2023-05-18 16:04:59
We talked with him about Belarusians at La Scala, the death of a tyrant in classical operas, participation in the opera “The Wild Hunt of King Stakh” in London and future concerts in the central squares of Belarus.
Briefly
- He lost an orderly way of life, he lost his homeland. But any crisis is an opportunity for growth. I don’t know if I would have been at La Scala, for example, if I hadn’t been forced to leave Belarus.
- It takes no less time to raise a singer than, for example, a military pilot. It takes 10-15 years. And what is happening in the Belarusian opera is mischief.
- The classic plot of “The Wild Hunt of King Stakh” must be experienced anew by every generation. This will be the project of the 21st century and of each of us in this history. The answers will be relevant to the time.
- We will definitely come back, we will have more concerts in the central squares, we will sing the best songs and the best operas together.
About La Scala as Everest for an opera singer
– Tell us about your part on the stage of one of the best opera theaters in the world. What is Antonin Dvořák’s distinctive opera “The Little Mermaid” for the Belarusian opera singer?
– First of all, it is a great honor to participate in such a production. For every opera singer, this is an Everest that must be conquered. Whether it’s a big main part or a secondary part, as in my case, it’s still an extremely pleasant phenomenon in a creative biography. This is a unique experience for me personally.
“The Little Mermaid” by Dvořák is a classic plot of late romanticism, one of the finest examples of the Czech symphonic and operatic tradition. Dvořák called this work the 11th symphony, because the orchestra plays an extremely important role there, no less important than the singers themselves. There is a lot of interesting happening in the orchestra, in the score and on stage.
Dvořák wrote this opera at the end of the 19th century, it is one of his last works. And we see that it is not only late romanticism, but we can already see the features of impressionism and even expressionism, many quite interesting musical currents.
– As far as I know, you were supposed to perform at La Scala earlier, but it didn’t work out, because you couldn’t leave the USA due to the need to complete certain documents. Then they also had to sing in Dvořák’s opera?
– No, then I had to sing in Massenet’s opera “Thais” (based on the story of Anatole France), in which I sang many years ago. This opera is rarely performed on stage. And the management of La Scala contacted me because I played the main role of Athanael. Everyone knows the interlude from this opera, this melody is usually performed in the ballet. I was ready to go, but then it didn’t work out because there were difficulties with getting a work visa (you need to get work visas even for short-term contracts in Italy). Then I was very sorry. But now it worked, this time I’m here.
– It is not so easy for Belarusians to get to Milan and it is not so easy to buy tickets (they are expensive). Nevertheless, tell me when the premiere?
— The premiere will take place on June 6. We have six evenings, the last show on June 22. The director of the production is the famous Italian director Emma Dante. She is collaborating with La Scala for the second time. The conductor is the Czech maestro Tomáš Ganuc, one of the best Dvořák specialists in the world. It is a great pleasure to work with him and Emma. This experience is in the piggy bank of the singer. We still have a Czech language teacher, because there are peculiar difficulties in pronunciation, there are too many consonants, but we do not give up. They say that we are not doing well. Even my Czech friend Jiri Rainis (he sings the part of the forester) says that I am well done.
Our troupe is international, from all over the world. I have a small part of the Hunter, but it is usually sung by singers with a voice, because it is the leitmotif, the theme of fate. My hero sings a song about a white doe that you don’t need to touch, you don’t need to shoot at it. And he, like a hunter, warns the prince not to shoot at that doe, because it can bring him a lot of trouble. But the prince does not obey.
I sing this part for the first time in the first act, then it appears in the second part as a leitmotif in the orchestra, when the prince and the mermaid meet. Outstanding music, melody. It’s a pleasure to work. You can follow mine Instagram account, where I try to make a diary. We cannot publish everything, because it is part of the production and property of the theater. From what I can, I make short reports on my social networks. Watch on the official channel of the La Scala theater and on the youtube channel. In addition to the main part of the Hunter, I also sing a cover of the lead role of the bass-baritone Vodnik.
About Belarusians at La Scala
— In October, the Belarusian conductor Vital Aleksyaonak staged “The Little Prince” at La Scala, now you will sing in Dvořák’s opera. Are you and Vitaly the first Belarusians at La Scala?
– No. The first Belarusian to sing at La Scala was Mikhas Zabeyda-Sumitsky, an outstanding Belarusian singer who sang here in the seasons of 1932, 1933 and 1934. I am studying the archive to find the exact information. He was friends with Maksim Tank, met with Uladzimer Karatkevich. I was in Belarus after the war, and this is our first star, our maestro, who sang at La Scala. And in the history of independent Belarus, our Katya Semyanchuk sang there, a mezza-soprano, she works in St. Petersburg.
– Recently, the possible illness and departure of Alexander Lukashenko were discussed. Works of classical opera have many plots when tyrants die or when they are killed. How do you view this development of events in the context of classical music works?
– Everything is God’s will. Every person has to face this, whether he is a villain or a righteous person. Everyone must give an account to God. As a person with Christian beliefs, I first of all try to set a good example myself, so as not to regret the years spent in vain on earth. Usually, culture, and especially opera, is a reflection of the processes taking place in society in a historical context. Perhaps all Verdi’s operas, starting with Macbeth, are about this. And Othello, and all his other operas. “Boris Godunov” from Russian culture.
