13 February 2020

This year the organizers of the Festival “Energy of Discoveries” decided to pay the closest attention to Leonid Polovinkin’s works. An outstanding composer, one of the leaders of the Russian musical avant-grade, Leonid Polovinkin was extremely popular in the late 20s - early 30s of the last century. His music was well-known both in Russia and abroad. However, his own destiny and the destiny of his creative heritage turned out to be tragic. The composer was not repressed himself, but his music was. It just disappeared from concert halls. Polovinkin was forced to change his musical language and genre priorities completely, a lot of his works found their place on archive shelves and stayed there for decades - unknown, unpublished and often not even performed.

Within the frames of the Festival “Energy of Discoveries” Radio Orpheus and PJSC UNIPRO carried out painstaking work aimed at finding and restoration of Leonid Polovinkin’s unknown works. A CD was recorded by Symphony Orchestra of Radio Orpheus conducted by Honored Artist of Russia Sergei Kondrashev. Given unconditional historical and cultural value of the musical material, the organizers made a decision not to restrict themselves with the CD. The stage implementation of Leonid Polovinkin’s music was given the title “The Ship Called Happiness”.

About the performance

The authors of the idea referred to, probably, one of the happiest periods in the composer’s life. In 1930s he worked at the Moscow Children’s Theatre headed by Natalia Sats. They fell head over heels in love. The performance is set on board of the ship “Cape Arkona” on its long way from Hamburg to Argentina. The lovers, famous composer and popular director, are heading to the major international festival, where they are expected to stage two operas at the theatre Colon. It is the time of heady freedom, both personal and creative, when the political intrigues and restrictions imposed by the Soviet system are left behind. There is only the ocean, the world of his own fantasies around and the beloved woman nearby! Success awaited them in Argentina, but what awaited them back at home? She was arrested as the wife of the enemy of the people.....18 years of imprisonment and exiles. He was struck out not of the profession only, he was struck out of life - not noticed, not invited, not published, not performed. They never met again.

14 February 2020

• Music: Tchaikovsky, Katuar, Golovanov
• Conductor: Honoured Artist of Russia Sergei Kondrashev
• Director: Irina Riabinina
• Video Art: Elena Movenko
• Видео арт: Елена Мовенко
• Symphony Orchestra of Radio Orpheus

Love stories are narrated by Maxim Drozd

About the performance

7 feelings, 7 events, 7 personal upheavals, 7 stories of human vices are shown from the most unexpected side. The narrator sets off to a journey along the river of life together with the audience, telling them 7 stories based on search for love undertaken by some famous people who lived on our planet. Amazing secrets will be revealed to the audience: how Cleopatra managed to win Antony’s heart, what Salvador Dali could not forgive his Gala, what Einstein’s brightest love story ended in, what prevented Diana from becoming the queen of Prince Charles's heart? These unusual and paradoxical stories will involve spectators in the kaleidoscope of bright emotions and feelings. The music and the video art of the performance are united by one concept, helping to show the image of the incipient human vices: fear, greed, pride, envy, gluttony and lust. Spectators will be given a chance to live through the love stories together with the heroes, to assess their behavior and, probably, to look for a moment into the depth of their own “rivers of life” which lead to love.

Backstory

For several years Radio Orpheus and PJSC UNIPRO have been working on searching for and restoration of undeservingly forgotten music by Russian composers. The unconditional historical and cultural value of the revived musical material does not allow the organizers to restrict themselves with just issuing CDs. Guests of the Festival will have a chance to attend the world premiere, becoming the first listeners of excerpts from the orchestral poem “Mtsyri” by Georgi Katuar. Today the composer is well-known to classical musicians only, as his name is associated with the theoretical works on harmony. However, his first works were highly assessed by Tchaikovsky, who played a really important role in formation of Katuar’s creative style. “Katuar’s music is extremely emotionally saturated, it is perfect in form, interesting in content and rich harmonic language....I am deeply convinced that Katuar’s works are still awaiting their recognition, and this recognition will come soon!” (Alexander Goldenweizer)