"Maybe the audience in Israel will even sing with us": Russia's superstar is excited to return to Israel

Anna Netrebko, one of the greatest opera singers in the world, is coming to Israel together with her husband and stage partner Yosif Ibzov.

Although she arouses controversy in the world because she did not express a firm position against the invasion of Ukraine in the past, but despite this she distances herself from politics and makes it clear: "I look forward to returning to Israel"

Sagi Ben Nun

12/09/2022

Monday, September 12, 2022, 00:00

• Share on Facebook

• Share on WhatsApp

• Share on Twitter

• Share by email

• Share in general

• Comments

  Comments

Anna Netrebko (Photo: Berin Iglesias Art)

The Russian soprano Anna Natrevko, one of the world's greatest opera stars, will return to perform in Israel and this time for the first time with her husband and stage partner, the tenor singer Yosif Ibzov.

They will perform accompanied by the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra conducted by Marco Buemi, at the Culture Hall in Tel Aviv on October 1st.

The concert will feature arias and duets from well-known opera works by Verdi, Puccini, Leonqualo and others, as well as well-known Neapolitan songs.

"I am looking forward to holding my concert in Israel together with my wonderful husband Yosif Ibzov and the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra and the conductor," said Natrabko.

"We will prepare a beautiful and special program for Israel that will include famous opera hits. It will be an opera-opera, serious but also not very serious, so people will recognize the music and I hope they will like what we have done and maybe even sing with us. I performed in Israel many years ago with the Mariinsky Theater and I look forward to Very much for my return to you and also to spend time in amazing places."

Natrevko was born 51 years ago in the city of Krasnodar, Russia.

She began her career at the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg, where she was nurtured by musical director Valery Gergiev.

Her international breakthrough happened twenty years ago, with her appearance at the Salzburg Festival in the role of Donna Anna in the production of Mozart's "Don Giovanni" conducted by Nicolas Hernoncourt.

She later performed in opera houses and some of the most prestigious halls in the world, won praise and publicity, and in 2007 was chosen by TIME magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world.

After relationships with other opera singers, in 2015 she married Yosif Ibzov, with whom she had already performed a year earlier in the production of "Lesco's Menon" in Rome, and since then they have continued to perform successfully around the world.

Opera singer Anna Netrebko and her opera singer husband Yosif Ibzov (Photo: Berin Iglesias Art)

Netrabco is coming to Israel against the backdrop of a major storm affecting it in recent months.

Over the years, it has been claimed many times in the world media that she is close to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and in the past she even expressed positions that were interpreted as support for the Kremlin.

At the end of February, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, she initially spoke out against the war in a relatively reserved manner.

After the criticism she received, she released a second, clearer and sharper statement, in which she condemned the Russian invasion and further distanced herself from Putin.

She later refrained from further criticizing Putin.

Following the claims of being close to Putin and claims that she did not condemn the invasion enough, opera houses in Europe and the United States boycotted her and canceled performances from her programs, including the prestigious Metropolitan in New York which is still boycotting her.

Following the situation, Natrevko first announced her retirement from performances - and has since returned to the stage.

Last week, two of her performances were accompanied by demonstrations - dozens of demonstrators stood on Wednesday outside the Culture Hall in Hamburg, Germany, with shirts painted red, which symbolizes blood, and signs that read, among other things, "Natrebko go home", "Natrebko is Putin's company" and "Natrebko supports Russia".

A day before, a demonstration with similar claims was held outside the opera house in Vienna, ahead of her performance there.

Admittedly, Netrebko is in a difficult position: while those boycotting her accuse her of being close to Putin, after her clearer statements against the Russian invasion, she was defined as a "traitor" in the Russian Federal Assembly.

The singer, for her part, declared that she "is not a member of any political party, nor is she related to any Russian leader", yet said that she "regrets the way my actions and statements in the past could be partially interpreted".

More in Walla!

Despite the elaborate production, the world's most successful opera conquered Israel as well

To the full article

Life, then, is complex, and is not a Disney production, unlike the movie "The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement" in which Natrevko starred as herself.

But her heavenly, clear and heart-pounding voice, which stands the test of age, definitely sounds like it was taken from the world of legends and makes it clear that the status of the superstar she has won - is fully justified.

• culture

• music

• foreign music

Tags

• Anna Natrabko

• opera

• Ukraine

• Russia

• Cultural boycott