President of the Foundation Musical Olympus» Irina Anatolyevna Nikitina was born in St. Petersburg. She completed postgraduate studies at the St. Petersburg Conservatory as a pianist, trained in Prague, Bern. Her teachers were professors N.E. Perelman, T.L. Fidler, Yu.S. Kolaiko, Z. Ruzickova, J. Deyler. Winner of international competitions in Geneva, Paris and Osaka.
From 1983 to 1995 he actively gives concerts in Germany, Switzerland, France, Italy, England, Japan, the USA, Korea and other countries, simultaneously teaches at the St. Petersburg Conservatory, gives master classes in Baltimore, Florida, Seoul and Tokyo , performs on television and radio (DRS, NHK, RIAS Berlin, WDR, Bayerischen Rundfunk, etc.).
Her personal discography includes 13 albums - solo and as part of chamber ensembles, recorded on CD by leading music labels: Melodiya, Denon, Sony, Toshiba / EMI, King, etc. In 1995, Toshiba / EMI released an album of all piano compositions Kosaka Yamada in her performance.
Since 1991, Irina Nikitina has been a producer of major international musical projects in Switzerland, Russia, France, Japan.
In September 1995, on her initiative, the Musical Olympus Foundation was founded in St. Petersburg. She becomes its President.
In June 1996, the Foundation holds the first Musical Olympus festival in St. Petersburg with a unique concept: to present young laureates of international competitions to the public. Noting the originality and significance of this undertaking, the World Federation of International music competitions(Geneva) from next year provided its patronage to the festival.
Since 1997, the Musical Olympus Foundation has also been under the patronage of the Ministry of Culture Russian Federation as a sign of high appreciation of his role in the cultural life of the country.
In 2008, Irina Nikitina was elected President of the Union of Concert Workers of the Russian Federation.
Irina Nikitina is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Geza Anda International Piano Competition (Switzerland), President of the New York Musical Olympus Foundation (USA), Vice President of the Association of Friends of the Musical Olympus Festival in Switzerland (Zurich), Vice President of the Foundation "St. Petersburg" (Switzerland), created to support the music school at the St. Petersburg Conservatory.
Member of the Board of Trustees of the International Society for Development intercultural dialogue Civilizations Matter (since 2006) and the German-Russian Forum of Young Leaders New Generation (since 2011). He regularly participates in international forums and symposia, including the World Economic Forum in Davos (1989-1995) and the World Forum for Young Leaders organized by the Herbert Quandt BMW Foundation (2002-2006).
Since 2003 - permanent member World Public Forum "Dialogue of Civilizations" (Rhodes), initiator and moderator of the section "Music as the universal language of mankind" (since 2012).
Irina Nikitina - laureate National Prize public recognition achievements of women of Russia "Olympia" for 2001 "For great services in popularizing musical art in Russia and support for young Russian talents”. The biography of Irina Nikitina was included in the book " famous women Russia" (2004).
In 2006, her name was included in the list of the 50 most beautiful and famous people St. Petersburg. In 2009, she was awarded the medal “For Faith and Loyalty” by the Foundation of the Holy All-Praised Apostle Andrew the First-Called (“For active participation in the Foundation’s programs to strengthen the Russian statehood and increase the national glory of Russia”) and was elected an honorary member of the foundation.
In 2013, at the National Press Center in Washington, the Musical Olympus Foundation, represented by Irina Nikitina, was awarded the Silver Archer - USA award "for establishing intercultural dialogue through music, strengthening the culture of partnership on a global scale, supporting young talented musicians around the world and creating conditions for their professional implementation”.
Since 2015 - Irina Nikitina has been the head of the Board of Trustees of the International Television Competition young musicians"Nutcracker".
News
Jan30
"Person of the Year" 2018
The President of the Musical Olympus Foundation, Irina Nikitina, was awarded the title of Person of the Year 2018 as the author and host of the Enigma TV program on the Culture-Russia channel in the annual rating of the All-Russian newspaper Musical Review. The award has been in existence since 1995.
