Conductor, People’s Artist of Belarus Mikhail Finberg has died – Rossiyskaya Gazeta
Mikhail Finberg is gone. Sad news. We knew each other and were even friends. Ask how – the great maestro and I, a Grodno journalist who does not live in Minsk, where his bright creative life took place?
… In the early 70s, me, a third-year student of the Faculty of Journalism of BSU, one of the senior students (the Faculty of Journalism was small then compared to today, everyone knew each other), quietly in my ear invited me to go with them to a private concert in Minsk State Circus. There was an intrigue. The concert began at 10 pm, they let us in, and only twenty people gathered in the visual amphitheater. With us was a group of students of the foreign language, theatrical institute, the conservatory – in general, a solid future intelligentsia. Perhaps this was the intention – to acquaint us with the world’s masterpieces of jazz music, the performance of which was nowhere to be found anywhere and was not welcomed at that time. The then young head of the circus orchestra, a graduate of the Belarusian Conservatory, Mikhail Finberg, came out to us, looked around and told about the concert. And then there was a half-hour concert where I first heard the music of Louis Armstrong, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald. Then Finberg came down to us. And he asked not to tell anyone about this concert, since it was unofficial. Then I visited these concerts in the circus a couple of times, expressed my opinion, and he already called me by name …
Then, in 1987, Finberg created his famous orchestra and somewhere in the late 90s came to Grodno with a concert. I worked on the regional TV and went to him for an interview with a cameraman. So we met again years later. And when I recalled his concerts in the Minsk circus, his eyes shone, he even remembered my name after the interview, and before the concert it was still a couple of hours, he invited me to talk over a cup of tea, where he told how he created a large orchestra, about his life full of obstacles … I told him about my work on TV, my passion for photography and photo exhibitions. We exchanged phones. More time passed and somewhere in the early 2000s, he called himself. His first chamber festival “Music of the Radziwill era” was being prepared near the walls of the Mir castle. This festival for the first time opened new facets of the Belarusian musical culture. Mikhail Yakovlevich attracts to decorate the festival with an exhibition of the “Grodno” photo club, which he himself will open before the concert. Thanks to Finberg, the festival became traditional and showed their photos of the exposition “Mir Castle – a Source of Inspiration” at the Mir House of Culture.
In 2007, Mikhail Yakovlevich began to persistently call for several months and invite him to go with the orchestra to Vitebsk to the “Slavianski Bazar” in order to make a large photo reportage “One Day of the National Concert Orchestra of Belarus at the” Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk “he had planned. come to Minsk, join its musicians and artists (I am still friends with some) and go with them to Vitebsk for a few days. the feeling that he unloaded the carriage, but everything turned out well.gu. He was satisfied and called several times with gratitude. And I remember the atmosphere of friendship and warmth that prevailed in the orchestra and behind the scenes all these days. Naturally, this is the merit of the Maestro, who created the real my photographs were included in the brochures and catalogs of the orchestra, in the old rehearsal hall in Minsk for a long time the walls were decorated with a shop of my works. Time passed and suddenly, in 2016, the year of the 25th anniversary of the “Slavianski Bazaar”, a photo album “All Colors of July” – “The Best Photographers of the Festival” was released in Vitebsk. From thousands of photographs of several hundred photographers around the world who worked at the festival in different years, the directorate chose 31 authors. I was recognized as the best photographer of 2007 for the emotional portraits of Mikhail Finberg, printed in the book, which I am very proud of …
Several times Mikhail Yakovlevich rested in our sanatorium “Ozerny”, called me, came to Grodno, I made him tours of the city, which he liked with its special architecture and atmosphere, talked for hours and twice recorded a meeting with him in his “Invited Guest” program on TV channel “Grodno Plus”, which was directed by the stream for eight years. Each program was unique, because the interlocutor shared little-known information that was interesting for everyone. Finberg in life was a very modest and general kind person, communication and friendship with whom I remember for a lifetime. He fell in love with our city of Grodno, came to us with concerts and considered Grodno spectators and listeners special in their perception of music. His last concert with the orchestra took place in the large hall of the regional philharmonic society quite recently, on October 18.
Yes, Mikhail Finberg is an era, he created the best European pop and symphony orchestra, which Belarus is proud of, gave way to life on the big stage for many young performers. No one can replace him … Blessed memory to you, Maestro! ..
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