole family
For 20 years now, Valery Abisalovich has been the artistic director of the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg. Since then, the conductor has employed almost all of his Ossetian relatives, acquired high-ranking friends, children (three were born in the current marriage. - Author) and everyday chores. As the musician himself noted, “I had to learn to negotiate - with sponsors and the state.”Gergiev’s biggest headache was the construction of the Mariinsky Theater concert hall (its director is the husband of maestro Svetlana Gergieva’s younger sister, Tamerlan Gugkaev. The older sister, Larisa Gergieva, runs the Academy of Young Singers of the Mariinsky Theater) and the long-suffering Second Stage. Mariinsky-2, born with incredible difficulty (architects and contractors were changed more than once), cost the budget 22 billion rubles. The Auditors of the Accounts Chamber only gasped at the double increase in the original estimate. Following them, St. Petersburg residents gasped, including the expert Piotrovsky: how could they spend so much money on such an “ugliness”?! For what Alexey Kudrin without batting an eye, he announced the allocation of an additional $25 million for the maintenance of the theater: “Even after I left the Ministry of Finance, it continued to support the Mariinsky Theater.”
Hermitage, don't be jealous! There are things more valuable than money. For example, friendship. The newly approached Kudrin is a great friend of Gergiev. Like German Gref. They are co-chairs of the Mariinsky Board of Trustees and always, regardless of their positions, support the Valery Gergiev Charitable Foundation. The same one from which, in 2009–2010, its director Igor Zotov with his accomplice Kazbek Lakuti, according to investigators, stole 245 million rubles. Zotov claimed that he transferred the money to Gergiev’s account at the request of his boss (he denied everything), and was imprisoned for 8 years. “This is your time, Kazbek!” - Zotov shouted after the verdict was announced. Lakuti received a suspended sentence. There are things more important than evidence. For example, gratitude. Kazbek is Valery Gergiev's cousin. His father Boris Lakuti took care of the Gergiev family after Valery (at the age of 13) lost his father.
Black bathhouse with cello
Needless to say, for 20 years Gergiev, thanks to the Mariinsky Theater, has been successfully using endless budget funds. But he also makes money. In 2015, the theater’s net profit amounted to 800 million rubles. Against this background, a fresh, May, government contract with another relative of the maestro, 30-year-old nephew-conductor Zaurbek Gugkaev, for 585,000 rubles - pennies.The state supports Gergiev's Stars of the White Nights festival. And also the “Moscow Easter Festival”, which appeared on the initiative of the maestro. The Mariinsky Orchestra with its main star - the conductor - travels around Russia on a special train every year, and the regions regularly conclude government contracts with the only performer (Gergiev Foundation). In 2016, the Udmurt Philharmonic forced 5,000,000 rubles, Sverdlovsk - at 2.547.500 rubles, Nizhny Novgorod - at 4.500,000 rubles, Tomsk - at 7,000,000 rubles, Kemerovskaya - at 3.000.000 rubles, Tatarstan - at 6,000. 000 rubles, Perm - for 4,000,000 rubles, the Ministry of Culture is not alien to Gergiev of North Ossetia - Alania - for only 2,100,000 “wooden”.
In 2015, the conductor headed the Munich Philharmonic orchestra (the contract was signed until 2020). But the maestro’s main source of income is his performances, mainly abroad - he receives fees for them in euros. Sobesednik.ru got acquainted with Gergiev’s tour schedule until the end of this year and couldn’t believe his eyes: he conducts every day! Moreover, he often gives two or even three (!) concerts in a day.
However, we did find one window for Gergiev: in mid-August he performs in Finland, followed by a two-week break. Then another concert in Sweden - and again a free week. According to Finnish media reports, Valery Abisalovich has long chosen a resort place on the shore of the lake - the cottage complex Härkäniemen Tuvat (“Bull Cape”) and brings his family here every summer. And also friends. This is what the maestro said on Posner’s broadcast: “I am the president of the Finnish Black Sauna Society... We accept one, maximum two per year as knights of the Black Sauna... from those people who have proven that they are worthy, at the piano or on the stage, with the violin or with a cello in his hands.”
Turkey business
Gergiev also has a completely unexpected business - the Eurodon company, the largest producer and processor of turkey meat in Russia. The musician received 15% of the shares, one might say, for a good service. He once introduced entrepreneur Vadim Vaneev, a native of South Ossetia, to the right person - Andrey Kostin, Chairman of the Board of VTB Bank. Things took off right away. Over the course of 6 years, Eurodon, thanks to loans, grew into a giant; in 2014, its net revenue amounted, according to SPARK, 333 million rubles. The whole raspberry was almost spoiled last year by the third shareholder - a member of the board of directors of Gazprom, a former minister of property relations of Russia Farit Gazizullin. He transferred his share to an offshore company, which sued Vaneev and almost took away the business. He, they say, again turned to the maestro, who allegedly reached the president himself. Did you get there or didn't you get there? Who knows. But the conflict resolved. Suspects of attempts to take over Eurodon through fraudulent means detained. There are things stronger than any mafia. For example, common interests.Imperial spirit
And back in 2013, Gergiev proposed to the president to revive the All-Russian Choral Society (before the revolution, the Imperial Russian Musical Society). And he himself headed the non-profit partnership. As follows from the protocols published on the website of the Ministry of Culture, NP “VHO” regularly wins competitions for subsidies. Thus, in 2013, Gergiev’s applications for holding an All-Russian review of choral groups to form a combined children’s choir of Russia (9 million rubles) and preparation and support for the performance of a combined children’s choir of Russia at the closing ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi (150 million rubles) were successful. . In 2014, the All-Russian Cultural Organization allocated another 8.4 million rubles for the performance of the Russian Children's Choir in the Republic of Crimea. And 26.6 million rubles for holding the All-Russian Choir Festival. another profitable idea from Gergiev, put at the service of art, worked. And now Vladimir Medinsky promises to think “about transforming the All-Russian Choral Society into a public-state organization, which will allow us to take it to a qualitatively new level.” Simply put, open the way to the feeding trough.The only enterprise in which Gergiev failed was the creation of the National Arts Center in St. Petersburg. The musician proposed to unite the Mariinsky Theater, the Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet, the St. Petersburg State Conservatory and the Russian Institute of Art History. The conductor emphasized the need to revive the Directorate of Imperial Theaters. However, the expert community killed the “imperial” idea. The ex-director of the Russian Institute of Art History, Tatyana Kalyavina, saw to the root: “It is impossible to recreate the directorate without recreating the empire and the imperial leadership.”
Therefore, it’s a small matter.
Larisa Gergieva. Photo – Andrey Pronin/ITAR-TASS/Interpress
Famous accompanist, artistic director of the Academy of Young Singers of the Mariinsky Theater and the National state theater Opera and Ballet of the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania Larisa Gergieva celebrates a double anniversary - 65 years and half a century of creative activity.
A Culture correspondent spoke with Larisa Abisalovna.
— First of all, I celebrate a creative and, to a lesser extent, personal anniversary. 50 years in the profession, in art - for me this is the most important milestone.
The same spring days it was my first time participating in solo concert professional bass. I was still just a college student, a first-year student. It was then that my interest in vocals began. Of course, I have performed before - in an ensemble with instrumentalists, and with good ones, but I have never felt such joy. It was a real shock.
I experienced no less pleasure when, after classes with the singers, I came into the hall and for the first time heard a ready-made opera, which I had learned with them from beginning to end.
— Probably, at first you dreamed of becoming a pianist?
— No, I immediately focused on acting as an accompanist. It seemed to me much more interesting than solo performances.
I was in love with the voice, and I just wanted an ensemble with a singer. Of course, I heard all sorts of things: that the profession is thankless, not very noticeable. But, as it turned out half a century later, it is not so inconspicuous. I do my job and have fun.
The complexity of the work of an opera accompanist and vocal teacher the fact is that no one teaches this. You have to figure it all out yourself. And I want to tell my young colleagues: you can’t become an accompanist just because your career didn’t work out. Solo career, - you will suffer all your life. You need to love singers, voices, music. Then it's yours. You are a nanny, a teacher, a psychologist, and most importantly, a friend.
Already in early years, at school in Vladikavkaz, I had a craving for studying new works and composer names. The desire to understand the profession and self-education means a lot. I sat by the radio and listened to the concerts of Dolukhanova, Arkhipova, Obraztsova.
My ideal was the legendary Gerald Moore - I was guided by his art and ability to interact with the singer. On stage, an accompanist experiences no less emotions than a solo pianist. I remember my feelings when I received applause at La Scala after our concert with Olga Borodina.
