The soprano Ekaterina Bakanova: “The Russian soul is a soul that suffers”

On July 30, you started in Verbier with a very rare version of the Symphony n ° 14. How were you associated with this project? – Soprano ekaterina bakanova: "the russian

I have always dreamed of coming to Verbier. Furthermore, I am very happy to have been able to realize this dream with such a magnificent work. Moreover, In April. Similarly, I received a call from Aleksandros Stavrakakis, the bass with whom I had already sang, who warned me that they were looking for a soprano for this room in Verbier. Moreover, I immediately said yes. Moreover, especially since I knew this version well, for having recorded it with the French pianist Nicolas Stavy. Therefore, As it was a project by Viktoria Postnikova, I knew she had to approve this choice. For example, We did the necessary with my agent to be able to soprano ekaterina bakanova: “the russian sign the contract quickly.

You have engraved this version of the Symphony n ° 14 With Nicolas Stavy in 2022. In addition, How do we work on a very first recording of a work? – Soprano ekaterina bakanova: "the russian

Nicolas Stavy offered me this project following a recommendation by Christophe Ghristi, the artistic director of the Toulouse Opera. Moreover, Nicolas had an exclusive contract with Bis Records. For example, we met in Bremen where we repeated and recorded in a studio for a week in winter 2021. Nevertheless, Aleksandros Stavrakakis sang the bass, Nicolas was on the piano and Florent Jodelet with percussion. For example, After a week, we were exhausted and speechless, but we had almost all the equipment for the CD. Similarly, But by checking the recording against the score. However, the director of Bis Records realized that I had sang two or three false notes in “Lorelei” and soprano ekaterina bakanova: “the russian “the death of the poet”. Consequently, I returned to Bremen to re -record these few measures. Furthermore, As it was the very first recording of this version which had never been interpreted before. Consequently, it was extremely important to do it very precisely.

You have already sang the orchestrated version of the Fourteenth Before. Furthermore, What is for you the difference between the two? – Soprano ekaterina bakanova: "the russian

The first time I sang the Fourteenth. Nevertheless, It was in its version orchestrated with Maestro Letonja and the Philharmonic Orchestra of Strasbourg in January 2019. Consequently, Then. Consequently, we recorded the version with piano and percussion with Nicolas Stavy and we played it at the Philharmonie de Paris in 2022. Therefore, I think that the reduced version is even more dramatic, because the text is much stronger. Meanwhile, The version with Piano is more intimate, more transparent, more beautiful. Nevertheless, soprano ekaterina bakanova: “the russian I would like to one day see this piece staged, maybe by Romeo Castellucci. Moreover, For recording, we have worked a lot with Nicolas on details, with more precise intentions for the text, the sentences. In addition, I arrived in Verbier with a fairly precise idea of what I wanted to express. However, I only had to put it in adequacy with the vision of Postnikova.

What was his vision do you think?

Postnikova was generally much softer than Nicolas, probably because she is a woman. Nevertheless, She had a more delicate way to interpret this music. Therefore, She always wanted to play some more “piano” songs, especially the fourth. Consequently, She brought me a lot, but she also trusted me and she gave me a lot of freedom. She knew the recording. she really asked me for very small changes: to adjust a few breaks, soprano ekaterina bakanova: “the russian a few nuances, to breathe a little less or a little more, and, in certain pieces, simply to highlight the meaning of the sentence. Additionally, She found my voice very beautiful and always said to me: “Oh, wait … I’ll wait for you here, so you can catch your breath ».

How did you work with Viktoria Postnikova? Did you already know her?

No, we had never worked together. I arrived from the Garda Festival three days before our concert in Verbier. we had little time to repeat or to deepen on this composition. Postnikova is 81 years old and it is a real phenomenon. But she was focused on her own sonata and busy with rehearsals with her son, Sasha Rozhdestvenskiy. She was very considerate, protective and soft with us during rehearsals. She listened. Furthermore, she worked this score with great attention and dedication to soprano ekaterina bakanova: “the russian Chostakovitch, for her accents, for her marks, for the tempos and all the notes he wanted to make. She even returned to stage during the applause after the concert with the score in her arms. as if it were the Bible.

What is your relation to Chostakovitch music?