June05
Soprano Sonya Saric won the Audience Award at the 23rd Musical Olympus International Festival
The winner of the prize is determined based on the vote of the audience, which is held at each concert of the festival. Prize - unique jewel famous artist Vladimir Mikhailov - Easter Egg"The Resurrection of Christ".
Russian pianist, public figure and composer Irina Nikitina. Known in musical circles as President of the Musical Olympus Foundation. Viewers know her as the creator of music for the animated series Leva the Truck, Smart Cars, Smart and the Miracle Bag, etc.
Biography of Irina Nikitina
Irina Anatolyevna Nikitina Born in St. Petersburg, in the family of a famous cellist, Professor Anatoly Nikitin. And her mother is an analytical physicist, former teacher institute.
WITH early age Irina decided that she should become a pianist and persistently walked towards her goal. After school, she entered the St. Petersburg State Conservatory with a degree in piano and graduated in 1987. The study was followed by two more years of practice in the Czech Republic with renowned professors.
Creative career of Irina Nikitina
In the period from 1983 to 1995, Irina was actively engaged in concert activities as a pianist, going on numerous tours around the world. She became a laureate of international music competitions in Geneva (1986) and Paris (1986). Released 15 albums.
In 1995, at the initiative of Irina, the International Musical Olympus Foundation was created in St. Petersburg, thanks to which famous foreign musicians(Andras Schiff, Anne-Sophie Mutter, Yo-Yo Ma, Christian Thielemann and others). Irina herself becomes its permanent president. Under the management of Irina, the fund promotes young musical talents both in Russia and abroad.
The first successful project of the foundation was the eponymous international festival, whose concerts are held in St. Petersburg, at the Carnegie Hall in New York, at the Tonhalle in Zurich, at the Berlin Philharmonic and other halls of the world.
Irina Nikitina Haefliger is a laureate of the National Award for Public Recognition of the Achievements of Women in Russia "Olympia" for 2001 "For great services in popularizing the art of music in Russia and supporting young Russian talents." In 2013, at the National Press Center in Washington, Irina Nikitina was awarded the Silver Archer USA Award "For establishing intercultural dialogue, strengthening the culture of partnership on a global scale."
“If we consider various directions from the point of view of energyism, then even scientists have proven that, for example, hard Rock destroys the mind. Therefore, from childhood it is necessary to instill love for classical music because it contributes to the full development of the individual. In some states, a thorough study of classical music is already included in the school curriculum.
In 2014, Irina for the first time takes part in the creation of a children's animated series as a composer. In the future, she continues to engage in this activity.
He is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Nutcracker International Television Competition for Young Musicians on the Kultura TV channel.
In 2016, Irina Nikitina became the author and host of the Enigma program on classical music on the Kultura TV channel. Irina is visited by such prominent contemporary musicians as violist Yuri Bashmet, conductors Maris Jansons and Vladimir Fedoseev, pianist Daniel Barenboim and many others.
Personal life of Irina Nikitina
The first husband of Irina Anatolyevna was a Russian cellist, conductor, music teacher Sergei Roldugin.
In the early 90s of the XX century, Irina Nikitina moved to live in Switzerland. She was married to a violinist, executive director and artistic director Lucerne Festival Michael Haefliger. In 1991, Nikitina and Hoefliger had a daughter, Annika.
The current husband of Irina Nikitina is a director and general producer TV channel "Culture" Sergey Shumakov.
Filmography of Irina Nikitina
- Smarta and the miracle bag (TV series, 2016 - 2017)
- Car driving school (TV series, 2016 - 2017)
- Smart cars (TV series 2015 - ...)
- Leva the Truck (TV series 2014 - 2016)
President of the Musical Olympus Foundation, which is engaged in cultural projects of national and international scale, - about time and accuracy as concepts of mentality, self-organization and about the moment of that silence that is from God.
