CULTURE
Comedy Trickier Than Drama
NATALIA ZIMYANINA
Dmitry hvorostovsky gave splendid concerts in Moscow and St.Pete.
In between the tours, he spoke to Vremya MN's NATALIA ZIMYANINA
June 2002
Are you pleased with your latest concert
in Moscow?
I am most definitely displeased with my latest
concert. Only a hopeless idiot can be pleased with himself
without reservation. There have been a few instances in my life
when I was not so much pleased with myself as happy. But they
were too fleeting to
remember offhand.
Who do you look up when in Moscow?
My parents. Irina Arkhipova. She is my role
model. An example to follow not just in singing, but in the
entire world outlook. A
paragon of tact, strength, and wisdom. And at the same time she
has womanly weaknesses. Or rather magnanimity. To me she is a
Person with a capital "P."
Do you watch Russian television?
Very infrequently, when I come to Russia. And then only the news programs. Now I am watching the World Cup games. That's the life I lead - most of the time I am on the move, so there is not much point in having a satellite dish installed.
How much favor do you show to your admirers?
This is not the most important part of my life. They make me lots of presents. They write tearful letters that I virtually never read. I have difficulty making out handwritings. Sometimes my wife sorts out my mail and gives me a precis of the most interesting bits.
Are there Hvorostovsky friends' clubs?
There are, in Britain. One is even officially registered, I think. These women follow me wherever I go, attending all my concerts. I am sure there is something like that in America, too. I know for a fact that there are a few in Austria. Their members are youngsters who tag along behind me all over the world. Unfortunately, there are people who are a nuisance. But you can't order them about. They also send me messages in above-average numbers.
In what way do our singers differ from those in the West?
At the moment, banal though this may sound, music, and any art for that matter, has no borders. Nor gender, I think. The artiste fits a certain category, and then there are no differences as such. Possibly, Westerners do not feel tragedy and drama quite so keenly as Russians do. But then Russians find it more difficult to cope with comedy.
You have become such a solid, respectable man. It is time I asked you about your main rule in life.
Being solid is something I would not wish anyone to be. This is just putting on airs. And anyway, an artiste, particularly male, stays childish well into his old age. Until he dies.
What will the new century hold for the opera?
Recently Andrei Konchalovsky, who once staged War
and Peace, and I held a joint press conference in New York. He
was fairly pessimistic about it. While I, like a fool, was quite
upbeat. Apparently the truth lies in between. It is obvious that
classical
art is increasingly becoming exclusive. Because art as such is
tending not upward but downward, toward commerce. So Konchalovsky
was right, alas. But one would like to hope that new forms will
emerge and attract large audiences, and that those audiences will
also be capable of providing financial backing to the artiste.
How will you mark your 40th birthday in October?
My birthday falls on the peak of the season when
there is a concert or a performance on any given night. If I had
a choice I would reserve a couple of days for rest. But mother
told me the other day that one's 40th birthday is best left
uncelebrated. I did not know that. On October 16 I am singing the
premiere of Verdi's I masnadieri at Covent Garden in London. But
since I already let drop a remark about my anniversary there,
I'll give a banquet for the musicians, chorus and stagehands
after the
performance.
Can you say about any of your parts that you are playing yourself?
I am not sure... Figaro maybe... Or Leporello... Don Giovanni... Francesco - that's my character in I masnadieri. An out-and-out scoundrel. And to me singing this part is interesting and comfortable. That's how versatile I am.
How do you wage a battle against conductors?
Conductors are a mixed lot. The good ones are easier to struggle against. The less gifted are more of a problem. But I have enough weight and experience now to have my way in the end. Though with some conductors, it is useless to argue. Then I simply bow to the inevitable.
Once you spoke of your liking for avant-garde. Do you ever get a chance of trying your hand at it?
Avant-garde is a relative notion. There are purely experimental voices, which just cannot afford the luxury of singing in bel canto operas. If I do all right singing classics, why should I switch over to avant-garde pieces? But I am fascinated by modern compositions. A while ago I sang a big piece by Gia Kancheli for voice and symphony orchestra. I love his music. This is not avant-garde, but then it is not dodecaphony either. I take delight in singing Shostakovich. I do not bar myself from avant-garde, but I prefer music to be really great, or at least interesting.
What was the best compliment critics ever paid you?
I never read reviews about myself.
What is your idea of complete rest? And what is your sloth-fighting recipe?
I am awfully lazy, but I have to work all the time. If I don't, there will be no success in the future. When I weigh all the consequences, my sloth vanishes. So I take a rest with a score in my hands. My main rest requirement is a bit of the sea and sunshine.
(C) Moscow News, 2002