By Alina Grishakovich
Audiences have been heartily welcoming the Belarusian artistes performing classic and folk music at concerts featuring works by Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Bach, Mozart, Beethoven and Gennady Puchkov. As well as classical melodies, there have been adaptations of Pesnyary songs and French musical motifs. Orchestra soloists Yelena Shevchik, Victoria Krasovskaya and Polina Donskaya have received an especially warm welcome at the concerts, which mark the 68th anniversary of the liberation of the Nord-Pas de Calais from German invaders. Celebrations are traditionally held every September in the northern region of France, which comprises Artois, Boulogne and Flandre.
The military band is already well-known to local residents, having been attending the celebrations since 1994, with support from the Belarusian Embassy to France. In almost twenty years of friendship, a solid group of French fans has emerged to support the Belarusian orchestra, which is one of the best military bands in Europe. It has brought forth such legends as People’s Artists of Belarus Mikhail Finberg and Alexander Tikhanovich.
