Watch Dmitri Hvorostovsky’s funeral live from Moscow … now

Watch Dmitri Hvorostovsky’s funeral live from Moscow … now

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norman lebrecht

November 27, 2017

Comments

  • Patrick says:

    Beautiful! Thank you, Ruptly, but perhaps you could use a more discreetly placed logo?

  • Merika says:

    The video is now unavailable. Is that because of my computer, or is it no longer posted?

  • TANJA says:

    Please, upload the funeral again!

  • Linda McDougall says:

    I watched it from Mexico – starting at 2 a.m. and of course it’s down as it was a live transmission. I was riveted as the eloquence of the coffin itself, banked with flowers…thousands of sad, devoted people filing by with bouquets, all of them with the most transparent and dignified grief on their faces; a silently weeping Florence comforting her children when Dmitri’s voice was played; his entire family embracing one another; the choir – and above all, the brevity of the people who spoke about him… a quiet, beautifully orchestrated event – and I had trouble tearing myself away towards the end. So there you are. A Siberian opera star has joined the cranes he sang about.I’m so glad we saw him here in Guanajuato in recital…and dining in sidewalk cafés with Florence. The orchestra musicians were all in love with him – as was I!

  • Linda McDougall says:

    Well, I stayed, weeping, for the ending – and the poignant dignity of his family’s quiet farewell made me once again appreciate the importance of rituals, and how classical musicians are our royalty.

    • sue says:

      Thank you for your eloquent and moving comments. They help.

      • Linda McDougall says:

        Al contrario! It is I who thank you! Even opera lovers here think I went overboard, even though, when he was here in Guanajuato for the Cervantino Festival, we were all in love with him.

    • AMetFan says:

      Yes, thank you. I missed the video, but your description was beautifully written. A well-deserved farewell to a man who seemed like a friend to all.

      • Linda McDougall says:

        How kind of you…thank you. He tore our hearts open here in Guanajuato when he performed about six years ago – and I never forgot. I death of Claudio Abbado had the same reaction for many of us…and I don’t quite understand how these magnificent artists manage to get into our souls and stay there. But that’s another subject – to me, they’re archetypal images the psyche needs, best found through music.

  • Ruth says:

    I suspect I am not alone in feeling a bit helpless here, in his adopted country, of not having a means of paying my respects to this remarkable man. The extracts on social media of the funeral service in the country of his birth are moving and heartwarming. Indication that Dmitri Hvorostsky touched the hearts of many ordinary people like myself. Good night god bless.

    • Linda McDougall says:

      Ruth, you have paid your respects most eloquently, so rest assured, your sense of helplessness can now be dismissed. I understand how you feel, but we never know how the deceased may pick up our love and sorrow, right? Bless you too.

  • DOUG CREMER says:

    Australian admirers of Mr Hvorostovsky are deeply saddened that our Time Zone made it so difficult to pay him the respect he was so rightly due. I missed the Funeral broadcast as did many of my friends who were in awe of his talent & the contribution he made to the art form we all love.

    • Anne-Louise Luccarini says:

      I watched the whole thing in Sydney – 7 pm to 10.30, then the connection began to break up. Very moving. Such love and sincerity. The stunned grief of the father. Florence comforting her mother-in-law prostrate on the coffin at the moment of farewell. 4000 people filed patiently in, herded into batches of 100 or so at a time, wound in scarves, beanies and fur hats, each with a bunch of flowers. Many bowed, others made the sign of the cross. Sorrow, respect.

  • Pikeperch says:

    You can watch it here…

    https://t.co/GRVfm9gUnQ

    So sad

  • Luanne Kip says:

    What Anna posted instead of words.

    Watched much of the 3.5 hour Memorial from the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in Moscow today. Tastefully, the organizers will take down the stream after 24 hours. Two, large, rotating pics of him above the stage with his Russian songs playing. Incredibly touching to see the endless flow of ordinary mourners entering the Hall and leaving flowers. There must be none left in Moscow. Mostly white–his favorite–with lots of red roses, too. When the last song, Cranes, was played, the audience & those dear to him on stage, responding with respectful, rhythmic clapping that went on for over ten minutes. His family was so strong until the end when they bid farewell to him on stage. He was taken out with a large picture of him in front among flowers strewn along the steps and beyond….I finally wept. Unbelievably, he passed on St. Cecilia Day, the patroness of musicians.

    I thank Les Mitnick of the opera-l newsgroup for this explanation of the loss:

    “I know that all of us are feeling this tragedy with great intensity. We all love and revere a great singer in the golden years of their prime, which Dmitri certainly was. I’ve spent the entire day on You Tube listening to him and it was like a catharsis for me. Our treasured singers become like spiritual friends and we view them as part of our lives. When something like this happens, it’s like a death in the family. Whether we realize it or not, we who love opera become very emotionally connected to the singers we love.
    While few were taken by surprise by his passing, the feeling of finality is omnipresent
    at this time. To my ears, Dmitri was the premiere baritone of our time, and the fact that he
    was still at his vocal peak is even more painful.
    While we sometimes may even criticize our favorite singers, they are OURS and we feel
    like they belong to us. Perhaps because we are sensitive enough to love opera, our feelings
    may be more intense than that of people who don’t. I don’t know. What I DO know is that I
    feel a very personal sense of loss.
    He helped to make MY world spin, as do only a handful of others. Dmitri was a true
    titan of opera.
    “Нежность” Дмитрий Хворостовский (9.2006)

    • Anne-Louise Luccarini says:

      Yes, they are part of us. I don’t speak Russian, but one of the speakers ended with one word, and I looked it up.
      наш
      Ours

  • Rosalia Yanovskaya says:

    Dmitry was the mega star in the opera world. He was also very bright and charming person I really feel for His parents and twins from the 1st marriage ( they are The orphans now) and for his widow and both children from the 2nd marriage.
    Let God accept his soul . He will remain in our hearts and his voice will remain in our memory as the one of a kind.

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