— It’s not easy with singers, they’re all different...
- Naturally. With Obraztsova, for example, we never rehearsed for a long time, we’ll try something, and the rest was born spontaneously, already on stage. Arkhipova was completely different: in the most insignificant miniature everything was polished to shine, to perfection.
Communication with any vocalist, even an incompetent one, provides a lot for professional growth. And there is considerable joy when something starts to work out and you see the result of your work.
— I came across the stage when Valery and I were doing an internship in Vladikavkaz, at the local musical theater. It was there that I realized: I need to prepare the game in such a way that everything is learned more than one hundred percent. The singer has so many tasks on stage that musical material should be brought to automaticity. Plus I liked the new challenge.
Many years later, I came to this theater as artistic director: the company was on the verge of closure, and I managed to revive it to life. We created such complex and rare operas for Russia as “Manon Lescaut”, “Fedora” by Giordano, “Agrippina” by Handel. It was there that I had my first directorial experience - I directed “Troubadour”.
Now we are becoming a branch of the Mariinsky Theater. I think this will be beneficial musical culture Ossetia and the Caucasus region. All these years, young Mariinsky students have been singing on the stage of the Vladikavkaz Theater, but now cooperation will reach a fundamentally different level.
— How does your main brainchild, the Mariinsky Theater Academy, live?
— This season we have 36 new titles, they are performed at the Mariinsky Theater for the first time. As part of our subscriptions, we have the opportunity to introduce St. Petersburg music lovers to the rarest works: “Lucrezia Borgia” by Donizetti, “Cinderella” and “Werther” by Massenet, “Capulets and the Montagues” by Bellini, “The Thieving Magpie” by Rossini, “The Swallow” by Puccini, “Siberia” Giordano.
Chamber works include Butsko's "Notes of a Madman" and his "White Nights", "Van Gogh's Letters" and Grigory Fried's "Anne Frank's Diary". We actively recall completely forgotten operas - “Grigory Melekhov” by Dzerzhinsky, “Not Only Love” by Shchedrin.
They staged a whole series of children's works, not only classics, but also completely new opuses, written especially for us. Children's subscriptions are especially important - this is a concern for the formation of a new public, the education of true music lovers and theatergoers who will come to our theater.
At such performances there is often interaction, little viewer can communicate with the artists, touch the scenery, touch the amazing and wonderful world behind the scenes. Behind all this is the enormous work of young, talented, truly daring soloists.
In general, life at the Mariinsky Theater is very rich - hardly any other theater in the world is in full swing with the same intensity. We trust young people, give them a lot to do, immediately and actively include them in creative process, and the result is colossal qualitative growth, voices and artistic personalities blossoming. With such a busy schedule, however, we never interfere with their tours at other venues. This enriches both the artist and the theater.
I see my purpose in raising children. In addition to vocals and opera, I teach them about life. You need to have great patience and treat them like a mother, hear them, develop the best. Meet different tempers, different psychotypes - you need to find an approach to each.
In 2018, the Academy will be 20 years old, and I can say without false modesty that a lot has been done, we have launched many real interesting quarries, this is an absolutely successful experiment that took place.
— What problems do modern youth have, and what do you struggle with first?
— The main problem is that they are in a hurry. Nothing comes instantly. There are, of course, miracles: bright talents emerge and progress quickly, but this is rather an exception. A singer must have time to mature, to gain experience. But our guys need everything at once.
I would like to wish them more patience and understanding regarding their capabilities. Listen to the advice of experienced and senior people, teachers and coaches. Don't start too early dramatic repertoire, work on styles, competently build a development strategy.
Accumulate - not only in vocal-technological terms, but also in general cultural terms.
Your father Abisal Zaurbekovich was a military man, your mother Tamara Timofeevna was an engineer. How did it happen that both you and your brother Valery Abisalovich became musicians?
