BELARUSIAN-RUSSIAN YOUTH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
The Belarusian-Russian Youth Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Yuri Bashmet, People’s Artist of the USSR, is a unique ensemble comprised of ninety young Russian and Belarusian musicians carefully selected in the course of a highly competitive audition.
The orchestra first came about in 2008 to give several concerts, including one at the site of the destroyed Berlin Wall, after which it was disbanded. In 2023, the Belarusian-Russian Youth Symphony Orchestra was revived under the patronage of Maestro Bashmet. The first concerts of the newly gathered orchestra took place in Moscow and Minsk in November 2023 to find a keen response from the audience and media.
In 2024, the orchestra repeated the tour itinerary: on October 4, the orchestra gave a concert in Moscow, and on October 5, in the Belarusian State Philharmonic in Minsk. The orchestra lineup changed considerably, as it included musicians from the renewed All-Russian Youth Symphony Orchestra of Yuri Bashmet. Special rehearsal sessions and master classes from famous Russian and Belarusian teachers took place to prepare the orchestra for the tour.
Концерт в Московской государственной консерватории им. П.И. Чайковского
Концерт в Белорусской государственной филармонии
The orchestra activities target the development of culture, academic art, music education and professional training of young musicians, and preservation and development of the cultural identity of the peoples of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus within the framework of the Union State of Russia and Belarus.
Maestro Bashmet notes that this project has a special significance both for the musicians and for him personally.
«I can see them filling with energy by working together, and it’s really great. Playing in an orchestra brings musicians incredibly close together and makes them a single organism, and I am sure that this experience will be remembered by all of them for a long time. It is wonderful that young and talented musicians from Russia and Belarus unite into a single orchestra to face a difficult rehearsal period and then perform concerts in Moscow and Minsk. In our difficult times, when there are many conflicts around, it is wonderful that art and classical music unite young people. It means that what we have ahead is not just a future, but a future filled with creativity, professional achievements, and the joy of being together on stage. »
The concerts of the Belarusian-Russian Youth Symphony Orchestra in Moscow and Minsk were supported by the Standing Committee of the Union State, the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Belarus.