Pianist Evgeny Kissin is scheduled to perform in Taiwan tomorrow and on Tuesday next week. Tickets have long ago sold out, as did those for two recitals at New York’s Carnegie Hall in late May.
After Taipei, Kissin was scheduled to perform in Hong Kong. Less than a month before the Hong Kong concert, the organizer announced it was canceled.
Born in Russia to Jewish parents, Kissin first came to international fame as a child prodigy.
The live recording of his performance of Chopin’s two concertos in Moscow’s Tchaikovsky Concert Hall when he was 12 became legendary in classical music history.
The last time Herbert von Karajan, probably the world’s best-known conductor and one of the most powerful figures in classical music, conducted the Berlin Philharmonic’s New Year’s Eve concert before his death was partnered with Kissin when he was 17.
Von Karajan’s daughter recalled that she had only seen her father cry once. It was when Kissin met him in Salzburg, Austria, for a private audition and his performance brought the maestro to tears.
The former music prodigy is now in his prime 40 years later.
This is the 53-year-old Kissin’s seventh visit to Taiwan.
According to Kissin’s official Web site, he will go directly to South Korea after leaving Taiwan, followed by six concerts in Japan. The performance schedule is unrelenting and Hong Kong is the only stop that has been canceled.
Obviously, the cancelation was not due to health reasons, but has to do with Kissin’s unequivocal support for Ukraine.
Despite being commonly viewed as a great successor of the Russian piano school and being the youngest-ever winner of the Triumph Award — one of the highest cultural honors to be awarded in the Russian Federation — for his outstanding contribution to Russia’s culture, Kissin deeply suffered from the experience of being bullied in his childhood as a Jew.
After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, he resolutely severed ties with the Russian authorities. Kissin complained bitterly: “Russia is one of the most anti-Semitic countries in the world.”
Refusing to recognize Russia as his motherland, he declared: “I don’t have a drop of Russian blood in me.”
Kissin was one of the first artists to stand up and denounce Russian President Vladimir Putin. For more than two years, he has spared no effort in calling on the Western world to help Ukraine and has never been afraid to take a stand.
In retaliation, in July, the Russian government named Kissin a “foreign agent,” which is akin to labeling him a foreign spy. This can be regarded as a medal of honor certified by the Moscow authorities.
Just one day before Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and Putin warmly shook hands at the BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russia, the Hong Kong government self-censored and announced the cancelation of Kissin’s recital. This is another piece of clear evidence that the Hong Kong government has become a powerful servant of the Beijing authorities, trying to eliminate anything awkward between China and Russia on the “friendly” occasion of the summit.
Being made an honorary doctor of letters by the University of Hong Kong in 2009, it is ironic that Kissin is now banned from the territory. It is not only a loss for Hong Kong music fans, but also a tragedy for the territory.
Chen Yung-chang is a freelance writer based in Taipei.
Translated by Lin Lee-kai
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