Cultural Olympiad’s Winter International Arts Festival Launched in Sochi
A Winter International Arts Festival directed by Yuri Bashmet and showcasing photography, music and video has begun in Sochi. The festival, which will last until February 23, contains exciting exhibitions and master-classes, all taking place as part of the Sochi 2014 Cultural Olympiad's Year of the Museum.
As tradition dictates, some of the events in the annual Winter International Arts Festival, led by Sochi 2014 Ambassador Yuri Bashmet, will take place as part of the Sochi 2014 Cultural Olympiad. This year the Cultural Olympiad will bring a photo exhibition marking the 60th birthday of Yuri Bashmet, works by the artist Mikhail Shemyakin, the annual video-art exhibition "Echo-Eco" and an exhibition marking the centenary of the Glinka museum to Sochi.
The works of Mikhail Shemyakin are expected to be ones of the highlights and are dedicated to the dialog between the artist and his friend Vladimir Vysotsky. The second exhibition will feature Shemyakin's graphic works. On display will be some of the master's sketches for Petr Tchaikovsky's ballet, based on the fairytale "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King".
Also as part of the Sochi 2014 Cultural Olympiad, a host of musical projects will take place, including an evening of organ music by the famous Latvian organist Iveta Apkalna, concerts by popular musicians from the series "Stars of the XXI century", the concert "Legendary musicians in Sochi" and a performance by the French pianists "Trio Wanderer".
The main highlight of the Winter International Festival will be a unique concert involving the Children's International Chamber Orchestra, under the artistic directorship of Bashmet and students from Konstantin Khabensky's creative studio.
In addition there will be a series of unprecedented musical master-classes, led by world-class teachers. The lessons, aimed at increasing musical skills, have been arranged in a unique new format. Some of the most influential figures from the cultural scene, led by the maestro Yuri Bashmet, the artistic director of the Bolshoi Theater's youth opera program Dmitry Vdovin, and the legendary flautist Sir James Galway, will conduct the master-classes via a TV link-up from Sochi.
Young musicians from three Russian cities - Ekaterinburg, Novokuybyshevsk and Yaroslavl - will be able to tune in to a live broadcast from Sochi's Hall of Organ and Chamber Music, and take active part in the master-classes from their own cities.
Notes to the editor
The Sochi 2014 Cultural Olympiad
2013 - The Year of the Museum
The fourth year of the Sochi 2014 Cultural Olympiad is dedicated to museums. As always, the organizers of the first Winter Games in the history of Russia will present the public with hundreds of top cultural events. They include dozens of exhibitions, shows, competitions, festivals, and special exhibitions, as well as forums, workshops and educational programs that will be held throughout the country.
The Year of the Museum will include a large number of exhibitions of Russian and foreign art, in both public and private museums. At the exhibitions, visitors will be able to take a close look at some of the masterpieces of classical and contemporary art, in all its variety of genres. Also in 2013, as part of the Cultural Olympiad, there will be theatrical screenings, concerts, and other creative activities.
The Sochi 2014 Cultural Olympiad is a unique project by the organizers of the Games, offering the best cultural events in the country. In 2014, visitors to the Olympic host city will be able to admire not only the sports competitions, but also Russia's cultural diversity, at dozens of special sites located in Sochi and Krasnaya Polyana. For that reason, since 2010 the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee, along with dozens of regions throughout the country, has been carefully selecting the best that Russian culture has to offer.
Between 2010 and 2014, thousands of diverse cultural events will take place throughout the country. Each year of the Cultural Olympiad is dedicated to a particular art form: 2010 was the Year of the Cinema, 2011 - the Year of the Theater, 2012 - the Year of Music, and 2013 is the Year of the Museum.
The nationwide scale of the project will make it possible to get every resident of the country involved in this grand celebration of culture, whilst preserving and increasing the cultural riches of our country. You can keep track of all the events in the Cultural Olympiad at the following site: www.culture.sochi2014.com