In the Gergiev family, men traditionally became military men, but dad was very artistic and danced amazingly, and mom played the Ossetian harmonica beautifully - they both had a very good hearing. Today I never tire of being amazed at how much effort, attention and warmth my parents invested in our upbringing: they enrolled us in the only in-depth study school in the city in English, which was very difficult to get into, they regularly took us to symphony concerts at the Philharmonic, were able to buy a piano - but then we had to get the instrument. Besides music and foreign languages we played sports - oh. We studied very well - the family was so exemplary that they filmed about us in those early years documentary. I had no intention of becoming a professional musician, but when my father suddenly died at the age of forty-nine, our wonderful teacher Zarema Andreevna Lolaeva, who was essentially a second mother for us, suggested that I enter the School of Music. At the age of fifteen I performed for the first time on the stage of the Philharmonic as an accompanist. This was fifty years ago. It was then that I realized that the real gift of God that a person can have is a voice, and I decided that I would serve people who have this gift. I began to communicate a lot with singers, I began to ask questions: how do they take their breath, what are the secrets of the voice, how does the ensemble come together. I have worked with hundreds of vocalists, performed with many of them at best scenes world from Carnegie Hall to La Scala, but my heart still skips a beat when I hear a special timbre of a voice.
But you have long gone beyond the profession of an accompanist, and when did you discover your organizational skills?
From 1987 to 1998 I worked at the Perm Opera and Ballet Theater, where I was invited together with my husband, dramatic tenor Hrayr Hanedanyan. There was an amazing director Mikhail Samuilovich Arnopolsky, who only needed to voice interesting idea and it immediately caught fire. With his help, I began to organize my first festivals in Perm. In 1994, together with composer Igor Rogalev, I founded in St. Petersburg international competition vocalists named after Rimsky-Korsakov, whose laureates over the past years have included Anna Netrebko, Ildar Abdrazakov, Vasily Gerello, Daniil Shtoda - today they are the color of our opera school. And this competition continues, now I have moved it to Nikolai Andreevich’s homeland, to the city of Tikhvin, where we recently managed to open a wonderful monument to Rimsky-Korsakov.
The family was so exemplary that they made a documentary about us then
Since 1998, you have been leading the Academy of Young opera singers Mariinsky Theater, and why was it created?
The main task is to educate real professionals in the aesthetics of this theater. Young talents from all over the country come to us, we teach them singing, acting and languages, and prepare with them first small and then main roles. Those who have a voice, good brains, and artistic abilities are given all the opportunities: three stages of the Mariinsky Theater plus chamber halls that allow you to do amazing concert programs. At the same time, the Mariinsky Theater financially supports young vocalists in a way that is not customary anywhere else: they receive a salary and help someone with housing. No wonder the best of them take off like rockets.
Which of your students would you highlight?
Today, Academy graduates are a whole guard, in fact, the entire young theater troupe. These are sopranos Olga Pudova and Anastasia Kalagina, mezzo-sopranos Nadezhda Serdyuk and Anna Kiknadze, tenor Dmitry Voropaev, bass Ilya Bannik and many others. There is nothing worse than losing a student - in January, thirty-seven-year-old bass-baritone Eduard Tsanga, who came to the academy from Nizhny Novgorod and for seventeen years he played more than ninety roles at the Mariinsky Theater. I am very proud of the victory of my student Yulia Matochkina at the XV Tchaikovsky Competition.
In 2005, you became the artistic director of the North Ossetian Opera and Ballet Theater - have you lived in two cities since then?
Yes, I constantly fly from St. Petersburg to Vladikavkaz. The theater was then on the verge of closure, but in very difficult conditions it managed not only to survive, but also to get stronger. Over the past years, we have staged more than fifty performances, including “Troubadour,” with me as director.
You have a large family, but so far only Zaurbek Gugkaev has become a professional musician.
I am very glad that he chose the profession of conductor and is making progress - today he already has large repertoire and my young singers really love working with him. And recently, my brother’s eldest son, Abisal Gergiev, performed with his father at the “Faces of Modern Pianism” festival. We were very worried about him, but everything went great - I hope that he will also study music professionally.
Larisa Gergieva - People's Artist Russia, Ukraine and North Ossetia. In Moscow, her anniversary will be celebrated on February 20 in Great hall Conservatories, and at the concert on February 28 in Concert hall Mariinsky Theater Yulia Matochkina, Nadezhda Serdyuk, Ekaterina Sergeeva, Maria Bayankina, Natalya Pavlova, Olga Pudova, Antonina Vesenina, Ilya Selivanov, Grigory Chernetsov, Yaroslav Petryanik and many others will perform.
Text: Vitaly Kotov
