While Putin bombs Ukraine, Currentzis conducts Midnight in Moscow

While Putin bombs Ukraine, Currentzis conducts Midnight in Moscow

Orchestras

norman lebrecht

January 02, 2024

From Boris Filanovsky, three days ago:

This morning Moscow launched a massive rocket attack on residential neighborhoods of Ukrainian cities. 150 rockets and drones, dozens killed and wounded.
Tonight, Theodor Currentzis played the song “Moscow Evenings” at the St. Petersburg Philharmonic.
You’d think there’s a connection here.

Comments

  • Aleksander says:

    Yet again: genocide and music. The Germans did it, now the Russians play amid death and despair…

  • Alviano says:

    The guy’s a fraud. Putin can have him.

  • Observing2 says:

    I must admit…the orchestra sounds absolutely lush. Even on a smartphone.

  • Ex-conductor says:

    WHILE ZELENSKY BOMBS RUSSIA (Belgorod), CURRENTZIS CONDUCTS MIDNIGHT IN MOSCOW. It’s all the same. Or only Ukranian victims are counted?

    • Brettermeier says:

      “Or only Ukranian victims are counted?”

      Yup. And now go fuck yourself.

    • Ex-conductor says:

      As I thought – hypocrisy. It’s ok to kill Russians and Palestinians, our sacred Western society is not interested

      • Brettermeier says:

        “Western society is not interested”

        Oh, but we are. That’s why we equip Israel and Ukraine with weapons: To fight the enemy who attacked them.

        • Tony Bond says:

          As in – to fight and kill 25,000 Palestinian civilians, half of them children. On a population proportion basis that is 50 times the number of Israelis murdered by Hamas.

      • Mike says:

        If you can’t understand the difference between the aggressor and the victim in the Ukraine war, either your moral compass has gone walkabout, or you’re a paid shill for the Kremlin bunker grandpa.

  • Serge says:

    A song about a Moscow summer night is now also a war song. Are we never getting tired of this game?

  • OSF says:

    I will concede that Russia historically has done New Years Eve well in terms of music-making, but yes, bombing Ukraine is now Russia’s culture.

  • correntzis always was a con-job says:

    Is anyone to be suprised?
    Nearly all Musin pupils have turned out to be lazy, sloppy, only interested in money, unmusical and unwavering in their support for any regime in power.

    Where are the real musicians like Temirkanov, Rozhdestvensky, Mravinsky, Kondrashin?

    • Wurtfangler says:

      That’s quite a generalisation! Aside from Gergiev and Currentzis I can’t think of any former pupils of Musin who have been ‘unwavering’ in support of the likes of Putin. Do you have anyone in particular in mind, or do you just want to tarnish the reputation of a great man through association?

      • correntzis always was a con-job says:

        “Musin failed in securing a podium of his own.”
        Says it all really.

        The guy was just an awful mediocre, and has done enormous harm to conducting by his so called codification of gestures. Nobody wants to admit it.
        It illustrates all that can possibly be wrong with this miserable method which drives out all the music into this so called “body language”!

        Think of the greats of the past, Toscanini, Furtwangler and the prodigious talents of say Celibidache, Fricsay, Solti, Kleiber, Szell, Enescu and more besides.
        Did they need to do this “Musin” crap act?
        Does Järvi?

        I remember the much underrated Roderick Brydon and another called E Schelle, (all with problems of their own). Maybe they just didn’t do PR?

        None of them are like this rubbish that came from Russia.
        Just look at Fricsay, for pure inspiration and the inate ability to inspire.
        It’s called Charisma, that neither Correntzis nor Gergiev have.

        • norman lebrecht says:

          This is sheer nonsense. Musin was one of the most thoughtful analysts of conducting and what makes it work. Gergiev and Currentzis both have charisma to spare. This commenter, writing from a Russian address, is some kind of troll.

