SARATOV, 1910: TOUR OF THE S. A. KUSEVITSKY’S ORCHESTRA
In 1912, a conservatory was opened in the city of Saratov - it was the first conservatory in provincial Russia, and the third in the country after the St. Petersburg and Moscow conservatories. On the eve of the opening, outstanding musicians whose names will forever remain in world musical culture performed in the hall of the Saratov Music School. However remarkable the original event, it was made all the more so by the appearance of the then world-famous composer and pianist A.N. Scriabin. In May of 1910, A.N. Scriabin participated as a soloist in concerts of the Moscow Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sergey Koussevitzky, a rising star on the global musical horizon. These performances were held with tremendous success in eleven Volga cities. The Saratov Region State Archives have preserved the programs of all three concerts of the orchestra in the “capital of the Volga Region”. The documents presented in this article have never been seen in publications before. This account contains quotes and excerpts from articles of local newspapers of that time, covering the first concert tour of the S. Koussevitzky Orchestra. The presented evidence helps to assess the level and scale of the performances of the orchestra and its soloists, to get acquainted with the concert programs, and to reinforce the grandeur of well-known musicians, including those who stand at the origins of the Saratov Conservatory and have contributed to its development and blossoming.