On Thursday, April 3rd, baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky and Estonian pianist Ivari Ilja will perform in Carnegie Hall with a program consisting of romances by Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Nicolas Medtner and Sergei Rachmaninoff. The concert belongs to the series Great Singers I that has earlier presented soprano Kiri Te Kanawa with pianist Warren Jones and special guest mezzo soprano Frederica von Stade, tenor Rolando Villazón with pianist Bryndon Hassman and soprano Dorothea Röschmann, tenor Ian Bostridge and basso-baritone Thomas Quasthoff with pianist Julius Drake. On April 25th, there has been schedualed a concert of baritone Bryn Terfel and pianist Malcolm Martineau.
Dmitri Hvorostovsky’s first triumphs as a young singer were associated with romances of Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff – these miniatures that challenge the singers not only technically, but also test their sincerity, depth and emotional sensitivity. At the concert that belongs to the series Great Singers I, Dmitri Hvorostovsky and Ivari Ilja perform romances Why? Op. 6 No. 5, The Love of a Dead Man Op. 38 No. 5, Ah, If Only You Could For One Moment Op. 38 No. 4, On the Golden Cornfields Op. 57 No. 2, Pimpinella Op. 38 No. 6, Tell Me, What's in the Shade of the Branches Op. 57 No. 1, To Forget so Soon, In the Midst of the Ball Op. 38 No. 3, O Child, Beneath thy Window Op. 63 No. 6 and Don Juan's Serenade by Pyotr Tchaikonsky; Gone Are My Heart's Desires Op. 3 No. 2, To a Dreamer Op. 32 No. 6, Prosperous Voyage Op. 15 No. 8, The Wanderer's Night Song Op. 6 No. 1 and Winter Evening Op. 13 No. 1; also 'Tis Time Op. 14 No. 12, Believe Me Not, Friend Op. 14 No. 7, I Was With Her Op. 14 No. 4, Let Us Rest Op. 26 No. 3 and Spring Waters Op. 14 No. 11 by Rachmaninoff.
Internationally acclaimed Russian baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky was born and studied in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia. In 1989, he won the prestigious Cardiff Singer of the World Competition. Hvorostovsky charmed audiences with his cultivated voice, innate sense of musical line, and natural legato. After his Western operatic debut at the Nice Opera in Tchaikovsky’s Pique Dame, his regular engagements at the world’s major opera houses and appearances at renowned international festivals began. A celebrated recitalist, his performances are in demand in every corner of the globe – from the Far East to the Middle East, from Australia to South America. The singer constantly performs in concert with top orchestras and conductors. Dmitri Hvorostovsky’s extensive discography spans recital and aria discs for Philips Classics and for Delos Records, as well as complete opera performances on CDs and DVDs. He has also starred in Don Giovanni Unmasked, an award-winning film based on the Mozart opera, tackling the dual roles of the lecherous nobleman and his disapproving manservant.
Ivari Ilja studied piano at the Tallinn State Conservatory with Laine Mets and at the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory with Vera Gornostayeva and Sergey Dorensky. He has won prizes in several national and international competitions, including the Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw and the José Vianna da Motta Piano Competition in Lisbon. Ilja has given recitals and has performed as a soloist with orchestras including the Moscow Symphony Orchestra, the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, and the St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra, with such conductors as Arvo Volmer, Eri Klas, Leo Krämer, Veronica Dudarova, Urs Schneider, Roman Matsov, Imants Resnis, Andres Mustonen, Peeter Lilje, Theodore Kuchar, and Vello Pähn. His repertoire includes mainly Romantic works, such as those by Chopin, Brahms, and Schumann, as well as works from different periods by composers from Mozart to Prokofiev to Britten. In addition to Hvorostovsky, Ilja has co-operated singers such as Irina Arkhipova, Maria Guleghina, Elena Zaremba and Pauletta de Vaughn. He has performed concerts in Russia, Finland, Sweden, the Baltic States, Japan, the US, Germany, Great Britain, Spain, Poland, and France, among other countries.
Maria Mölder