ST, Mary Gu, NILETTO, Bianca, and others: the final of the "Voice of the Poet" project took place at the National Centre RUSSIA

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On November 12, the gala concert of the "Voice of the Poet" project took place at the National Centre RUSSIA – the final of this grand event, in which well-known rappers created their own musical tracks based on the poems of famous Russian poets from different eras.

The evening was opened by ST together with Sergei Bobunets and the "Choir of the Firsts," performing a song based on Vladimir Orlov’s poem "Rodnoe" ("Native"), and he, along with the other participants, closed the concert with a new track based on Igor Severyanin's poem "Otlichnoy ot drugikh" ("Different from the Others"). Bianca performed an impressive, poignant piece based on Nikolai Nekrasov's "Vnimaya uzhasam voyny" " (Listening to the Horrors of War"), while NILETTO presented his interpretation of Robert Rozhdestvensky's "Bud', pozhaluysta, poslabe" ("Please, Be a Little Weaker"). The poet's daughter, Ekaterina Rozhdestvenskaya, who was among the audience, was deeply touched by the performance.

One of the most lyrical and surprisingly modern performances was the duet between Lesha Svik and RO with "Ya tebe nichego ne skazhu" " (I Will Not Tell You Anything") by Afanasy Fet. Zvonkiy chose the poem "Apelsinnye tsvety" ("Orange Blossoms") by Zinaida Gippius, and despite its very feminine nature, it turned into an incredibly harmonious track. Rapper Eazy Trick from Chita used Vladimir Mayakovsky's "Poslushayte!" ("Listen! "), and during the performance, the text was "spoken" by Vladimir Mayakovsky himself on large screens, generated by a neural network.

Some of the artists turned to works that already had popular romances, but presented them in a completely different way: for example, MOSYA (Moisey Beglarov), accompanied by the ballet of the Stanislavsky Theatre and the TODES ensemble, chose the romance "Parus" ("Sail") by Mikhail Lermontov, while Mary Gu performed "S lyubimymi ne rasstavaites" ("Do Not Part with Those You Love") by Alexander Kochetkov, known from the film "Irony of Fate." PEGAS, with the orchestra of the "Helikon-Opera" theatre, performed the famous poem "Mne nravitsya, chto vy bolny ne mnoi" ("I Like That You Are Not Sick with Me") by Marina Tsvetaeva.

Yulia Savicheva and Tyoma Kuba shone in a mix based on Pushkin's texts, with Yulia in a daring rock princess outfit, performing the letter from Tatyana to Eugene Onegin. The performances of all the artists were made even more vivid thanks to the visuals, which were developed by artificial intelligence, based on listening to the work several dozen times. Working on the project, each artist rediscovered Russian classical literature, rethinking poetry through the lens of modernity.

"Most artists were familiar with Mayakovsky, Pushkin, and Lermontov. But when they read Fet and Gippius, they exclaimed: 'My God, these are amazing texts.' I really love rap, and I’ve long dreamed of combining this music with the poems of great poets from the Silver and Golden Ages. I’m thrilled that a few lines from a famous poem are taken, and then the rappers create their own, often very personal story from it", said the project’s general producer, TEFI award laureate Lina Arifulina.

Project artistic director Alexander Stepanov, known as rapper ST, chose poems not only for his songs but also helped others decide on their choices.

 "Some artists told me which poem they wanted to perform, while others were indecisive. For some, I sent them texts with the author’s name deliberately erased because everyone initially wanted to perform Yesenin, and when they received anonymous poems, they said they were really cool. I’m proud of the result, and I’m looking forward to these songs having a future life beyond the project. I’m sure millions of girls will soon be crying to the NILETTO track based on Rozhdestvensky’s poems", said Alexander Stepanov.

The "Voice of the Poet" project also became a unique opportunity for many young people to showcase their talents through the lens of Russian poetry. During the selection round, the jury chose several of the most gifted representatives of the younger generation from thousands of applications.

Among the guests of the evening were Sergei Gennadievich Novikov, Head of the President of the Russian Federation’s Directorate for Social Projects, Deputy Yekaterina Stenyakina, boxing champion Svetlana Andreeva, as well as Olga Budina, Yulia Baranovskaya, Yekaterina Shpitsa, Rodion Gazmanov, Ilya Bachurin, Yekaterina Rozhdestvenskaya, Yelena Shanovich, and many others. They all brought volumes of poetry to share their favorite books with others.

"I have Levitan's works with me. He is the most cinematic and visual poet. He describes images so vividly that they immediately appear before your eyes. And the second book is my own. I also have a poetic program with musical accompaniment, and during my performances, I can see that the audience listens and empathizes. Our society has made a new cultural turn, and that’s gratifying", noted Rodion Gazmanov.

"I have Marina Tsvetaeva’s works in my hands. It’s very important for people to read poetry. But the world has changed, and the youth is different, so all ways of promoting poetry are good. Especially such as at the 'Voice of the Poet' project", shared Yulia Baranovskaya.

Anastasia Zvyagina, Deputy Director General of the National Centre RUSSIA, attended the gala concert with Alexander Pushkin’s novel "Eugene Onegin."

"Alexander Sergeyevich once wrote: 'They met — the wave and the stone, poetry and prose, ice and flame.' And today, as well, we have brought together completely different genres. We combine classics with modernity, and we hope that in this symbiosis, a completely new format will emerge — the format of the future", said Anastasia Zvyagina.

The organizer of the "Voice of the Poet" project is the Reflection Cultural Development Foundation with the support of the Presidential Fund for Cultural Initiatives.

The National Centre RUSSIA was established by order of the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, to preserve the legacy of the International RUSSIA EXPO and to showcase the achievements of the country and its citizens on a permanent basis. Federal government agencies, state companies, corporations, and regions take part in the Centre’s work. The first event at the National Centre RUSSIA was the International Symposium "Inventing the Future," which welcomed more than 6,000 guests from 101 countries.

The National Centre RUSSIA is located at 14 Krasnopresnenskaya Embankment, Moscow. The Centre is open from 10:00 to 20:00 every day except Monday.