Italy’s romantic soul will shine forth on December 5th at Astana Opera’s Grand Hall, El.kz cites astanaopera.kz.
The Kazakh public will have the opportunity to enjoy the music of eternal and passionate love composed by Giacomo Puccini, one of the greatest exponents of operatic realism in the world. On that eventful evening, the opera house’s principal soloists, choir, symphony orchestra under the baton of distinguished conductor Maestro Giuseppe Acquaviva will perform together with renowned sopranos Maria Mudryak, Marina Medici and tenor Raffaele Abete in A Tribute to Giacomo Puccini. This unique concert was co-organized and supported by the Italian Embassy in Kazakhstan, the Italian Culture Institute in Almaty and the Puccini Festival Foundation.
This year, the music community marks 100 years since the death of the world-famous Italian composer Giacomo Puccini, and Astana Opera has not stood aside. Maestro Giuseppe Acquaviva, an acclaimed master of interpreting Puccini’s creative work, was especially invited for this occasion. For about 10 years Maestro Acquaviva worked in the administration of Puccini Festival in Torre del Lago. The famous conductor collaborates with opera houses around the world, including Italy, Japan, China, Monaco, and, of course, Kazakhstan, as well as many other countries.
The Tribute to Giacomo Puccini concert will reveal the creative heritage of Italian classics to Kazakh listeners from an original perspective. Many of the works featured in the program have never been performed in our country before. For example, it will be interesting to listen to a rare number – mystical scene from Puccini’s first opera Le Villi.
Thus, opera prima Zhupar Gabdullina, Bibigul Zhanuzak, Tatyana Vitsinskaya, Leila Alamanova, Galina Cheplakova, Meir Bainesh, Medet Chotabayev, Zhanat Shybykbayev, Shyngys Rassylkhan, Dinmukhamed Koshkinbayev, Rassul Zharmagambetov, Artur Gabdiyev, Ramzat Balakishiyev, Sultan Bakytzhan, Altynbek Abilda, Valeriy Selivanov and the opera house’s many other soloists will take the stage in the two-part concert.
As part of the evening, the Kazakh audience will have an opportunity to get acquainted with the interpretations of Marina Medici, a Georgian-born singer, laureate of numerous international competitions, including the prestigious Monserrat Caballe and Luciano Pavarotti competitions. The singer graduated from the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory, class of Zurab Sotkilava, and for the last 12 years has been an accomplished opera singer in Italy. The vocalist will be performing in Kazakhstan for the first time. Incidentally, for opera art aficionados, she has prepared the duet “Mario! Mario! Mario!” from Tosca, which she will sing with Italian tenor Raffaele Abete. Despite his young age, Raffale Abete has already won acclaim at major European opera houses. His striking voice and emotional character portrayals, such as Rodolfo in La Bohème and the Duke of Mantua in Rigoletto, have impressed audiences and music critics. He frequently collaborates with prestigious opera houses, including the Teatro Massimo in Palermo and the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples. He also has many devotees in Essen, Meine, Verona, Bologna, New York and other cities.
The celebrated soprano Maria Mudryak does not require any introduction. Her admirers buy tickets to her concerts as soon as they go on sale. This evening, the singer will perform Lauretta’s aria “O mio babbino caro” from the opera Gianni Schicchithat is filled with great tenderness. Equally captivating will be the performance of a scene from the second act of La Bohème, where the artists, including Maria Mudryak as Musetta, Medet Chotabayev as Rodolfo and other soloists as well as Astana Opera Choir and Children’s Choir will transport the listeners to the bustling and festive Paris.
The final chord will be a scene from the famous opera Turandot, where the powerful voices of Zhupar Gabdullina (Turandot), Meir Bainesh (Calaf) and Maria Mudryak (Liu) will soar.
In addition, as part of the musical evening, an exhibition called “One Hundred Years of Heritage, Craftsmanship and Italian Passion” will take place in the opera house’s foyer.