How is your relationship developing over time?
I think they are doing much better now than before. Apparently, a certain life experience and baggage affects when you stop rushing.
For me, time is divided in ancient Greek: into chronos and kairos. These are two different times: chronos- chronology, what we fix in minutes, seconds, weeks, months, years ... And then it turns out, relatively speaking, an obituary, an extract: born, died, and what happened.
A kairos- these are key moments in life, when your personal history changes in a second, negatively or positively, but at some point it turns. You can vegetate for a year, two years or 10 years, and then something incredible will appear, and you will already find yourself in a completely different diocese.
My sense of time is trustworthy. That is, feeling the time, you need to trust yourself. I believe that in our youth we are in a hurry: it seems to us that we need to do everything, to get everywhere urgently. I even had such a saying: “I don’t need to sit on two chairs, but lie on five.” But it passes because the quality changes. I sometimes think about time: how interesting, it is not frozen, it is just as chronological, it also passes, but there is a feeling that it has become more complete. The concentration is higher and the intellectual work is completely different and there is no such fuss. I'm running out of time fuss, which actually slowed everything down.
Can you remember your first sense of time? What was it like?
From a young age I was engaged in both yoga and meditation, so the time for me has always been associated with some kind of spiritual practices. I don't accept any religious position, but I have great respect for the fact that the time spent one on one with God is the most significant. This is the moment of that silence, which is from God.
Can a person manage his time?
I cannot say that I am so omnipotent that I can control everything. It's arrogant. But if you have leadership qualities, are a leader, then you are responsible for the distribution of time, yes. Business-minded people know that negotiations won't work until you get a good grasp of the topic or learn another language. So, you need to invest in time. What are you investing your time in? There are force majeure circumstances that cannot be controlled. For everything else, you have to try.
Any work is synchronization. It is necessary to clearly assess the capabilities of people and not force
If a person cannot manage his time, does this somehow characterize him from a negative side?
Do you know how many immensely talented fools there are? This is such a temperament, such a view of the world that has always existed in ballet, in the theater ... I know artists who went into hard drinking, but were very talented. Something unbalanced them, maybe human talents, resources that they could not develop. For a strict business, they may not be suitable.
That is, time resource management is more of a psychological problem?
This problem cannot be revealed in this way: if a person cannot manage time, then he is weak, infirm, or good for nothing. I have other criteria: I am interested in high professionalism and the potential of a person ... interesting, ambiguous, complex person. Life is an ascent, a path that can be observed. And as we know, you can go astray, fall off the mountain, and so on. However, we do not go on a path to fall off the mountain. Especially people who have curiosity, interest, motivation to learn something ... For me, a person can be absolutely at odds with the times, but if I see indifference in his eyes, then this is a sentence for me. Because in some segment or moment this person will no longer come to life, he has comprehended indifference, nothing will affect him. At the same time, indifference should not be confused with a certain wisdom and balance.
Irina Nikitina- musician, laureate of the National Prize for Public Recognition of the Achievements of Women in Russia "Olympia", President of the Musical Olympus Foundation. Born in St. Petersburg. She completed postgraduate studies at the St. Petersburg Conservatory as a pianist, trained in Prague and Bern. She is the winner of international competitions in Geneva, Paris, Osaka. From 1983 to 1995, Irina led an active concert activity. Since 1991 he has been a producer of major international musical projects in Switzerland, Russia, France, and Japan. Since 1995 - President of the Musical Olympus Foundation. In 2013, the foundation organized a series of concerts by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in Russia. These tours were named the “Event of 2013”, and Irina Nikitina, as president of the Musical Olympus Foundation, was named “Person of the Year”.
With whom do you feel more comfortable, easier, more convenient to work with?
It is generally accepted that bohemia is optional. But look: in theaters, performances, concerts, rehearsals begin at the exact time. This bohemia, which is called a disorganized clan, has absolutely clear, incredibly precise, organized people. As for business, they probably have the same thing.
