The Overture from Giuseppe Verdi’s opera La Forza del Destino, performed by the Astana Opera Symphony Orchestra in a nuanced interpretation of the famous Russian conductor Alim Shakh, opened the musical evening.

The viewers also highly appreciated the piece Concertshtyuk by the outstanding figure of national music culture Tles Kazhgaliyev. The work perfectly conveys the spirit of the ancient Kazakh culture. National ferment and distinctive intonations in his music are easy to understand for any performer or listener in the entire world.

Deputy Chairman of Mazhilis Vladimir Bozhko, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Kazakhstan Alexey Borodavkin, Head of the Russian Centre for Science and Culture in Nur-Sultan Konstantin Vorobyov attended the concert.

The Minister of Culture and Sports of the Republic of Kazakhstan Arystanbek Mukhamediuly, who is also an excellent cellist, did not hide his emotions:

“Shortly before the concert, a Cooperation Agreement between the Astana Opera and the Saint Petersburg Music House was signed. This is a historic event. I want to express my deep gratitude to the Artistic Director of the Music House Sergey Roldugin. He is a Musician with a capital letter, People’s Artist of Russia. For many years he was a Soloist and Conductor of the Symphony Orchestra of the prestigious Mariinsky Theatre, and he is a Professor at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory. Maestro’s creative activity enables the development of young talents. Mr. Roldugin successfully heads the Music House. The results of his work are impressive: young musicians study with the best world-renowned teachers. They prepare for prestigious international competitions, where they later become laureates. It is gratifying that Sergey Roldugin is the founder of the “Sirius” charity foundation, supporting young scientists, athletes, while personally heading the “Art” section. At the moment we have already come to an agreement that in August of this year three young talents from Kazakhstan will be trained by world-leading experts. This is only the first step. It is in our interests for our further collaboration to be even more fruitful. I feel blessed that in 1989 I had the opportunity to take Mr. Roldugin’s master classes in the specialty “Cellist”. At that time, he invited me to work at the Mariinsky Theatre, and I also had other offers in Kazakhstan. The very fact of his invitation is a high mark, since the Mariinsky Theatre occupies a leading position in the world opera and ballet art. This creative interaction between the teacher and the student has its continuation today. We pay great attention to the mutual enrichment of cultures,” the Minister of Culture and Sports of the Republic of Kazakhstan Arystanbek Mukhamediuly shared.

“The holy month of Ramadan is now ending. The Almighty has commanded everyone to live in peace, repent all sins and let go of resentments. Within the framework of this concert I have performed Bruch’s Kol Nidrei for cello and orchestra. It is close in spirit to this month, because it contains the idea of forgiveness. When a person repents, asks the Almighty for forgiveness and receives it. It is not my first time performing at the Astana Opera, your orchestra is still one of the best in Eurasia. This visit also stands out in my mind because I performed together with the esteemed Minister of Culture and Sports of the Republic of Kazakhstan Arystanbek Mukhamediuly at a concert dedicated to the meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the idea of Nursultan Nazarbayev on the Eurasian integration and the 5th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of the Eurasian Economic Union, where the leaders of the largest countries have gathered. He is a remarkable musician and remains so, despite his government post,” Sergey Roldugin emphasized.

Saint-Saëns’ Symphonic poem Danse Macabre (Dance of Death), op.40, Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini in A minor, op.43 (soloist – Sergey Redkin), Khachaturian’s Waltz from the film Masquerade and many other works were performed during the concert.

The enthusiastic audience did not let the artists go for a long time, giving them warm ovations and rapturous shouts of ‘bravo’, coming from all ends of the auditorium.