TEHRAN – A group of musicians from the Tehran Symphony Orchestra and National Orchestra paid a visit to the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory on Saturday. 

They also held a meeting with the director of the International Cooperation Department of the conservatory, Margarita Karatygina, the public relations team of the orchestras announced on Sunday. 

Speaking at the meeting, Karatygina said that they recently celebrated the 150th anniversary of the establishment of the conservatory, but it has not hosted an Iranian performance so far.

Addressing the musicians, she said, “You must know that everyone is waiting to see a good performance here. We are so happy that the conservatory has had negotiations with Iran’s Rudaki Foundation.”

Iran’s Rudaki Foundation and the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) in Moscow to enhance bilateral cooperation in March.

Continuing, she also said that Iran enjoys a rich culture and has been able to preserve and enhance its traditional music.

She said that she believes Iran can make good use of Western classical music but of course Iran’s traditional music enjoys greater attractions and it seems to be much closer to the music of Russia.

Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory rector Alexander Sokolov arrived in Tehran in late May and visited a number of Iranian cultural centers and officials.

A selection of musicians from the Tehran Symphony Orchestra and National Orchestra gave a performance at the Bolshoi Zal (Grand Hall) of the Saint Petersburg Philharmonia last Thursday. They also repeated their performance at the conservatory on Sunday. 

Photo: The director of the International Cooperation Department of the conservatory, Margarita Karatygina (L), and Tehran Symphony Orchestra conductor Shahrdad Rohani meet in Moscow on June 16, 2018.

RM/MMS/YAW