About lost roots and new opportunities
– Ilya, what did you lose and what did you gain as a result of your forced departure from Belarus? As an opera singer and a person?
– It is always a challenge. He lost an orderly way of life, he lost his homeland. For every artist, for every person, when the roots are pulled out, it always hurts. I cannot say that leaving Belarus did not have a negative influence on me. I miss, I feel for the Motherland. I follow the news every day. This has a negative impact on the singer, the artist and any person.
Secondly, these are opportunities and challenges for yourself. Any crisis is an opportunity for growth. If there is no choice, you take a step into the unknown, and then new doors and new opportunities open. And thank God for that. So I wouldn’t say I regret it. I don’t know if I would have been at La Scala, for example, if I hadn’t been forced to leave. We don’t know. I don’t know. But there is what is, and I am grateful to God for everything that happens in life, for meetings with new friends, for creative projects, for tears and for joy.
– What do you think, what did the Belarusian opera theater lose after the forced departure and dismissal of a large number of musicians?
– It’s just a loss of everything. Each creative unit is unique. Troupes of national theaters have been gathering for decades. It takes no less time to raise a singer than, for example, a military pilot. It takes 10-15 years. When this person is lost to culture, it is a loss that cannot be covered for decades. And what is happening in the Belarusian opera, I cannot positively assess. This is damage.
– You had a dream to have at least one opera theater in each regional center of Belarus. From what you know, is there anywhere and anyone to go to in Belarus for lovers of classical music now?
– I don’t have an answer to this question, because I haven’t been in Belarus for more than two years. I know that people go to the opera because it is for them, on the one hand, to go out into some ideal world to escape this reality. For others, it is impossible, because it will be like setting up those who were forced to leave, so it is unethical to go to the theater. Everyone makes their own choices, I can’t influence them. And I don’t know what I would do in these circumstances, because I am not in Minsk now.
About the modern reading of Karatkevich
– From Soltan’s opera “The Wild Hunt of King Stakh” in the Belarusian Opera Theater not so long ago, they removed the line “Roman, get out!”, fearing, perhaps, parallels with Roman Bandarenko or Roman Pratosevich. You will perform the main role in “Wild Hunt” on the stage of the Barbican Theater in London, staged by Khalezin, with music by Podgayska, libretto by Khadanovich and conducted by Aleksyaenko. What do you expect from participating in such a stellar project?
– Censorship and cutting of opera texts reminds me of Orwell’s “1984”, which we all read, and it seemed to us a few years ago that this was impossible at all – to tear up newspapers, magazines, libretto and everything else with magic scissors. But even Karatkevich can be cleaned up. It’s all a laugh and a sin. We are doing this work again. Both for me and for Mykolai Khalezin, the plot of “The Wild Hunt of King Stakh” is relevant for our time – because of what we are going through. That’s why I agreed to participate in this project.
I think that the classic plot must be experienced anew by every generation. Therefore, it will not be Solton’s project. This will be the project of the 21st century and of each of us in this history, including the composer Olga Padgaiskaya in the first place. We reinterpret the classic again and again, and the answers will be relevant to the times. Therefore, I do not believe that it will be the same Beloretsky who was in the late 1980s and early 1990s, who was very nicely performed by maestro Skarabagatov.
– I recently specially re-read this work by Karatkevich and re-watched Rubinchik’s film based on “The Wild Hunt of King Stakh” with a script by Karatkevich. And I was struck by how much the Russian actor Boris Plotnikov, who was specially invited by Rubinchik for this role, did not correspond to the character of Beloretskyi, who is a strong, determined man in the book. What is your interpretation of this image?
– It’s always like that with screen adaptations. I immediately remember the adaptation of Karatkevich’s “Grey Legend”. When we were working on the opera “The Gray Legend”, I watched the adaptation, a noir film with Ivar Kalnińs. It also seemed to me that it was “from the wrong forest”, it did not correspond to my impression, because I read in “The Gray Legend” that we had in the Smolsky Opera.
I still have to watch Rubinchik. I read King Stakh’s Wild Hunt a long time ago as well, and will re-read it before the project. But it seems to me that the way we see Belaretskii should be sought first of all in the person of Karatkevich himself. This will be the key to understanding. All the contradictions of Karatkevich himself, his hope, faith in the future of Belarus, Belarus, together with such sadness. Contradiction of his nature; the way he looked at the world; his love and also the story of his life. This is all Beloretsky, in my opinion.
About future concerts in Belarus
— The audience of Svoboda Premium is mainly located in Belarus. A large number of Belarusian creators were forced to leave and now continue to perform abroad with varying degrees of success. What would you say to people in Belarus, for whom Belarusian culture is important and necessary, how to remain a consumer of it in this situation?
– The worst thing is to lose hope. Don’t lose hope, friends. And don’t be afraid. I have to repeat again and again the famous words of John Paul the Second to the Poles during the years of communist oppression: “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid.” I put all my efforts and efforts in my life in order not to lose hope and not to be afraid. Because a person remains a person only if he hopes for the best and if he does not lose hope and tries to fight his fear. I believe that everything will work out for us. We will definitely come back, we will have more concerts in the central squares, we will sing the best songs and the best operas together.
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