Kremer Dedicates New CD “De Profundis” to Khodorkovsky
Grammy award winning violinist Gidon Kremer, who with his famous orchestra Kremerata Baltica played at the Leipzig concert last year, has dedicated his new CD "De Profundis" to "all those who refuse to be silenced...namely to Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who is being a real patriot of Russia..." His dedication is intended to be a contribution to the fight against injustice as an awareness campaign about the case.
The composers, whose works span nearly two centuries, are: Jean Sibelius, Arvo Pärt, Raminta Šerkšnytė (whose piece De Profundis lends the album its title), Robert Schumann, Michael Nyman, Franz Schubert, Stevan Kovacs Tickmayer, Dmitri Shostakovich, Lera Auerbach, Astor Piazzolla, Georgs Pelecis, and Alfred Schnittke. Pärt also recently dedicated his fourth symphony, Los Angeles, to Khodorkovsky.
An excerpt from the De Profundis CD insert:
De Profundis
"Out of the depths I cry to you." Countless poets and musicians have used these timeless words from Psalm 130. I feel they are especially urgent in our time, when the world is afflicted with greed, corruption, and false prophets. Today, oil is a highly desirable commodity. It is a hidden substance extracted from the depths of the Earth that can both sustain and destroy life. Music is likewise a fuel. Fuel for the soul. Far more precious than oil, it is felt in the impenetrable depths of our consciousness. Can oil and music mix? In a positive sense, both are sources of energy that can serve the people. But in today's world, oil is also used to sustain tyrannical regimes, be it in Saudi Arabia, Iran, Myanmar, or Russia. Despite painting themselves as advocates of democracy, their rulers engage in a Soviet-style suppression of free speech, the show trials, and presumption of guilt. In these Orwellian states, everyone is equal, but some are more equal than others. Drunk on oil, the worshippers of the golden calf seek to silence opposition and build walls between peoples and states. Contrary to that, we, the worshippers of Art, believe it is our duty to build bridges and to stand up in support of those who are trying to establish a more democratic society, those who are fighting for transparency and truth. Therefore, I would like to dedicate De Profundis to all those who refuse to be silenced, who understand that the real freedom is within us. I would like to dedicate this CD to Mikhail Khodorkovsky, a true Russian patriot, who has endured years of imprisonment in Siberia under false pretexts. Accused of stealing oil and evading taxes, Mikhail has in truth worked to make his home country a better place. His unfair trial and continued incarceration are important political symbols to all those who strive for a free and democratic Russia.
Yet my intention is not to make De Profundis a political statement, for politics represents only the surface of things, while the artists featured on this record affirm a deep-rooted personal expression that can resonate within anyone. For music, unlike authoritarian rulers, speaks with an outstretched hand, not with a clenched fist. It is an offering to the listener, and its profundity can only be established on the basis of service, not on the grounds of self-indulgence or meaningless stardom. So, "out of the depths" these artists cry out for a better world, one that is not dominated by the superficiality of sales, figures, ratings, self-promotion, and "small talk." Their spiritual missive, like oil, can sustain humans by appealing to their profoundest emotions, by letting them open up, become more conscious, rather than "forget themselves." Each of the twelve pieces selected for this album sends its own individual message to the listener, one that my colleagues from Kremerata Baltica and I have tried to illuminate. Now it is up to you, dear listener, to allow this message to fuel your soul.
Gidon Kremer (March 2010)