Since I travel a lot, I saw people of different mentality. In general, time and accuracy are concepts of mentality. In Switzerland, relatively speaking, it has its own mentality. Dentist, musician and businessman - they will all be born with Swiss watches in their heads. With second hand. And if you come to some African countries, you will come across the fact that they have two concepts of time: day and night. That is, breakfast in our understanding is from 8 to 10 in the morning, and for them it can be at one, two, or three days. But if you work on a project in Africa, then you need to get used to their mentality. And the Russians have their own characteristic a little laxity, but, believe me, it is very individual. Everything depends on the mentality.
Do you have your own synchronizer, did you have to learn time management?
Time management is the disposal of not only your time, but also the time of your environment, your partners. I'm on this part big way passed. I was born disorganized, scattered, and now ... I don’t want to say that I have become a fan, but I have developed a sense of time very much. To be late is almost impossible. My daughter is even “worse”: she doesn’t come on time, but always 5 minutes earlier.
For me, a person can be absolutely at odds with the times, but if I see that he has indifference in his eyes, then for me this is a sentence.
Of course, I studied. I believe that I have no right to be late for a meeting, this is disrespect, because the person who is waiting for me really has a whole day scheduled to the minute. Do not think that nothing will change in the 15-10 minutes that you delay. I think that it is indecent to make yourself wait and be late even for a meeting with friends.
What helps you manage time?
If something is absolutely impossible to miss, then a regular alarm clock helps me. When he is able to remind that I have to call someone, take a pill, then I can easily set the alarm. Why fill your head with unnecessary information? And of course, there are papers, diaries. I don't really like all these electronic products, I like tactile sensations. I write everything down.
How long do you usually plan for?
A year or three ahead. By the way, I remember a moment, about 20 years ago, when I talked about planning for 6-7 months, people looked at me like I was crazy, because in the 1990s there was no concept that you need to think six months ahead. Now we have learned.
You came to time management by experience. What are the conclusions?
My mistake was that I am very fast, active, my speed is impressive. And I demanded about the same from people, and then asked: how? Haven't done it yet? And over time, I realized that people have completely different speeds, and it is important to determine who has what pace and rhythm. There are people who speak slowly and you don't have the patience to listen. Maybe they think fast, but that's how they express themselves. You also need to understand this, look at how convenient it is for you. Because any work is synchronization. It is necessary to clearly assess the capabilities of people and not force if you understand that they will not cope. Everyone has a different temperature - someone has 36.2, someone has 35.8, and someone has almost 37. All this is the norm, but even fractions of degrees are huge difference. It is better to clearly assess the capabilities of people and not rush them, realizing that they may not be able to cope, get into a "nervous", panic, fuss.
Who would you call your time management teacher?
Perhaps I'm self-taught. Of course, I read some books, choosing interesting ones as authors. successful people. Much has been written about time management. different books, so many different methods are described, and all because people are very individual, therefore both schools and approaches are individual. My experience is also very personal.
Interview: Svetlana Morozova
Photos: Julia Pchelintseva
Your own office, a secluded house, a living room that seems to hover over the city ... Everyone should have a place where you can feel like yourself. Three people allowed us to look into their personal space.
Sometimes we find such a place by accident - and then we no longer want to share it with other inhabitants of the apartment. And sometimes we create it on purpose: closing our eyes, we imagine how good it is to climb into a chair with legs, light a lamp, open a book ... “Such cozy pictures come to us from childhood and create the feeling that we are at home again, where nothing bad can happen to us cannot, where everyone who is dear to us is next to us, - explains psychoanalyst Ekaterina Kalmykova. “Actually, this feeling should arise when we are “in our own corner”: I am protected, I have everything I need.” But where will such a place be in our own house, depends on our tastes and preferences: someone feels good in the kitchen with a warm round lampshade over the dining table, someone will prefer a sofa with a book or a tablet, and someone will go to the bathroom, turn on the music, draw water with fragrant foam .. “We deliberately surround ourselves only with things that do not irritate our feelings, but bring peace of mind, relax,” continues Ekaterina Kalmykova. “Which gives us a sense of security even when no one is threatening us. Here we can not only relax and replenish our strength, but also work at full creative power or come up with something new. This is a real resource place."
