Charity concerts are a worldwide tradition,
and the largest Western companies participate in them.
To organize such concerts and to visit them is regarded as an honorable and prestigious action.

Under the patronage of
Baron Eduard Alexandrovich von Falz-Fein
(Principality of Lichtenstein)

July 27-31, 2004
Yalta - Sevastopol - Yalta

CRIMEAN NIGHTS
CHARITY CONCERTS

to support a Crimean girl receiving treatment from an oncological disease:
VALYA POLISHCHUK

Organizer of the concert and soloist:
MARIA BATOVA (Zurich, Switzerland) - soprano

Soloists:
IRINA ZEITZ (Basel, Switzerland) - organ
ANDREAS SCHMIDT (Basel, Switzerland) - counter-tenor

Other participants of the Sevastopol concert were
the Madrigal Chamber Choir
of the Sevastopol Officers Club of the Russian Black Sea Fleet
and the Sevastopol City Chamber Orchestra.
Art director:
Honored Art Worker of Ukraine, Winner of the Prize of the Crimean Autonomous Republic
VLADIMIR KIM
Soloists:
VALENTINA NEVYAKINA - soprano
LYUDMILA KRUGLOVA - soprano

The concert in Sevastopol was held under the blessing of LAZARUS, Metropolitan of Simferopol and Crimea, and active support on behalf of the Sevastopol subdiocese of the Russian Orthodox Church.

All the charity contributions collected during the concerts amounted to 7732 hrn, which is approximately equivalent to $1464. Svetlana, Valya's mother, received this sum from Maria Batova and Sevastopol Archpriest Vladimir Karpets. The money was spent on Valya's treatment at the Obninsk Medical Radiological Center (Russian Federation).

PROGRAM OF CONCERTS:

Yalta, July 27
French and Italian baroque music
Vocal and organ compositions by A. Vivaldi, G. Frescobaldi, C. Monteverdi, N. de Grigny, Fr. Couperin, M.A. Charpentier
Roman Catholic Church (ul. Pushkinskaya 25)
Beginning at 8 p.m.

Sevastopol, July 29
Chamber orchestral and vocal compositions by W.A. Mozart and J. Haydn
Arias by G.F. Handel, A. Vivaldi, H. Purcell.
Gloria, cantata by A. Vivaldi
Officers Club of the Russian Black Sea Fleet (ul. Lenina 9)
Beginning at 8 p.m.

Yalta, July 31
Italian and English baroque music
A. Vivaldi, G. Frescobaldi, C. Monteverdi, G.F. Handel, H. Purcell
Roman Catholic Church (ul. Pushkinkaya 25)
Beginning at 8 p.m.
 

During the concerts, Valya was on her "medical vacation". And she attended the concerts together with all her family! July 27, the day of the Sevastopol concert, was Valya's birthday. And our concerts became a present for Valya on the day she turned fifteen.

We invited all Crimeans to join in this present. And the people responded. Together we raised almost 1500 dollars. But the present received by Valya is much more than just money. It is quite possible that we have managed to give LIFE to the girl.

Well, it is not difficult at all. To join together and make a priceless gift to an ill child: a chance to grow up, to see the world, to rejoice at the look of the sea and at the sound of bird singing.

WE THANK EVERYBODY WHO CAME TO HELP!
 

The organizer of the concert and the principal performer was Maria Batova, now a permanent resident of Switzerland (Zurich). She graduated from the Ippolitov-Ivanov Musical School and from Moscow Conservatory in 1997 as a historian of foreign music (class of Prof. M.A. Saponov). In 1992, she started studying vocal performance (her teacher was Evgeni Argyshev; then she took classes of Maria Ganeshina and Dmitri Stepanovich). From 1992 to 1999, Batova was a soloist of the Early Music Collegium at the Conservatory within the Argyshev Consort and Musica Humana ensembles (art director). She performed the investigation and practical reconstruction of the score and then the staging of Emilio de Cavalieri's sacred opera Rappresentatione di Anima et di Corpo (Russian premiere took place in 1997) and sang the part of Soul. In cooperation with Aleksandra Flados, Maria was a participant and musical director of several performances. She was art director and participant of the May Festival of Early Music in Moscow and also a participant of the Unofficial Moscow art festival (1999).
Since 2000, Maria has been living in Zurich, where she works as a chanter at the Voskresenski Orthodox Parish. From 2000 to 2003, she studied at Schola Cantorum Basiliensis (Basel Academy of Early Music), specializing in singing (the teachers were Kate Dineen, Dominique Vellar, Anthony Rooley). In different years, she participated in the master classes of Egor Reznikov, Jurgen Schrape, Monserrat Figueras, Anne Azema, Joel Cohen, in the work of the Camerata Boston ensemble and Bach Academy of Helmuth Rilling, and also in projects of Schola Cantorum Basiliensis under the guidance of Evelin Tabb and Anthony Rooley.
Maria Batova gave concerts in Russia, Switzerland, Germany, and Italy.

