All-Russian marathon of classical music "Cantata". Russia – the musical unity of the country

On June 12, 2026, a large-scale All-Russian marathon of classical music “Kantata” was held in Russia. Russia, dedicated to the Day of Russia. This ambitious project, which united 15 regions and gathered about 20 thousand spectators, became one of the largest academic events of the country within the framework of the VI International Festival of Classical Music "Cantata".

During the day, concerts were held in Moscow (national center "Russia" with the participation of the State Symphony Orchestra "New Russia"), St. Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Kaliningrad, Astrakhan, Cherepovets, Kursk, Novorossiysk, Yoshkar-Ola, Ryazan, Rostov-on-Don, Khabarovsk, Cheboksary and the Republic of Karelia.

Symphony orchestras, choirs and soloists performed works by Glinka, Mussorgsky, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, Prokofiev, Shostakovich, Stravinsky and Sviridov – key composers of the Russian academic musical tradition.

Special attention was paid to the multi-genre gala concert “Ahead of Time” in Kaliningrad, performed by the State Symphony Orchestra “New Russia” under the leadership of Yuri Bashmet and the State Academic Choir Chapel. A.A.Yurlov under the direction of Gennady Dmitryak, with a special guest - pianist Angel Wong. In Cherepovets, the marathon was held at the production site of Severstal with the performance of "Time, go!" by Georgy Sviridov.

The participants were the leading creative teams of the regions, including the Far Eastern Academic Symphony Orchestra and the Women's Academic Choir of the Khabarovsk Regional College of Arts. In St. Petersburg, the Academic Symphony Orchestra of the St. Petersburg Philharmonic and the St. Petersburg Concert Choir performed.

In addition to music, the marathon was accompanied by a demonstration of reproductions of paintings from the State Tretyakov Gallery, uniting academic arts. The project was implemented with the support of the Presidential Fund for Cultural Initiatives, and its implementation was closely connected with the celebration of the 80th anniversary of the formation of the Kaliningrad region.