Irina Nikitina, 50 years old, musician, president of the Musical Olympus Foundation "Space must be free" "I travel a lot and I'm used to living in different cities. I have one in every house favorite place- in Moscow, this is the corner of the living room with a view of the city from the 47th floor. This view from the window is very important to me. Especially when everything is flooded with sun, light - there is such an absolutely musical feeling! It’s nice to be here and do completely different things: talking on the phone with concentration or meditating ... It’s good to start and end the day here. It is important for me that there is a lot of space around me and a minimum of things. I understand that somewhere in the apartment there should be a well-organized dump - for example, a dressing room. But the space where I am, move, live, must be free. Frankly, the need for this intensifies with age, so I try to fight myself, sometimes leaving a little “creative” mess around. It is also important for me that the walls are occupied with paintings, works of art. Through translucent photographs, I like to look out the window when the weather is bad - they give a different light. Once I lived here in November, the sun did not come out from behind the clouds at all, and I was terribly sad ... Then a friend came to me and painted an artificial sun - a picture consisting exclusively of different shades of yellow.
Oksana Lavrentieva, 34 years old, CEO"RusModa" company "Here I find peace" And inside everything is arranged so that you can walk in shoes, so that dogs can run around ... The house is not at all pompous, very simple and environmentally friendly. As a child, I loved visiting my grandmother in Ukraine - I think my memories could also influence the choice of environment. Here we have a natural floor, a live fire, there are logs around the fireplace, large tubs with plants near the windows. There is a lot of life inside. All materials are tactile, pleasant to the touch. The non-living does not live here. There was such a story: according to the designer's idea, a zebra's head was supposed to hang over the fireplace. We argued about this for a long time, I took it off, then hung it back, tried to get used to it ... but in the end I still removed it. There is always something to do in the house: you can lie on a special bed near the TV, read a book, sleep. Or sit on sofas by the fireplace and drink tea. Or spending time with friends at the dinner table... Once I tried to arrange a meeting at work, but the conversation did not work out: such an environment is conducive to idleness. I even turn off my phone! When I want peace, I find it here.”
Gleb Korobov, 43, general director of the TeakHouse interior gallery“I dream of a secretary with a key”“I often work at home and try to organize the space in my office so that nothing bothers me. There is not and will not be anything, for example, red or gold. Only wooden. Into a crack What is important to me is the texture, the surface of the furniture, what it is painted with: the coating should be as matte as possible, natural, clearly conveying the texture of wood. No synthetics, polyurethane varnishes - only materials that I work with and love. A tree cannot get bored, just like simple shapes. And then, I often change the situation here - I want to create. Now the architect Alexander Jikia is designing a secretary at my request. Remember: the table leans back, everything, everything, everything falls on it, then - pum, lifted the lid and closed it with a key? Fast and convenient. It annoys me if someone sits at my desk - I think every person has jealousy for the workplace. I do not like laptops and never carry a computer around the apartment. In my opinion, it is better to work in an office where everything suits me, and then - ideally - to disconnect from business ... It does not always work out, of course. But I'm trying to learn it."
How many callings can one life hold? As many as you like, if you are an incorrigible optimist, like IRINA NIKITINA. She is the founder and president of the Musical Olympus Foundation, director of the Musical Olympus international music festival, organizer of the St. Petersburg Johann Strauss Ball, a world-famous musician, producer, impresario, teacher, magazine editor. And if you remember that Irina is also a wife, mother, hostess big house, student of the Moscow international university And...
