The Mannheim Philharmonic cancelled a concert featuring violinist Vadim Repin after an official request from the Ukrainian Embassy in Germany. This was reported on the website of BackstageClassical.
Repin was scheduled to perform with the Mannheim Philharmonic on 22 February, playing Sergei Prokofiev's Second Violin Concerto, on the eve of the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Earlier, a ballet evening featuring his wife, Bolshoi Theatre prima ballerina and pro-Kremlin dancer Svetlana Zakharova, had already been cancelled in Florence.
For several days, the page with information about the concert in Mannheim was unavailable, and the BackstageClassical editorial office was repeatedly asked to wait with responses to inquiries.
Before the concert was cancelled, the Ukrainian Embassy in Berlin expressed serious concern about Repin's planned performance and sent an official letter to the mayor of Mannheim and the event organisers. LB.ua also wrote letters to the embassy asking them to pay attention and take action regarding Repin's potential performance. The embassy's appeal emphasised that the violinist had been involved in the Kremlin's state cultural projects for many years and had received awards and financial support from Russia since the start of the full-scale war.
Repin's wife, Svetlana Zakharova, is a prima ballerina at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow and was formerly a deputy for the United Russia party. Repin himself is usually positioned as an ‘apolitical’ artist, but according to Ukrainian media, he maintains close ties with Russian state structures. In 2022, he was awarded the title of ‘People's Artist of the Russian Federation’ and has repeatedly performed at official propaganda concerts.
Earlier, the Mannheim city authorities and the philharmonic stated that this was a private cultural event over which state institutions had no direct influence. However, the orchestra later provided BackstageClassical with an official statement:
"A few days ago, we received a letter from the Ukrainian Embassy in Germany requesting that the Mannheim Philharmonic's concert with Vadim Repin also be cancelled. This letter clearly and convincingly outlined the concerns of the Ukrainian community in Germany. As the Mannheim Philharmonic has been actively supporting Ukrainians affected by the war for many years, we took this request with the utmost seriousness and respect. After intensive internal discussions, we unanimously decided to grant the request of our Ukrainian fellow citizens and cancel the concert. It was important for us to take into account the perspective of the Ukrainian community after this direct appeal."
Despite the cancellation of concerts in Germany and Italy, Vadim Repin remains on the programme of the Swiss festival Gstaad Festival Les Sommets Musicaux, where he is scheduled to perform as one of the main artists from 30 January.
According to BackstageClassical, after the cancellation of the ballet evening in Florence, the media group CH Media asked the artistic director of the Gstaad Festival, Renaud Capuçon, why he was continuing to work with Repin. Capuçon replied:
‘I am very happy to welcome my friend and colleague Vadim Repin to Gstaad. As an artist and a human being, harmony between people is important to me, and I believe that music is perhaps one of the few ways to preserve peace between people.’