RNO

RNO 2006 Volga River Tour: Photo Reportage

The Russian National Orchestra's annual Volga River Tour was a huge success in 2006. The musicians and their guests visited Volgograd, Saratov, Samara, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Kostroma, Yaroslavl and Uglich. Everywhere, the orchestra was warmly welcomed by audiences and well-reviewed by local media.

"The orchestra's sound was superb. Its instrumental groups are extremely balanced, and it shimmers with a multitude of dynamic nuances. The string section has a sound that is striking, melodic and rich; the winds offer a gentle, enveloping presence; each instrumental solo has a well-honed finish."
— Samara Izvestia
"In provincial Saratov it is certainly not every day (or even every year) that you can hear — indeed feel with your heart — music performed by musicians who, together with the audience, deeply feel each and every bar of music. The RNO is clearly distinct from other orchestras. It has an inimitable style, that is professional and young, and its magic enthrals even the most equivocal of listeners."
— Lipki Info, Saratov
The orchestra performed popular works of Tchaikovsky, Glazunov, Musorgsky, Prokofiev, Rakhmaninov and others. Mikhail Lidsky (piano) and Mikhail Simonyan (violin) were the soloists. The orchestra was led by Alexander Vedernikov, member of the RNO's Conductor Collegium and Chief Conductor of Russia's Bolshoi State Academic Theater.
In Saratov, the RNO participated in a benefit concert in memor of Paul Khlebnikov, senior editor of the Russian version of Forbes. Profits from the concert were donated to the reestablishment of village churches.
As last year, successful chamber music concerts were a part of the tour.
RNO Royal Patron, His Royal Highness Prince Michael of Kent, and his wife, Baroness Marie-Christine von Reibnitz, joined the cruise for several days. In Kostroma they participated in a special ceremony, presenting a new eight-ton bass bell - "Tsar Mikhail" - to Ipatev Monastery on behalf of the Prince Michael of Kent Foundation. The donation had been requested of the foundation by the head of the monastery, Archmandrite Ioann, Kostroma Archbishop Alexander Galich and Kostroma regional Governor V.A. Shershunov.
In a concert coinciding with the dedication of the bell, the RNO performed jointly with the choir of Kostroma's Bogoyavlensky-Anastasia Cathedral.
 

Photos by Roman Goncharov, Valery Syrtsov and the Lipki Info agency.

Read the Passport Magazine article about the 2006 RNO Volga River Cruise.