Just in: Slava festival is suspended for lack of funds

Just in: Slava festival is suspended for lack of funds

main

norman lebrecht

March 03, 2016

Olga Rostropovich has been forced to call off this year’s tribute festival to her father in his birthplace, Baku.

She blames Russia’s all-pervasive economic crisis and hopes to reinstate the festival next year, which would have been Slava’s 90th birthday.

rostropovich festival

Comments

  • Eddie Mars says:

    “Azerbaijan Festival cancelled. Russia blamed as usual.”

    • MacroV says:

      Fair point, though of course Azerbaijan is suffering as much from the drop in oil prices.

      • Eddie Mars says:

        Ms Rostropovich continues to enjoy full funding for the Vishnevskaya Opera Centre in Moscow – and its 800-seat opera theatre on Ostozhenka (the ‘Mayfair’ of the Moscow ‘Monopoly’ board). Last time I was strolling by, no performances whatsover were scheduled there :((

        • Victoria says:

          By the way – this Vishnevskaya school and opera theatre 100% belong to Russian Ministry of the Culture. This is state educational centre. Rostropovych family donates 0%. Vishnevskaya said many times that for her is impossible to pay for her school and theatre without Gov support.

          • Eddie Mars says:

            Yes and that is my point. Ms Rostropovich gets 100% Russian state funding for the Vishnevskaya Opera Centre. It is just sour grapes for her to claim no-one will help her with a festival to celebrate her father’s work. She has a huge 800-seat theatre on Moscow’s poshest street, with superb facilities – all she has to do is mount the program there, it’s all paid for. The theatre is hers – it’s just sitting empty.

  • Alvaro says:

    HA!

  • Erich says:

    …and wirh all the immense loot that Slava salted away during his career, if it was really important to her, she’d fund the thing herself.

  • Nicola Lefanu says:

    ==mmense loot that Slava salted away

    Good point. That palatial house in Little Venice, London and the mini palace full in St P. were both full of art treasures.

  • La Verita says:

    Let’s not forget that in 2007, the Rostropovich family sold their collection of Russian art for $40M–all of which was donated to a charity to inoculate the children of Russia against infectious diseases.

    • Victoria says:

      Galina sold collection to Alisher Usmanov for 70M, then Usmanov donated all items to decotate State residence – Konstantinovsky palace near St. Petersburg.
      Nobody hears about Rosctropovych sisters charity activities after Galina’s death.
      Galina was a soul of her center and hold it in her iron hands. It is worked, perfect conductors collaborated, Dmitry Bertman and other opera directors help her with current productions.
      Now they have annual Rostropovych festival in Moscow (last week of March). But try to find any tickets. And all tickets are VERY expensive. Hard to know who got grantes from fundation.

  • esfir ross says:

    Could you name the charities that received 76 million from Galina?

  • Victoria says:

    This amount never was donated. All money saved in family. The question: why Vishnevskaya opera centre is not working full time?

    • Eddie Mars says:

      Here is the program schedule

      http://opera-centre.ru/afisha/

      As we can see, in March there are TWO performances of I Pagliacci

      In April there are TWO performance of Evgeny Onegin.

      And the rest of the time this large and luxuriously-fitted theatre is locked and shut. At the State’s expense.

  • MOST READ TODAY: