Culture
The Salzburg Festival is sticking to the planned appearance of the Greek-Russian conductor Teodor Currentzis. In an interview with the “Standard” (Saturday edition), director Markus Hinterhäuser now makes it clear: “We are not working on alternatives.”
Currentzis recently sparked a debate regarding how to deal with potentially state-friendly artists from Russia in the West. Markus Hinterhäuser, as director of the Salzburg Festival, remained open until the very end as to whether the 50-year-old Currentzis might perform in the summer or not. It is now clear that he will appear.
Unlike Valery Gergiev or Anna Netrebko, Currentzis has never attracted attention because of his closeness to Putin. On the contrary, according to Hinterhäuser: “Currentzis has never even remotely taken sides with Putin.” In this respect, he does not see it as an obstacle to an engagement in Salzburg, that the Russian VTB Bank, which is on the western sanctions list, is the main sponsor of the Currentzis Orchestra MusicAeterna.
Criticism by the artistic director of double standards in the media
“Explain to me how you want to found and finance an orchestra in Russia without state or partial state support? For years nobody had any problems with various connections to Russia. Now you act as if you might and should have known everything,” says the festival director: “Currentzis’ musicians are not members of a state orchestra. They don’t have that security.”
A differentiated view is of course necessary and allowed. “But what we are experiencing at the moment is a campaign that has nothing at all to do with journalistic ethics,” Hinterhäuser jumped into the breach for Currentzis – with fierce criticism of various journalists and moralizing media, which have shot at the artist.
Wiener Konzerthaus canceled benefit concert
Other organizers canceled concerts with Currentzis – the Wiener Konzerthaus recently canceled a benefit concert planned for Ukraine with Currentzis. The reason was an intervention by the Ukrainian ambassador, who asked that Russian artists be refrained from being involved in concerts in favor of Ukraine.