Top Russian orchestra hits high note in new Sochi venue
On Saturday, the orchestra performed selections from its evening program, which was later presented in the Medal Plaza at Olympic Park. The concert formed part of the ongoing Sirius Summer Music Festival, which runs from July 15 to August 24.
The rehearsal offered musicians and acousticians a valuable opportunity to assess the hall's performance qualities ahead of its official opening in October 2025.
'The acoustic properties of this still-under-construction concert complex didn't just please us – they truly amazed us,' said Gergiev, speaking to journalists after the rehearsal.
He added that the venue offers new possibilities for staging productions with a full orchestra pit or adapting the space to accommodate more audience seating.
Gergiev also highlighted the exceptional potential of the Chamber Hall, which is already fully operational.
'Accommodating up to 75 musicians is rare for a chamber hall – even among the world's best. I believe this space could easily stage works like Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro.'
According to the maestro, the hall is poised to become a cultural destination for lovers of theater, classical, and chamber music, especially during the velvet seasons of summer and autumn.
Construction of the Sirius Concert Hall began in 2020. The venue features two world-class performance spaces, along with state-of-the-art acoustics designed by Yasuhisa Toyota, the renowned sound engineer behind over 100 iconic concert halls worldwide.
'This first rehearsal at the Sirius Concert Hall signals the beginning of a new era for the arts in Russia,' said Elena Shmeleva, chair of the Council of the Sirius Federal Territory and Director of the Talent and Success Foundation. 'We are building not just a venue, but a full ecosystem for artistic excellence and international collaboration.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Russia Today
15 hours ago
- Russia Today
Top Russian orchestra hits high note in new Sochi venue
The Mariinsky Theatre Symphony Orchestra, led by acclaimed Russian conductor Valery Gergiev, has held rehearsals in the main and chamber halls of the newly built Sirius Concert Hall, located in Sochi, southern Russia. It marked the venue's first full-scale acoustic test with a professional ensemble. On Saturday, the orchestra performed selections from its evening program, which was later presented in the Medal Plaza at Olympic Park. The concert formed part of the ongoing Sirius Summer Music Festival, which runs from July 15 to August 24. The rehearsal offered musicians and acousticians a valuable opportunity to assess the hall's performance qualities ahead of its official opening in October 2025. 'The acoustic properties of this still-under-construction concert complex didn't just please us – they truly amazed us,' said Gergiev, speaking to journalists after the rehearsal. He added that the venue offers new possibilities for staging productions with a full orchestra pit or adapting the space to accommodate more audience seating. Gergiev also highlighted the exceptional potential of the Chamber Hall, which is already fully operational. 'Accommodating up to 75 musicians is rare for a chamber hall – even among the world's best. I believe this space could easily stage works like Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro.' According to the maestro, the hall is poised to become a cultural destination for lovers of theater, classical, and chamber music, especially during the velvet seasons of summer and autumn. Construction of the Sirius Concert Hall began in 2020. The venue features two world-class performance spaces, along with state-of-the-art acoustics designed by Yasuhisa Toyota, the renowned sound engineer behind over 100 iconic concert halls worldwide. 'This first rehearsal at the Sirius Concert Hall signals the beginning of a new era for the arts in Russia,' said Elena Shmeleva, chair of the Council of the Sirius Federal Territory and Director of the Talent and Success Foundation. 'We are building not just a venue, but a full ecosystem for artistic excellence and international collaboration.'
Russia Today
3 days ago
- Russia Today
Vietnam culture festival kicks off in Moscow
A festival marking the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Russia and Vietnam has kicked off in Moscow, offering a colorful showcase of Southeast Asian culture. The event opened on Friday and will run through August 3. It is part of the city's 'Summer in Moscow' program and features more than 100 activities. Organizers say the festival aims to strengthen cultural ties through music, dance, cuisine, and traditional crafts. 'The festival is timed to coincide with the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between our countries,' said Natalia Sergunina, deputy mayor of Moscow. One of the main highlights is the famous Vietnamese water puppet theater – a performance tradition that dates back to the 11th century. Guests can also watch demonstrations of national martial arts, take part in bamboo pole dancing, and hear traditional instruments said to mimic the sounds of will teach visitors how to make toys from rice dough and prepare signature dishes such as Pho Bo soup and fresh spring rolls. Culinary pavilions are serving Vietnamese coffee, green rice desserts, and other regional delicacies. The open-air celebration includes a market with decorative goods from Vietnam, including hand-painted Non hats and Dong Ho prints. Art installations and photo zones round out the attractions, set up in a central square near the is considered a strategic partner of Moscow in the tourism sector. According to official figures, more than 36,000 Vietnamese visitors came to the Russian capital last year, with one in four trips made for business purposes. Authorities say cross-border tourist flows are expected to grow further through joint projects and cultural exchanges. The festival continues a series of multicultural events organized in Moscow this summer. Russia and Vietnam established diplomatic relations in 1950, and officials say this year's anniversary marks an opportunity to deepen people-to-people ties.