          • correntzis always was a con-job says:

            Nonsense Norman.
            Musin “is thought” to have done all those things, but not even a patch on the sheer wonderful Kleiber in Tristan And Isolde.
            Kleiber had it.
            As for your “russian troll” comments. you’re way out there.

            I have watched and recorded both Correntzis and Gergiev conducting their own orchestras IN RUSSIA. You haven’t and weren’t there.
            The sheer misery of it all. aiiee – only thing worse was Spivakov.

            To watch some so called “charismatic” numpty attempting to rehearse the orchestra literally beggared belief.
            It was the usual parade of hopelessness.
            I have seen much more competent stuff from Casadesus (and played under him btw).
            Years ago we had Metters.
            It was the same old stuff as Musin….and Metters is now considered some great icon of conducting tuition.
            All in the systematisation of what is in the end just boring regimentation of the music – always the same crap – go for the BIG crescendo -hit the climax in the music and wtf top all the rest.
            The audience is neatly manipulated to think they heard some voice from heaven and – hey presto a standing ovation.

            It and Musin’s method was a con-job from the beginning..AND there’s much better conductors out there even in Russia that have never been near Musin
            (thank goodness!) Everything that is wrong with music and conducting….

            Reminds me of good old Sandor Vegh…how come so many of the greatest conductors/musicians were Hungarians?

          • Wurtfangler says:

            So I ask you – how many of Musin’s classes in the Conservatoire did you attend? I can answer that from what little you seem to know!

    • MWnyc says:

      Weren’t Temirkanov, Rozhdestvensky, Mravinsky, and Kondrashin unwavering in *their* support for whatever regime was in power?

  • Affreux Jojo says:

    Fact: Currentzis conducted the Prokofiev ( 1st violin cto, 5th symph) program the night before in Moscow -Dec. 28- and the Moscow Night piece was the third encore.

    • Cheerio says:

      And yet the keyboard warriors showed up to war over an encore (a third one of all).
      Thank you, everyone, because of you Ukraine is winning this war………

  • buschtrommel says:

    And a few days before this Musicaeterna published a video cooperating with the Z-shirt-conductor Mikhail Khokhklov conducting a concert before disabled children, not with Z-shirt-conductor. https://youtu.be/PYdb57rWjY4?si=zEhD8cKixxnA3r0s He weared the Z 16th march 22 as Norman reported , amd Gnessin alumni as Kissin and Trifonoov protested https://slippedisc.com/2022/03/brave-moscow-students-denounce-pro-putin-principal/

  • Bai hui says:

    Its a good idea this wild gay Boris bla bla to suicide asnsoon as possible. 1 he is wild gay, wild gay tend to invent things that do not exist. 2. Its fake news. Russia bombing only military goals in Ukraine because Ukraine is now on US governance. And US willnot be happy if the Mexico or Canada wil be on Russian governance. 3. This is CHEAP Ukrainian propaganda for morons and wild peaceful gays. You should not distribute cheap Ukrainian gay propaganda, but must concentrate on how to stop fake news you produce frequently.

  • John Humphreys says:

    Guess he’s being paid a tidy sum to beat three (or four) in a bar? Clearly the Russian assault on a democratically elected neighbour bothers him not a jot. Not the only one unfortunately.

  • Okayy then says:

    While Israel bombs Gaza Daniel Cohen conducts and plays his violin worldwide, while Israel bombs Gaza Omer Meir Wellber is conducting in the Musikverein, while Israel is bombing Gaza Yoel Gamzou is conducting at the Vienna State Opera. Should I continue? Probably not. What a stupid post and stupid logic, Norman.
    Currentzis is not Russian gov, Currentzis is not Putin.

  • Sue Sonata Form says:

    “I give no quarter to Kern or Cole Porter and Russians keep pounding Ukraine”. Apologies to Ira Gershwin.

  • Jef Olson says:

    Just more damage done by this charlatan conductor. The emperor has no clothes and it’s not pretty.

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