My mother is from Melitopol in Ukraine, but they all emigrated later in Russia and I grew up there. I listened to this music during my studies at Gnesin College, then at the Academy. The Russian soul is a soul that suffers. and you feel this pain in the music of almost all Russian composers, Tchaikovski, Rachmaninov, Scriabine, Chostakovitch or Moussorgski. It is the history of Russia, still governed by tyrants. It soprano ekaterina bakanova: “the russian is the Russian curse. We feel that Chostakovitch could not say things. he expressed by his music everything he felt against Hitler, against Stalin, and the difficult period after the war. This music is part of me, my personality, my thoughts, my homeland, my blood, my Russian soul. I understand the culture and mentality of Chostakovitch. I have lived in Europe for 15 years. but when I hear this music, it’s as if something woke up in me.

Do you have to be Russian to fully understand Chostakovitch?

No, I don’t think so. Music is international. But you have to know history a little to be interested in what happened at the time when it lived. I feel this music in a very personal way because I know how people suffer in my country. There are sometimes so many parallels, even today. Part of my family soprano ekaterina bakanova: “the russian is still there. My brother who lives there: « Is can’t even write What I want in An SMS. Because they will stop me in the street, check my phone and if I wrote something, they will take me to the post ». People are prisoners of this system. They cannot express their thoughts or their feelings. It’s too dangerous. Few are those who can travel and it is very difficult to obtain a visa. At the same time, we cannot deny our origins, it is as if we canceled a part of ourselves. I hope the political system will change. I am really sorry for many artists, because we are all, in a way, the victims of politics. Moreover, I am happy to have music that helps us to explore and express what we sometimes cannot say.

Have you suffered repercussions of Russian intervention in Ukraine?

soprano ekaterina bakanova: “the russian

Despite the fact that I have lived in Europe for 15 years. first in Austria, then in Italy, I encountered many difficulties, especially at the start of this crisis. Russian singers struggled to be committed. I was forced to cancel my projects in Russia because it could harm my career here in Europe. But you cannot forget its origins, deny your country. Even Anna Netrebko would never do that. she has her family there, and Russia gave her everything, [chef d’orchestre et directeur artistique de Mariinsky, Valery] Gergiev gave him everything. It is very delicate and I cannot say what is right and what is not. But I must say that in Verbier. in Switzerland in general, people are very open and they give a lot of space to Russian artists. Fedor Khandrikov, the percussionist who played the Fourteenth With us, for example. He is a wonderful musician. but soprano ekaterina bakanova: “the russian he is still at the Mariinsky, he must work with Gergiev all the time, but does that mean that he hates Europe or that he follows the ideas and the diets of other more powerful musicians? We cannot carry the decisions of our leaders on our shoulders.

When you sing Chostakovitch, do you also transmit the feelings generated by this news?

We are all the result of everything we have experienced in our lives. our experiences, our education, the way we acted, people we met. If we have not lived these experiences and these emotions, often sad and difficult, we cannot express them in music. There Fourteenth is dedicated to death and injustice, perfectly written. It is based on eleven poems by Lorca. Apollinaire, Rilke and Küchelbecker and the text of certain poems, for example “the attentive I”, “Attentive II” or “Response from the Cossacks Zaporogues” soprano ekaterina bakanova: “the russian is sometimes hard, even arrogant or insulting, or even scary and very direct in Russian, but it is the only way to talk about death. I learned the texts by heart so as not to have my nose in the score. When I sing these songs. I draw from everything I have in my heart, in my soul, in my brain and in all that I have experienced so far, to transmit this emotion to the public. It is very important for me because when I invest the music of my feelings while respecting the requirements of the composer. I am able to create a good result.

Do you plan to sing other works by Chostakovitch in the future?

He didn’t write much for the voice. His two operas, Nose et Lady hascbeth De Mtsenses are still too dramatic. Katarina Ismailova is a great role, but soprano ekaterina bakanova: “the russian too dramatic for me. When you start to interpret this kind of music, you can hardly go back. We must pay attention to the repertoire that we choose. I will no longer be able to sing Maria Stuarda or Anna Boleyn after Katarina Ismailova. But in ten years, I think I can do it. My voice changes too. I started my career with the queen of the night. As the voice changes, we change and the repertoire changes.