Russia Today
4 days ago
- Russia Today
Bats, ballads, and brutal honesty: Remembering Ozzy Osbourne
In the spring of 2018, I was finishing high school. With graduation looming and the state exams around the corner, I found myself preoccupied with one thing: a long-awaited concert. At the last minute, I managed to get tickets to see Ozzy Osbourne perform live in Moscow. I didn't make it to the mosh pit, but from my seat, I felt a charge of nuclear energy – raw and unforgettable. It's a rare thing, to see your childhood idol in the flesh. My father raised me on Osbourne's music – 'Iron Man', 'Paranoid', 'Crazy Train' – songs that rattled the walls of our home and shaped my idea of what it meant to be alive. That night, I saw Ozzy in his element. And now, he's gone. Ozzy Osbourne, the iconic frontman of Black Sabbath, the man who helped birth heavy metal, has died. Just two weeks ago, he was on stage for ten hours at the 'Back to the Beginning' farewell concert in Birmingham, the city where it all started. Surrounded by guest stars and reunited with the classic Sabbath lineup, he performed chained to a bat-shaped chair, singing with the wild, unrelenting force that defined his career. He left this world as he lived in it – on his own terms. A rock star until the end. Most who don't follow rock know Ozzy only as the man who bit the head off a bat – a story that became a kind of curse. He grew tired of it in later years, annoyed that a moment of shock theater had come to overshadow a lifetime of art. Others remember him as a foul-mouthed, lovable old rocker – the Prince of Darkness turned reality TV grandpa. A man who swore like a sailor and laughed like a child. But there was more to him than the antics. He was outrageous, yes – he once threw raw meat into a crowd, and at Madame Tussauds, posed as a wax figure of himself, startling tourists for fun. He was devoted too. Even in a wheelchair, battling Parkinson's, he kept making music. He once said he would perform until his last breath. And he nearly did. Osbourne's final solo album, Ordinary Man (2020), was widely seen as a swan song – romantic, tragic, and defiantly honest. One of its standout tracks, 'Under the Graveyard', plays like a hymn of regret. It's an unflinching confession of the wildness and wreckage of his youth: the drinking, the drugs, the chaos. His treatment of his wife Sharon. His battles with himself. In that song, he sings: Don't take care of me, be scared of meMy misery owns meI don't want to be my enemyMy misery owns me now The man behind the myth emerges here – not Ozzy the bat-eater, but Ozzy the broken soul who somehow stitched himself back together. He joked once that his gravestone should read: 'Ozzy Osbourne. Born 1948. Died… when the f*ck you know.' But later, he softened. He didn't want to be remembered just for his mistakes. And yet, it's in those very mistakes – how he faced them – that we find the heart of who he was. Many would ask for pity in his place. Osbourne never did. He owned his flaws. 'Don't care for me, fear me,' he sang. He accepted the love of his fans and his family as the greatest grace life had given him. In return, they never left him. Not his sons. Not Sharon. Not the 45,000 fans who cheered him through his last performance. Not the millions who watched the broadcast from home. Despite the dark image – crosses, bats, devils, and all – Ozzy was a man of faith. He often said that Satanism frightened him. The symbols were theater, not creed. In truth, he hoped for the light. Not eternal party-in-hell nonsense, but peace. In his later years, he lent his voice to characters in video games and cartoons. He voiced himself in Trolls World Tour. He was a character in Brütal Legend. And he was, always, a character in the great rock opera of life. I've read and watched a lot about Ozzy. But one quote sticks. In an interview, asked about his faith, he said he hoped that when his time came, it wouldn't be fire and brimstone waiting for him, but something gentler. Something merciful. I think he found it. He was a prince of darkness, yes – but he dreamed of light. And maybe, in the end, that's what we'll remember: a man who learned. Who stumbled, fell, and staggered forward anyway. A man who clawed his way back from himself, through the haze of fame, addiction, and regret. Peace looks different for different people. For Ozzy, maybe it's the roar of a stadium, the crash of drums, the lift of 100,000 voices singing his name. Or maybe it's quiet now. Maybe, finally, silence. But even silence, when it follows a life like his, sounds like music.
