Because of her proximity to the Kremlin, the Russian opera diva Anna Netrebko loses numerous engagements in the West. She then cautiously distances herself from the war of aggression against Ukraine. Now she tries to explain herself again – also with propaganda phrases.
The Russian opera diva Anna Netrebko is committed to her homeland despite the Russian war against Ukraine. “I love my country, my culture, the people. I don’t think it’s right what’s happening there right now, but I’ll remain a Russian,” says the 50-year-old singer in an interview with the weekly newspaper “Die Zeit”. At the same time, she again denies that she is said to be close to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
She also distances herself from the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. “Of course I’m against this terrible violence,” she says. “I know many fates, people who were bombed, people who had to flee, everything. We talk a lot about this because it moves me deeply. But I can’t change anything about this situation.”
Netrebko, who lives in Vienna among other places, was criticized for her initially hesitant attitude towards the war and an alleged closeness to Putin. Several opera houses had canceled performances by her. In the interview, the soprano asserts that she only met the Russian president “a few times” in person.
Netrebko also commented on a controversial concert for her 50th birthday last year in the Kremlin. This was “not at all” a commitment to Putin. Rather, it was “a completely normal concert” for which tickets were sold. “An independent organizer organized everything, not the Kremlin.”
Netrebko took a break of several months after the war began. She recently returned to the stage and has been celebrated with performances in Monaco and Paris. This summer she wants to come to Regensburg, the Cologne Philharmonic and the Hamburg Elbphilharmonie together with her husband Yusif Eyvazov for concerts.
Then, however, in the “Zeit” interview, Netrebko apparently unthinkingly resorted to a propaganda phrase of the Kremlin. “I see my task as fighting against any Russophobia by performing and singing on stage, including Russian repertoire, which is now sometimes undesirable,” she says. The power apparatus around Putin has repeatedly branded criticism of his war against Ukraine and his aggressive policies as “Russophobia” and thus suggesting that there is a fundamental hostility to Russia.
Regarding performances in her home country, Netrebko explains that she currently has no plans to sing in Russia, “because I don’t think it’s the right time. But to be clear: I love performing in my country, and I look forward to singing there again as soon as circumstances allow.”
