Celebrating the 165th Anniversary of Vasily Vasilievich Andreyev’s Birth

We invite you to a landmark event in Russia’s musical life — a gala concert marking the 165th anniversary of Vasily Vasilievich Andreyev, founder of the Great Russian Orchestra, today known as the Vasily Andreyev State Academic Russian Orchestra.

The programme reveals the full richness and expressive power of traditional Russian instruments. At the heart of this celebration stands Andreyev himself — a visionary virtuoso who heard, in the humble village balalaika, the voice of an entire nation and transformed it into an instrument of international renown. The ensemble he founded evolved from an amateur circle into an orchestra of the highest academic stature and has remained for over a century a benchmark of sound and a guardian of a unique musical tradition. This anniversary concert is both a tribute to the founder and a living testament to the enduring vitality of his artistic vision.

The first half features Andreyev’s own compositions, including the elegant Polonaise No. 2, the lyrical Balalaika, and the graceful Butterfly. They are followed by works of his contemporaries and successors: “Flowers Were Blooming” and “Naigrysh” by Troyanovsky, performed by balalaika soloist Oleg Gafarov; Pavel Kulikov’s tender “Star, Forgive Me”; and Fomin’s brilliant Scherzo. Highlights include the folk song “They Blame Me Among the People” (arr. Shalov), performed by young domra player Veronika Karpova, and Belyaevsky-Gorodovskaya’s Fantasy on the folk song “Khodila Mladen’kaya”, performed on gusli by Ekaterina Andreyeva, a graduate of the Andreyev Children’s Music School and now a student of the St. Petersburg Conservatory. The first half concludes with Tchaikovsky’s vibrant Dance of the Skomorokhs.

The second half opens with Glazunov’s monumental Russian Fantasy, followed by Rachmaninoff’s sparkling Scherzo. The programme continues with Petrov’s fiery AstorTango, performed by balalaika soloist Maxim Belnik, Khachaturian’s expressive Serenade, and a sequence of Spanish-inspired works: de Falla’s Spanish Dance, Leoncavallo’s Fandango, and Frolov’s virtuosic Spanish Fantasy, performed by Rustam and Maria Gafarov (balalaika and domra). The evening concludes with excerpts from Boyashov’s suite The Little Humpbacked Horse — “The Tsar’s Procession” and “A Feast for All the World.”

This concert is more than a performance — it is a journey into the very heart of Russian musical tradition, from its origins to its contemporary interpretations. We invite you to share in this celebration of music and to honour the legacy of the man who forever transformed the sound of Russia.

Conductor:
People’s Artist of Russia Dmitry Khokhlov

Soloists:
Oleg Gafarov, balalaika — Andreyev Orchestra
Veronika Karpova, domra — St. Petersburg Lyceum of Arts
Ekaterina Andreyeva, gusli — Rimsky-Korsakov St. Petersburg State Conservatory
Maxim Belnik, balalaika — Mussorgsky St. Petersburg Music College
Rustam and Maria Gafarov, balalaika and domra — Andreyev Orchestra