On February 6 through 10 Kyiv will host a new artistic project “Ukrainian opera stars in the world.” It can be called a new format of music lovers’ favorite festival “I will come back to Ukraine,” which since 2006 has been gratifying the audience with unforgettable meetings with outstanding masters, currently performing on the most prestigious stages of the world.
“The idea to hold gala concerts ‘I will come back to Ukraine’ with the participation of Ukraine-born celebrities emerged in 2006. It will be recalled that many musicians, singers, dancers, and conductors left the former USSR, seeking for a better destiny. Their talent was welcomed with applause in many countries, but in their homeland they had not performed for a long time. In 2006 the administration of the National Opera House, with the support of Kyiv City Administration decided to launch the project ‘I will come back to Ukraine,’ and since then our world renowned compatriots have been performing on the capital stage on an annual basis,” chief director of the National Opera House Anatolii SOLOVIANENKO told The Day. “So, famous pianist and pedagogue (unfortunately deceased by now) Volodymyr Krainev, legendary bass singer Anatolii Kocherha, famous soprano Viktoria Lukianets, as well as other artistes, took part in the first concert of the action.
“Last year we managed to give a new quality to this project, and with the personal support of the head of Kyiv City State Administration Oleksandr Popov, we brought the action outdoors, timing it to the Day of Kyiv. The concert took place on St. Sophia Square, and the Symphony Orchestra conducted by Mykola Diadiura took part in it. We revived the tradition of refined concerts of the world and Ukrainian classic music, held outdoors, which can be attended free of charge by Kyivites and guests of our capital. And on the Independence Day we also presented a classic program, which the audience liked.
“It should be admitted that none of the celebrities was capricious and honorarium is far from the most important things for these masters. For them it is important to meet with the native audience they miss, too. It is a pleasure for them to perform in Kyiv, a city which has become for many of them a springboard in their artistic career. The performers admit that our festival is a kind of exam for them before the Ukrainian audience and a report on their professional achievements.
“Last year I appealed to the Ministry of Culture with a proposition to hold a festival ‘Ukrainian opera stars in the world.’ We are launching the forum on February 6. We will show five productions within the framework of the festival. Marian Talaba will be the first to appear on stage in the opera Carmen. Currently this tenor is a soloist of the Vienna State Opera. On February 7, the audience will hear Oleh Kulko (soloist of the Bolshoi Theater) sing Calaf’s part. On February 8 famous bass Valentyn Pyvovarov (soloists of Maribor Theater, Slovenia, and Theater St. Gallen, Switzerland) will perform Gremin’s part in Eugene Onegin, and on February 10 – the part of Grand Inquisitor in Don Carlos. Wonderful soprano Olha Mykytenko will appear on Kyiv stage as Violetta (La traviata). Today this singer is a soloist of the Aalto Theater in Essen, Germany.”