TO THE SOUND OF THE CELLO
Irina herself always knew that she would be a pianist. Father - famous cellist, professor Anatoly Nikitin. Mom, a physicist-analyst, disappeared at the institute. And about her childhood, Irina only remembers that her parents were never at home. IN musical ability Irina's father believed little - they taught music, but future star the girl was not seen, which helped her a lot. “If I had a parental scenario programmed for good luck, I don’t know how my life would have turned out. After all, most often children become hostages of parental ambitions. And I did it myself.”
Irina was raised by her grandmother - a former college student. But Irina's grandfather was missing - one was missing, the other died in the war. “Learning the stories of the families of my friends, I always noted: but her grandfather is alive, he didn’t die like mine. Since then, older people have a special sympathy for me. After all, often youth has nothing to do with individuality - we imitate, protest, but we don’t know who we really are. For example, I have a friend of eighty-two years old, George Hermann, professor of applied mathematics at Stanford University. As with him, I rarely laugh in my life, and one can only wish for his courage and wit for young men " .
It is not surprising that Irina married a man who was eleven years older. The first cello of a certain theater Sergei Roldugin was already famous in St. Petersburg and, as is usually the case, not a very wealthy person. From the Moika street from the spacious parent's apartment Irina moved to a room in a communal apartment. It turned out to be a marriage of friends who are interested in being together. Sergey did a lot for her to take place as a musician. “He repeated to me so often: you can do it, that I eventually believed in myself. Concerts began, victories at competitions, performances abroad, I really became a sought-after concert pianist. But for the two of us, this was not all. For true love one must be a mature person, be responsible for oneself and accept and forgive the one who is near. You need to clearly know what you want and can do: either only take, or only give, or develop together. And we become dependent on circumstances, most often we don’t need them, but we don’t have the determination to refuse them. "Irina was able to. In addition, an amazing person appeared in her life.
TALENTS AND FANS
In 1986, when Irina received a special prize at an international competition in Geneva, her performance was broadcast on Swiss radio. Thousands of people listened to it, but one, who accidentally turned on the receiver in his car, turned out to be the director of the Youth Music Festival. And then he decided that he needed this pianist. But since these were Soviet times and it was not so easy to invite an artist, Michael Haefliger had to apply to the State Concert. He was told over and over again that Irina and her cellist partner were seriously ill, they had left for some unknown place, were busy on other tours - well, everything that was said then, in order not to give way to the young and talented. Fortunately, Michael Hoefliger had a truly manic stubbornness and a year later met the duo at the Geneva airport. “I didn’t know a word of German then, except for Gutentag, but lovers quickly learn to understand each other.” However, Irina did not react to the feelings of the unexpected impresario for several years.
By this time, her career was already developing very successfully: the Grand Prix at international competition in Paris in 1987, CDs, tours, concerts in prestigious halls. But, Irina smiles, as soon as success became programmable, she lost interest in it. "I do everything in life as long as there is inspiration." This means that while there are real difficulties that must be overcome every day and hour. Another would stop there and cultivate success. And Irina was attracted by new horizons. By this point she had decided that if she could play the piano well, she should learn to play the harpsichord. The opportunity presented itself in Prague, and without hesitation, Irina loaded a dozen unread books and a microwave oven into the "nine" and went to conquer the harpsichord. Even then, in addition to the piano, which used to be the first and only master of time, her life included a car, diving, a motorcycle, a helicopter ... "The only thing missing is an airplane ..." Irina answers quite seriously: "I have an airplane in my plans for a long time. I'm interested in trying everything. At the same time, I'm not an extreme person - my risks are always calculated. "
Except those related to creativity. "The profession of a pianist is very creative, but you still perform someone else's work, no matter how you try to interpret it." And Irina wanted to be the leader herself. "I realized that I had lived my life in the world of the piano and I urgently needed to look for something new."
