ROME, January 15. /TASS/. The annual 10th Grand Historical (Russian) Ball was held at Palazzo Brancaccio in Rome on Saturday night.
The cultural event celebrated the 150th anniversary of composer Sergey Rachmaninoff (1873-1943) and was dedicated to Russian and Italian culture of the late 19th - early 20th centuries.
The ball held under the auspices of UNESCO’s International Dance Council was organized by Nino Graziano Luca, president of the National Historical Dance Company, and reporter Yulia Bazarova, the ideological inspirer of the ball and popularizer of Russian culture, with assistance from the Cultural Association Amici della Grande Russia (Friends of Great Russia). The ball was attended by Italian and Russian performers, including graduates and teachers of the Gnesin Russian Academy of Music, who performed not only music by Rachmaninoff, but also famous works of Italian composers of his time.
Bazarova told TASS that the organizers had gone through considerable difficulties this year. "First, we had to rename the Grand Russian Ball to the Grand Historical Ball. Our partners had been sent confusing messages that might have led to provocations," she complained.
According to Bazarova, a number of Italian universities whose students have always collaborated actively with the association, were actually prohibited from maintaining communication with it and stopped replying to its letters. The concept of the ball had to be tweaked, too, however its key goal of connecting Russia and Italy and promoting Russian history and culture remained intact, she said. "We have always sought to bring our nations together, and we will continue doing so," Bazarova assured.