Nadine, hello. Thank you for agreeing to talk with me. 

A question that I asked almost all of our guests...Can you give some advices to our readers: choose a more suitable Opera for first time attendance, the best Opera for a romantic date and the best choice for evening with a good friend?

When it comes to the first opera in life, this is of course a very interesting question. First of all, it matters at what age we go to the opera for the first time. If it is early childhood, then almost any opera can work, because a small child cannot really understand much. For them, an opera performance, like any other, is simply a show that can attract them with its scale, colors, loudness, and so on. I am convinced that for a small child absolutely any opera can be enjoyable. Here it depends only on the child’s ability to sit through such a long performance, since operas usually last for a long time.But if we are talking about a person who is already in a conscious age, starting from teenage years and older, then I cannot really give advice on which specific opera to see, because there are so many. For a first introduction, absolutely any performance can be suitable.One very interesting point I have noticed in my experience: people who are far from opera, who come to the theater for the first time, often easily understand performances based on the music of modern composers. For them, the music feels like a soundtrack to what is happening on stage. It is like watching a movie: we follow the story, we get into the characters and images, and the music serves as an accompaniment. But of course, opera and musical theater are first of all about the music. So, if we go to the opera, music should play the main role.Still, without a good production and an interesting story, the music may not be received well. That is why the quality of the performance is very important. And here lies the key point. I would recommend going not to a specific opera, but to a specific production with good performers, so that a person who has never seen anything like this can get the best impression. Because the quality of performance directly influences how we perceive opera.

For a romantic date, I’d suggest La Traviata — it’s very touching and emotional. 

And for a fun evening with a good friend, Il Barbiere di Siviglia is perfect — light, lively, and full of humor.

Besides music, you are an artist; you paint pictures. 

Let’s imagine a little bit. Which color is the most useful in classical music? What do you think about it? Which color do you prefer in music? 

A very interesting question. When I was a child, I used to hear that different musical keys have their own colors. At that time, yes, I imagined something like that for myself. Now it would probably be difficult for me to fully recall those childhood memories, but I can definitely say that flat keys feel dark to me. Not dark in the sense of being sad, but dark in color — like purple.

By the way, do you have a favorite painter? 

And in painting as well, I really love deep, rich shades of purple. With painters, everything is very simple for me. I adore Klimt, Van Gogh, Aivazovsky, Picasso, Dalí, Bosch, and many others.

And a favorite composer for the performances?

Rachmaninov

I often saw you with headphones. Could you tell us about your musical tastes outside of classical music?

To distract myself from the obsessive thoughts that spin in my head non-stop, I always try to take music with me. And my playlist is very diverse. My app itself suggests songs that match the mood I set. It can be pop, rock, metal, alternative, retro — anything at allInterview with. I have a wide range of musical preferences.

Nadine, thank you very much for an interesting interview!