Irina Zeitz was born in Lviv to a family of musicians. She graduated from the Lviv Conservatory with honors as a pianist; at the same time, she started learning to play the organ.
Before receiving the prize of the International Organ Competition in Kiev in 1989, Irina won several pianists' competitions. In 1990, she started postgraduate education in the Musical Academy of Krakow (Poland); her teacher was J. Jargon. Since 1991, she studied at the Basel Musical Academy in Gui Beauvais' class; she graduated with honors in 1994. Numerous master classes (by John Laukwick, Jean Guillou, Marie-Claire Alain) perfected her skilles. In 1996, Irina also received a conductor's certificate at the Luzern Academy for Church Music.
Irina Zeitz has been giving organ concerts in Switzerland, Germany, and other European countries for many years. She participates in international competitions and festivals. In addition, Irina also works as a conductor and teacher.

Andreas Schmidt started his career as a soloist of the Windsbach Youth Chorus. Then, after studying in Heidelberg (where he specialized in musicology and romanistics) and in the Frankfurt Conservatory (vocals), he moved to Basel in order to specialize in early music in Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, from which he graduated in 1995.
Since 1989, Andreas has been living in Switzerland, where he continues his musical activities. He works with Joshua Rifkin (Orpheus by Monteverdi and Mass H-moll by Bach), sings in numerous performances of the Basel theater (La Burletta, Los Elementos, L'Orfeo), participates in the 12th Musical Festival in Londrina (Brazil) as an invited soloist. During the 13th festival in Londrina, Andreas Schmidt is already a course manager. An important part of his work is represented by radio, TV, and audio recording (M. Steinauer, Speculum Sibyllinum, 1992; C. Steinmann, Prometheus, 1996; Alfons Karl Zwicker, Die Hollenmaschine, 1998; Thomas Muller, Howl 1, 2001; C. Steinmann, Olympische Oden, 2004). In 1997, as a member of the Voce Poetica ensemble of soloists, Andreas received the first prize at the International Competition of Musical Ensembles (York, Great Britain).
In 2003, he taught a master class in ensemble vocals at the Kiev Musical Academy.

The Madrigal Chamber Choir of the Sevastopol Officers Club of the Russian Black Sea Fleet is a regular participant of the Khersones Games theater festivals, Ukrainian TV programs, and the Creation Sits Monitor program of the US cable TV. The chamber orchestra was created in 1984. It has given performances in the Crimea and in Kiev. Its art director is Vladimir Kim, Honored Worker of Arts of Ukraine, winner of the Prize of the Crimean Autonomous Republic.

Our concert in Valya's favor took place under the patronage of Baron Eduard Alexandrovich von Falz-Fein, a nobleman of Russian descent, a citizen of the Principality of Lichtenstein. Baron Falz-Fein is a formerly famous sporstman, a talented journalist, a successful businessman, and an arts collector and patron of rare generosity. His money helped bring paintings by Aivazovski and Korovin, drawings by Repin, Larionov and Benoi back to Russia. He finances the search for the Amber Room and for Dostoyevski's archives.
In 1992, the Baron founded a foundation for helping the Askania-Nova Biosphere Reserve, which is situated on the lands of his family estate. In New York, he also found and bought a portrait of Prince Potemkin, which is now placed near the portrait of Catherine II in the Crimean Museum.
The Baron has also done great services to the Russian Orthodox Church. He participated in the fundraising for the construction of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow. On December 26, 2002, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II awarded Eduard Alexandrovich with the Order of St. Sergey Radonezhsky.
For his business achievements, Baron Falz-Fein has been awarded the Crystal Globe international prize. He has also been awarded the Russian Order of Merit, which was handed to him by V.V. Putin on December 26, 2002, for his activity as a patron of arts.