But while she continued to travel around Europe, concerts multiplied, musicologists wrote serious articles about Irina. And next to her, somehow unexpectedly, but surprisingly in time, an ardent romantic appeared, for whom she was a dream of a lifetime. “If my partner and I had a concert in Milan, he “accidentally” ended up at the airport. The same story was repeated in Hamburg, in Paris, in London. I didn’t think too much about it, because I had never been among the girls, which no matter what, dreaming of "marrying the West."
When it came to explanations and a decision had to be made, Nikitina's career was already firmly connected with Switzerland. Her triumph took place in Geneva, here she had fans, friends who perfectly understood that Irina was not just a girl from Russia, without a name and certain occupations, but famous musician. Michael Haefliger lived in Germany, but for her it was unacceptable. “Probably this is from childhood: I thought about my grandfather, who died at the front, and in general about how much grief the Second World War brought to millions of people. In short, either Germany or me!"
In Lucerne, where the Haefliger family now lives, the best music hall Europe, the pearl of modern western architecture works of the famous Jean Nouvel. There are the most interesting musical evenings, the audience comes to concerts from all over Europe. And all this interest arose in just a few years. As soon as Michael Hoefliger became director of one of the most significant music festivals peace. After all, Irina wanted to live in Switzerland.
PARADE OF WINNERS
Only a person who does not know her at all can think that respectable Lucerne has become a safe haven for Irina. Back in 1992, she organized the Relief Fund music school for gifted children in St. Petersburg, which she graduated herself. The help was concrete: repairs, tools, school desks, notes, scholarships. At that time, not only Irina's native school suffered from lack of money and indifference. In the Great Hall of the Philharmonic, sometimes no more than forty listeners turned out to be among the public - a deadly number for a performer. "I myself was in such a situation and I remember the feeling of a dreary chill when you see an empty hall. And then I decided to organize a festival." And since 1996, the international festival "Musical Olympus" under the motto "Parade of Winners" has been presenting the best young musicians from all over the world in St. Petersburg. How do you manage to collect them? Irina laughs: “It’s better to ask how to find out about them? We know Domingo, Pavarotti, Caballe ... But they were once young and unknown to anyone, and someone represented them too. Therefore, my year is divided into three parts : Switzerland, Russia - and the whole world.In Switzerland, it's Davos, where every year I participate in the World Economic Forum, Lucerne, where my family lives: my husband, who has enough worries about organizing the festival in Lucerne without me, and ten-year-old daughter Anika "She, of course, studies music, but I, remembering my parents with gratitude, do not prepare her for a super career. I will stay at home in St. Petersburg for a while, and then I start traveling all over the planet. I try not to miss a single competition, wherever it is passed - in South America or Australia. Russia is no exception - this year we have three Russian names, and this is a great success."
AMONG THE NOISY BALL
"For the first time I got to one of the famous Viennese balls in 1999, when the whole world celebrated the centenary of Johann Strauss. And what about our St. Petersburg, where the great Austrian violinist and composer gave brilliant concerts? Why not give a ball in his honor in St. Petersburg? I was told : you're crazy, it's a feast during the plague! And I answered: the plague will pass, but the balls will remain. No sooner said than done: having arrived in Vienna, Irina went to Mr. Helmut Zilk, the former burgomaster of Vienna, around whom cultural life Veins literally seethed. “When, after two months of correspondence and the siege of a high office, I finally got an audience, I was told: “Dear lady, you have fifteen minutes. There will be no other time. "It should be noted here that Irina never introduces herself as" Mrs. Hoefliger ", and this would open the most inaccessible doors for her, the wife of the director of one of the largest European music festivals. No, she is everywhere Irina Nikitina. So hitting like a private person without a single official letter to Mr. Tsilk and having a quarter of an hour to present the case, she listened for thirteen minutes to his sentimental recollections of how he danced the waltz with Mrs. Sobchak in St. Petersburg, how wonderfully he was received, how ... I explained in a wild tongue twister why I was here. Five minutes later, he was already talking with the leadership of the Austrian airline, with the Ministry of Culture, with the impresario, with restaurants, with ... The leitmotif was: "Support everywhere and in everything." I left him in a half hours from almost finished project. It was a fairy tale." And in 1999 in marble hall The Museum of Ethnography with the support of the city of Vienna hosted the first "Ball of Johann Strauss" in St. Petersburg. Its chairman was Nikita Mikhalkov, the guests had fun until the morning. Then the balls moved to Catherine Palace and each time opened with a new plot. Last year, playing out the events of the ball at Count Orlovsky, the hall was filled with characters of the magnificent " bat". Irina herself says that what matters to her is not wine and food, which can be the same everywhere, but the atmosphere and courage. In Russia, they have a special property. As well as the goal: after all, Irina started this project in order to create an International Cultural Center in memory of the famous Pavlovsky "Station", destroyed by the Nazis. Orchestras, costumes, artists, guests of honor - how to master all this? "I still feel like a kind of magician who, in front of an astonished audience, makes bright show. But in fact, in his hands he has nothing but an ordinary piece of matter.
