Evenings at the 120-year-old grand piano will surprise guests of the Vitebsk region in the Year of Culture
The Mazolovo Rural House of Culture (Vitebsk region) will begin offering evenings at the piano, which is over 120 years old, to its guests in the Year of Culture. The antique instrument has regained its clear sound after 70 years of silence. This was reported to a BELTA correspondent by the director of the institution, Olga Zhuravskaya.
Among the current exhibits at the House of Culture, there is a very remarkable one – an exhibition of musical instruments collected by teachers and students of the Mazolovo Children's Art School. One of the central exhibits is an antique piano, which was donated to the school in 2013 by its former owner. As the director of the art school, Alexandra Baydakova, told us, the antique upright piano C.M. Schr?der has an amazing history. Back in 1920, it came into the donor's family after being confiscated from Prince Krymshakhalov. Home concerts at the piano in the first half of the 20th century brought together a wide circle of intelligentsia. The piano miraculously survived the Great Patriotic War: it was confiscated by the occupiers, but the owner got it back by playing Chopin's "Revolutionary" etude right at the commandant's office. The instrument was damaged then – the moderator was affected, which muffled the sound. "After the piano came to us, we invited various masters, but they all refused to repair the antique. Finally, we found a wonderful tuner who worked a miracle – since yesterday, the piano sounds as it should again. Although we plan to carry out a full repair in the future," noted Alexandra Baydakova. A unique presentation of the antique music salon will take place on January 14. The "Evening at the Piano" will conclude the acquaintance with the Vitebsk region for the guests of the round table "New Opportunities for the Economic Development of Rural Territories of the Republic of Belarus" of the international technical assistance project. Subsequently, other visitors to the House of Culture will also become listeners of such chamber concerts.
Ekaterina Knyazeva, BELTA.