Russian Seasons to be Opened in New York
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It is sometimes nice to return back to the past, especially, to the great past blessed by such names as Dyagilev, Stravinskiy, Petipa, Goncharov, Larionov… New “Russian Seasons” are not held in Paris, but in New York. They are also blessed by Roerich’s name. His magical paintings create unique atmosphere for the participants of literature and music salon KRiK. From now on, meetings will be held monthly at the Nicholas Roerich Museum in New York.
Aleksandr Genis
In his speech, he presented his book of memoirs “Return Address”. Books by Genis, who partly wrote them together with the deceased Petr Vail, and Svoboda radio station broadcasts are a special part in the history of Russian émigré culture. “I have never been invited as a speaker in such magnificent decorations. Thanks to Roerich!”, - he said. He started his speech from childhood and youth memories, from reverential attitude to Nicholas and Svyatoslav Roerichs’ heritage in Riga, where he is from himself. Genis came to the USA 39 years ago and visited Roerich’s Museum regularly. So, this speech was not a coincidence for Genis.
Clarinetist Julian Milkis and pianist Aleksandr Izbitser performed during the musical part of the evening. In fact, Milkis is the only student of jazzman Benny Goodman. “Svoboda” radio station awarded Aleksandr Izbitser the title of “Russian America’s Person of the Year” in 2007; in New York, many know him thanks to his performances in legendary restaurant “Russian Samovar”. This duet performed fragments of Gia Kancheli’s “Miniatures for Clarinet and Piano – Music of Theatre and Cinema” previously unperformed in New York. Isbitser also performed several classic works on old piano owned by one of Roerich’s followers Zinaida Fosdik, who created and became the head of the museum in 1949.
Read also: Gennadiy Katsoc: Russian New York Never Sleeps
“Russian Seasons” are not that radical. Quite the opposite – they draw a delicate line between the past and the present, drawing attention to complexity of talents of those, who they call “Russians” in America – people with Soviet and CIS background or their descendants, who have somehow saved Russian language.
Gennadiy Katsov
Gennadiy Katsov – poet, writer and journalist – was hosting the event; he is well-known both in Russian US and far beyond its boundaries.
I asked Gennadiy Katsov to tell about the first meeting.
– It was a success – almost 200 people came. One fifth of them were people under 30. You can’t gather more for events like these even in Moscow. We have to take a Russian-American feature into account: people, who are 20-25 years old, speak English in vast majority of cases and these events are held only as “Russian”. Although, if yesterday came almost 200 people (unfortunately, many of them stood in aisles, some sat on the steps, some could not even reach the steps), in Moscow such events gather 20–30 visitors... 50 and more is rare. So, the event at Roerich’s Museum was a success, indeed.
Aleksandr Genis read chapters from his book of memoirs “Return Address”. The audience’s reaction was vivid and vigorous; the text was magnificent, wise and ironic at the same time, sad and funny. Certainly, mentioning Brodskiy, Losev, Dovlatov, Vail, Paramonov and many other famous names and literary characters, with whom Aleksandr Genis shared his lot, met the audience’s favour.
At the end of the event, he answered the audience’s questions. Many ridiculous, surprising, autobiographic and wise things were said during this part of the event. There was a question from the audience: “I tried cooking something according to your recipes from your book “Russian Cuisine in Exile”, written together with Petr Vail, but could not make anything, why?” Genis answered he always used these recipes at home.
Both during the first and second part, Genis’s stories were interrupted by musical “pauses”, performed by world-known clarinetist Julian Milkis and pianist Aleksandr Izbitser.
There have been talks that American Russian-speaking society has been lacking past unity and active cultural life. This project is one of rare opportunities to return the good times, when you could meet Dovlatov in the crowd, listen to poems by Kostya Kuzminskiy or stumble upon Brodskiy and Baryshnikov at the “Russian Samovar”. There are other vivid, talented and artistic people here now, but it is a very hard task to gather them together – there is either no money, or no initiative or ideas. But it seems, that the “Russian Seasons” organisers are able to cope with it.
So, every second Thursday from October to June, “Russian Seasons” are going to be held. It is already known, that writers Vladimir Gandelsman, Anna Galbertshtadt, Marina Temkina, Gary Lite, Slava Polishchuk, Grigoriy Starikovskiy, Gennadiy Katsov, David and Maksim Shraers, musicians Julia Zilberkvit, Vadim Neselovskiy, Boris Strulev, Elena Peres, Evgenia Pilyavina, Elena Kushnerova, Svetlana Gorokhovich, Irena Portenko and others are going to take part in the events and also Lera Auerbach, who will show her two faces – of a poet and a composer. One more bonus of the project is that all the events are free of charge.