Such terrible things are happening that I can’t pretend to be strong / Day

The master of reverberation and poetic transparency turned 85 this September. Because of the war, he celebrated this anniversary in Germany, where he agreed to go only at the persuasion of his friends. Charity event A tribute to Ukraine with Valentina Silvestrov, which, in the presence of Silvestrov himself, took place in the Dzintari concert hall on December 14, was a musical event of world significance. It was held with the support of the city of Jūrmala and was aimed at the heroes of the Ukrainian army, who are currently recovering in the rehabilitation center in Vaivaru, their helpers and refugees from Ukraine.

At the concert, Ukrainian singer Inna Galatenko performed compositions by Valentina Silvestrov together with her son, pianist Yevgeniy Motorenko, who is currently studying in Germany. Gundars Āboliņš, an actor from New Riga Theater, also participated with poetry readings. A film about the composer could be seen in the camera room.

When everything is questioned

Valentin Silvestrov’s introverted and subdued music became a symbol during the war. He continues to compose and improvise on the piano in the still empty hall before the concert. He himself admits: “I continue to do something, but I have a feeling that there is no need to deal with it now. First of all, weapons must be supplied to Ukraine so that the enemy can no longer fire on cities, kindergartens. The Ukraine will not attack residential blocks. That’s where the difference is. Ukraine will attack only parts of the troops. What have we come to? Now everything is questioned: music, religion. But why? If the little one is right, then the big will be right. If small is wrong, then the collapse is also on a large level – fascism, communism occurs. The main thing is the infinite value of life. Life itself is a god. Not an icon is a holy, but a living person “It is the infinite value of life and the infinite value of music. It all starts with a sacrifice. If it stays that way, then millions of people will perish. Why have Christians been at war with each other for thousands of years, killing millions of people? How is this possible? How can people be killed in the name of Christ? The very foundations, the fundamental values, are being destroyed.”

Returning to music and telling why he replaced avant-garde experiments with new simplicity and screams – with introverted meditativeness, Valentin Silvestrov says: “Everyone is already tired of dissonances, but history is not about that. Even Russian poets, futurists – like Khlebnikov and others -, spoke with words and their components and then returned to language. A poet has to deal with the language in which he speaks, however tired he may be of it. Even in music there is a tendency to return to language of music. Has the avant-garde discovered something? For example, John Cage believed that the whole world, everything that sounds, is music. In his opinion, who needs the process of developing music, for example, in an orchestra, if you can go out into the street and listen to the “music” of open sounds: there is a bird flying, there is a signal. or a gust of wind. But what the avant-garde tuned in the composer’s hearing it was an ancient idea.It is the music of l dao – what in China was considered the music of heaven and earth. The wind blowing through a rocky gorge – that I r celestial flute. On the other hand, music that uses words (lyrics) is the music of the people. We can only hear Dao music, but human music is our language. European music is made of musical words, the connection between music and poetry. This has been the case since ancient Greece. It is very important to understand that the “new” motivation has moved into a much more refined sphere and leads us to see the infinite, the eternal in simplicity. The tendency to return to the language of music does not mean repetition. For Schumann and Chopin the text was unified, but now it is interrupted, unfinished, like moments with interruptions that have a stronger effect than if they continued. The music flows, but here it suddenly stops, stops, fades away. This is how we lose track of time and find ourselves in an interrupted time. If the music is calm, it makes you listen, sharpens your attention. This music doesn’t push, but invites. Do not attack, but approach.”