EXQUISITE KITSCH
This is nothing but the name of a new project by Irina Nikitina. After the festival and balls in St. Petersburg, it became clear that the "Express line St. Petersburg - Moscow" is inevitable. "Moscow is called a business center, forgetting that it is a truly cultural city. Petersburg is considered the center of culture, although there is little money here, without which culture cannot live. And I realized that a bridge is needed between the two capitals."
"Express line St. Petersburg - Moscow" is four series of concerts, four programs. The first is "Refined kitsch". Those who have already visited the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory at the concerts of the world-famous trio Plau Bash Jacques Loussier remember that tickets were asked from the Manege to the Nikitsky Gates. The next experience, the first concert in Russia of the king of the gypsy violin (super virtuoso, played with Yehudi Menuhin!) Roby Lakatosh turned out to be even more successful: the audience stood up in unison, although the name of the performer did not say much to half of the audience before the concert.
To commerce new project has nothing to do - no impresario will undertake to calculate the success of kitsch, even if it is exquisite. "For me, something else is much more important: I invite the public to choose the best of what is in the world. This is not necessarily a proven classic or world name. Of course, it is more convenient to organize concerts with Bashmet or Repin, whom I highly appreciate. But besides them, the world is full of talents. And Russia should know them." So soon we are waiting for the program: "Parade of Orchestras", "Coryphaeus" and "Maestro Conductor". The list of performers is brilliant, there is less and less time for the implementation of the project, and our conversation takes on the pace of a blitz.
ELLE What do you do in case of failure?
Irina Nikitina Nothing. It's like day and night, which should be in a person's life.
ELLE What can upset you?
I.N. Vanity - we are often in a hurry, unable to distinguish the important from the empty. People - if they do not pass the test of power or money.
ELLE What is an obstacle for you?
I.N. Mood. Fatigue. Well-being. In any case, I'm taking a timeout.
ELLE If you are "at zero", what helps?
I.N. Yoga - I do it every day.
ELLE What is your rhythm of life?
I.N. One lives in mono, the other in stereo, the third in Dolby. I constantly vary them - every day in my life there are different people, interests, images, philosophies.
ELLE How many notebooks do you have?
I.N. There is no small female - it's pointless, One common computer and five mobile phones with memory. And all of them regularly "give up" from the abundance of information, often dying in the bathroom or swimming pool. Recently, I live according to the principle of "here and now", not trying to win everyone and do everything in one day. It is necessary to live easily, with pleasure - after all, you can enjoy just a fresh bun in the morning.
ELLE What is the worst thing for you?
I.N. Fear. Envy. Jealousy.
ELLE What can make you happy?
I.N. Sun. Water. Peace. You can't rush all the time. An unread book plus an armchair is a real pleasure.
ELLE When you go home from the airport to your husband, what do you think about?
I.N. It's good that we rarely see each other - it keeps feelings from the ordinary. What would be nice to buy fresh asparagus, chablis and cook dinner for two. And how good it is to have love in our lives.
