On Tuesday evening, the controversial conductor Teodor Currentzis appeared in front of the Salzburg Festival audience for the first time. With “Babi Jar”, Shostakovich “Thirteenth”, which carried away. And because of the war in Europe, it is more topical and present than ever.
On September 29-30, 1941, the Nazis murdered more than 33,000 victims – the largest single massacre in World War II. In “Babyn Jar”, a gorge near the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. An event that is more present than ever in 2022 with the brutal war crimes of the Russian attacking troops in Ukraine. “Babi Yar”, Shostakovich’s 13th symphony, opened the “Overture Spiritualuelle” of the festival. On stage: The controversial star conductor Teodor Currentzis together with the “musicAeterna Choir” and the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra. Shostakovich had set the texts of his compatriot Yevgeny Yutschenko to music. Verses criticizing Russian anti-Semitism and unwillingness to commemorate the 1941 massacre. A versatile piece in which the artists around the grandiose bass Dmitry Ulyanov always impressively managed to keep the balance, to create an atmosphere. As in “Kaddish” (sung by Naftali Wertheim), the opening work, which was written in Faith is understood more than praising God and praying for peace. Followed by darkness and silence on stage. And standing applause.
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