"Musical Team of Russia" at the State Academic Capella of St. Petersburg. On the 185th anniversary of Tchaikovsky's birth.
On Thursday, September 11, at 8:00 p.m., the St. Petersburg House of Music, under the direction of People's Artist of Russia, Professor Sergei Roldugin, invites you to the St. Petersburg Chapel (20 Moika River Embankment) for a concert as part of the XI International Forum of United Cultures. , the program of the "Musical Team of Russia" cycle, accompanied by the Capella symphony orchestra, will feature: the artistic director of the House of Music, cellist Sergei Roldugin, winner of the XVII International Tchaikovsky Competition, oboist Fyodor Osver, and winners of international competitions — pianist Elizaveta Klyucheva and violinist Emil Ildirekov. The program will feature Tchaikovsky (marking the 185th anniversary of the composer's birth): excerpts from the Violin and First Piano Concertos, the instrumental Nocturne, as well as Lensky's Aria and the Polonaise from the opera Eugene Onegin. The conductor is People's Artist of Russia Alexander Chernushenko.
The concert program will open with the solemn Polonaise from Tchaikovsky's opera Eugene Onegin.
When Pushkin's novel was first mentioned as the subject of a new opera, Tchaikovsky thought the idea was "wild." But as soon as he reread Eugene Onegin "with enthusiasm," the "scenario for a delightful opera" emerged: "I wrote this opera because one fine day I felt an inexpressible urge to set to music everything in Onegin that calls for music."
One of the most famous and beloved opera arias, Lensky's aria, was written for a lyric tenor. Tchaikovsky himself admitted that he sought to avoid "brilliance and flashy effect," which is why the melodic beauty and sincerity of this music are in the foreground. In the concert, the aria will be performed in Andrei Rubtsov's version for oboe and orchestra, based on Leopold Auer's well-known transcription for violin.
Tchaikovsky's Nocturne, written in 1873, is part of the collection Six Pieces for Piano, Op. 19. This chamber miniature gained great popularity at the end of the 19th century and was performed in home concerts not only in its original version, but also in an arrangement for string instruments. Its simplicity and directness of expression, melodiousness, and heartfelt character made it popular on the concert stage as well. In the program, the Nocturne will be performed in an arrangement for cello and orchestra.
Tchaikovsky composed his Violin Concerto in D major during a period of creative inspiration in 1878 in Switzerland, in the small town of Clarens. He was inspired to begin work on it by Lalo's Spanish Symphony, the score of which had fallen into his hands. For the first time, the composer put aside the work he had already begun and started working on the Violin Concerto, which was written in just one month. Tchaikovsky assumed that Leopold Auer would be the first performer. However, Auer did not dare to perform the composition because of its complexity. The orchestral premiere took place in 1881 in Vienna, with Adolf Brodsky, to whom the concerto is dedicated, as the soloist. The second movement, Canzonetta. Andante, is associated with memories of Florence and resembles an Italian song. The third movement, Finale. Allegro vivacissimo, creates an atmosphere of festive folk merriment, with Russian features particularly evident in the secondary rondo-sonata form.
Tchaikovsky wrote his first piano concerto in B flat minor at the end of 1874. The orchestration was completed by February of the following year. The composer created a highly virtuosic work, as it was intended for the magnificent pianist Nikolai Rubinstein. But Rubinstein criticized the work, calling the passages "clumsy, hackneyed, awkward." As a result, the concerto was first performed in October 1875 in Boston by Hans von Bülow, to whom Tchaikovsky dedicated the work. The St. Petersburg premiere took place a month later and received mixed reviews. Real success came in 1878, when the work was performed by Rubinstein, who had once called it "unsuitable." The finale of the Concerto is filled with an atmosphere of folk merriment. The main theme uses a well-known melody from a Ukrainian spring song.
