<The title of the article and the text are translated automatically. It will be edited in the future>
For eight years he was the musical director and chief conductor of the famous Moscow Bolshoi Theater. He managed to restore the historical reputation of the Bolshoi Theater, but to reform it into a modern theater he could not. "It is considered a national treasure. And this is also his big problem. It is too close to politics, and therefore it is difficult to change it, " says conductor Alexander Vedernikov in an interview. Today and tomorrow he will perform a concert with the Slovak Philharmonic in the historic building of the Slovak National Theatre.
Alexander Vedernikov thinks that the moscowthe Bolshoi Theater is for people who have never seen the opera, or for foreigners who go there as if to a museum, according to a tourist guide.
— Is the work behind the conductor's desk different in Slovakia, Italy, France or Russia?
— Every place is different. They are distinguished by national psychology, politics, mentality and habits of people. I even know in which country what work not to play and why.
— For eight seasons you worked as a musical director at the famous Bolshoi Theater in Moscow. How big is this theater?
— It is considered part of the national treasure. And this is also his big problem. It is too close to politics, and therefore difficult to change it.
Is that why you quit as its artistic director after eight years?
This is a very difficult job and carries a huge responsibility. Being in charge of such a colossus took up all the capacity of my brain and filled all the time. It would have been fine, but since I took office and the minister and I had the same vision, a lot has changed. Politicians suddenly decided that nothing would change in the theater. And from an artistic point of view, I no longer found it interesting to remain in office and not be able to achieve what I had set out.
— Why do politicians want national theatres in their hands?
— Because they see them as a symbol of state culture. But, unfortunately, not as a place of opera or ballet.
— So they don't care about art?
— No way. No politician cares about art.
— So is the Bolshoi Theater "stuck"?
— The system of Repertory Theatre in opera, and you have it in the Slovak National Theatre as well, is already old-fashioned. Theatre needs to be dynamic.
— How can this be achieved?
— I suggested that the opera switch to putting performances on a block system. To perform the production several times after the premiere and then withdraw it from the repertoire. No singer would be permanently employed, we would only keep the choir and orchestra. Only in this way can the Opera be made attractive to the audience. And not so much that the viewer comes to the opera, and there they play the same titles for years.
— Can such a significant transformation take place in a traditional theater like the Bolshoi?
— I'm sure it has to happen. I did not succeed in this change, but perhaps there will be a person who can win over political pressures and pressures from within the opera company. No singer wants to lose their job. But like this, there are still the same people in the ensemble. Many years they sing the same thing and have no motivation. But if they were not permanently employed, there would be competition between them, they would try harder, and so the quality of their art would increase.
— Does the audience feel a decline in quality in the Bolshoi Theatre?
— The best audience that the Bolshoi Theater could have is not in it. It is no longer interesting to him. To go to it and see the same show for the twentieth time? What for?
— Who goes to the big theatre?
— It is for people who have never seen opera. Or for foreigners who go there as if to a museum, according to the tourist guide. But none of them are going to come because they want to go. No one comes for art.
Source.
For eight years he was the musical director and chief conductor of the famous Moscow Bolshoi Theater. He managed to restore the historical reputation of the Bolshoi Theater, but to reform it into a modern theater he could not. "It is considered a national treasure. And this is also his big problem. It is too close to politics, and therefore it is difficult to change it, " says conductor Alexander Vedernikov in an interview. Today and tomorrow he will perform a concert with the Slovak Philharmonic in the historic building of the Slovak National Theatre.
Alexander Vedernikov thinks that the moscowthe Bolshoi Theater is for people who have never seen the opera, or for foreigners who go there as if to a museum, according to a tourist guide.
— Is the work behind the conductor's desk different in Slovakia, Italy, France or Russia?
— Every place is different. They are distinguished by national psychology, politics, mentality and habits of people. I even know in which country what work not to play and why.
— For eight seasons you worked as a musical director at the famous Bolshoi Theater in Moscow. How big is this theater?
— It is considered part of the national treasure. And this is also his big problem. It is too close to politics, and therefore difficult to change it.
Is that why you quit as its artistic director after eight years?
This is a very difficult job and carries a huge responsibility. Being in charge of such a colossus took up all the capacity of my brain and filled all the time. It would have been fine, but since I took office and the minister and I had the same vision, a lot has changed. Politicians suddenly decided that nothing would change in the theater. And from an artistic point of view, I no longer found it interesting to remain in office and not be able to achieve what I had set out.
— Why do politicians want national theatres in their hands?
— Because they see them as a symbol of state culture. But, unfortunately, not as a place of opera or ballet.
— So they don't care about art?
— No way. No politician cares about art.
— So is the Bolshoi Theater "stuck"?
— The system of Repertory Theatre in opera, and you have it in the Slovak National Theatre as well, is already old-fashioned. Theatre needs to be dynamic.
— How can this be achieved?
— I suggested that the opera switch to putting performances on a block system. To perform the production several times after the premiere and then withdraw it from the repertoire. No singer would be permanently employed, we would only keep the choir and orchestra. Only in this way can the Opera be made attractive to the audience. And not so much that the viewer comes to the opera, and there they play the same titles for years.
— Can such a significant transformation take place in a traditional theater like the Bolshoi?
— I'm sure it has to happen. I did not succeed in this change, but perhaps there will be a person who can win over political pressures and pressures from within the opera company. No singer wants to lose their job. But like this, there are still the same people in the ensemble. Many years they sing the same thing and have no motivation. But if they were not permanently employed, there would be competition between them, they would try harder, and so the quality of their art would increase.
— Does the audience feel a decline in quality in the Bolshoi Theatre?
— The best audience that the Bolshoi Theater could have is not in it. It is no longer interesting to him. To go to it and see the same show for the twentieth time? What for?
— Who goes to the big theatre?
— It is for people who have never seen opera. Or for foreigners who go there as if to a museum, according to the tourist guide. But none of them are going to come because they want to go. No one comes for art.
Source.
Zuzana KIZÀKOVÀ,
Pravda (Slovinsko). Januar, 10, 2010
Pravda (Slovinsko). Januar, 10, 2010
Vedernikov: no politician cares about art
