By Vestnik Kavkaza
The state orchestra Moscow Virtuosi headed by Vladimir Spivakov returned from a tour across the North Caucasus.
“I was very happy to visit the North Caucasus. We started our tour in Yessentuki, then we went to Stavropol, then we performed in Grozny and Makhachkala,” Spivakov told Vestnik Kavkaza. “I was impressed by Grozny. I saw how the city is reviving from ruins. We performed in the theatre named after the great Russian poet Lermontov. We performed in Makhachkala in Maxim Gorky Theatre… Academic Sakharov said that we have to move in the given direction, we shouldn’t turn because we think in a similar way, I mean a general process. Poet Galkin had a blank verse:
A glass is in front of me –
It is transparent and light.
And I see people through the glass,
Who cry and laugh.
But if I silver a tiny part of the glass,
I stop seeing people
Who cry and laugh.
The glass turns into a mirror,
And I see myself only.”
And it is awful! We often see a mirror in front of us, see ourselves, but the world is huge, and people with their emotions, passions, traditions which should be kept are everywhere. I was surprised with wonderful Caucasus traditions– respect toward the old, devotion to family, call of duty, pride. It is pride, not pridefulness. I would be happy to visit the Caucasus again and again. I won’t forget these days.”
According to Spivakov, when Virtuosi came to Nalchik, the mayor of the town told them: “Few artists come to us, they reach only Pyatigorsk or Kislovodsk.” “The point is not only in desire, but mainly in organization,” Spivakov thinks. The orchestra went to Chechnya from Kabardino-Balkaria. “I was very impressed by Grozny. It is a reproach to Russia, I would say. They say that the center should stop helping the Caucasus, but there I can see that the help materialized in magnificent buildings, unique cleanness of streets, perfect order. One is not afraid to walk the streets. Wonderful hotels. I visited Grozny before the war and remembered the city, its outstanding picture gallery, its unique puppet theatre, and many other things. When we took the stage, the audience burst in applause,” Spivakov says.
From Grozny Virtuosi went to Makhachkala. “I was awarded A People’s Artist of Kabardino-Balkaria and Dagestan. I called my Dagestani friends from Makhachkala, they screamed with delight. People who were born in the Caucasus are strongly connected with the place of their birth; these are their traditions. There are many things in the Caucasus which we lack.”
Ilyas Umakhanov, the deputy chairman of the Council of Federation, who took part in organization of the tour, stated: “The importance of the event is much greater than a tour or a concert. It is a serious socio-political event, a festival for residents of the Caucasus. Tickets in Makhachkala were sold in first 45 minutes. It is good that there was no preliminary advertisement because in the opposite case it would be hard to take Vladimir Teodorovich from Makhachkala, they would have to perform one more concert. Moscow Virtuosi not only played concerts, but also conduct workshops, visited musical schools, met creative community. It was a big event.”