Sergei Roldugin (cello) is a People's Artist of Russia and a professor. In 1975, he graduated with honors from the Leningrad Conservatory in the class of Professor Anatoly Nikitin, with whom he then completed an assistantship-internship. He is a laureate of the Prague Spring International Cello Competition (1980). From 1974 to 1984, he was a member of the Honored Ensemble of Russia — the Academic Symphony Orchestra of the Leningrad Philharmonic named after D. D. Shostakovich, conducted by Yevgeny Mravinsky. From 1984 to 2003, he was the principal soloist and concertmaster of the cello section of the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra. Professor, in 2003-2004, he was rector of the St. Petersburg State Conservatory named after N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov. Since 2004, he has been engaged in conducting. He is a guest conductor at the Mariinsky Theatre. He performs with leading symphony orchestras in Russia and abroad. Since 2006, Sergei Roldugin has been the artistic director of the St. Petersburg House of Music, which he founded. In 2011, he was awarded the Order of Honor for his great contribution to Russian musical art and the training of music teachers. In 2016, he received the Order of Alexander Nevsky. In 2017 , he received the Kazakh Order of Dostyk (Order of Friendship) II degree, and in 2021, he received the Order of Merit for the Fatherland IV degree.
Elizaveta Klyucheva (piano), 25, is a graduate of the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory (class of People's Artist of Russia Professor Vladimir Ovchinnikov). Since 2022, she has been an assistant trainee (class of the same teacher). Winner of the Eurasian Music Games (Kazakhstan, 2017), the International Chopin Competition (Estonia, 2018), and the International Piano Competition in Lyon (France, 2018). Winner of the Grand Prix at the 52nd Virtuosi per musica di pianoforte International Piano Competition (Czech Republic, 2019). Third prize winner at the International Piano Competition in Singapore (2020). Winner of the First Prize at the Wandering Music Stars International Piano Competition (Israel, 2023). Winner of the Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli Prize and the Audience Award at the Piano Academy Eppan (Italy, 2024). Participant in the programs of the St. Petersburg House of Music since 2016.
Fyodor Osver (oboe), 21, is a student at the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory (class of Professor Alexei Utkin). Winner of the III International Gnesins Competition-Festival for Young Wind and Percussion Instrument Performers (Moscow, 2020). Winner of the XII International Competition of the Moscow Conservatory among wind and percussion instrument performers (Moscow, 2021). Second prize winner of the XVII International Tchaikovsky Competition (Moscow, St. Petersburg, 2023). First prize winner of the IV All-Russian Music Competition (Moscow, St. Petersburg, 2024). Second prize winner of the Prague Spring International Competition, as well as winner of the audience award, the Bärenreiter prize, and the City of Prague prize as the most successful laureate (Prague, Czech Republic, 2025). Participant in the programs of the St. Petersburg House of Music since 2021.
Emil Ildirekov (violin), 17 years old — student at the St. Petersburg State Conservatory of Music named after N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov (class of Larisa Baranova). First prize winner of the VIII G. V. Sviridov International Competition for Young Performers (St. Petersburg, 2019). First prize winner of the Ninth Demidov International Youth Violin Competition "DeMUKS — IX" (Yekaterinburg, 2022). First prize winner of the International Remote Music Competition dedicated to the 150th anniversary of the birth of S. V. Rachmaninoff (2023). Second prize winner of the 21st International Competition of the Central Music School "Dedication to L. B. Kogan" (Moscow, 2024). First prize winner of the 7th All-Russian Competition for Young Musicians "Constellation" (Sirius, 2025).
The Russian Music Ensemble is a unique concert series organized by the St. Petersburg House of Music, featuring young Russian soloists who are winners of recent international competitions, as well as Russian participants in the Tchaikovsky International Competition prior to their competition performances. The concerts are held in Russian philharmonic halls as part of their own series and subscriptions, as well as separate performances. During the season, the project's concerts are also held in Kaliningrad, Nizhny Novgorod, Tula, Sochi, Voronezh, Kirov, Moscow, and Yalta, in creative collaboration with various concert venues and ensembles.
The St. Petersburg House of Music is a federal cultural institution established in 2006 with the aim of preparing young Russian musicians for international competitions and festivals. It is located in the palace of Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich at 122 Moika Street.
The artistic director is the renowned cellist, People's Artist of Russia, Professor Sergei Roldugin.
For more information, visit www.spdm.ru or call (812) 702-60-96.
Ticket prices: 300-400 rubles.
Box office telephone: +7 (812) 314-10-58
Audience: 6