On April, 1 a group of MEPhI students and employees has visited the State Hermitage by invitation of its Director General Mikhail Piotrovskiy. The visit consisted of 2 parts: the Academic male choir of MEPhI performed an hour program of classical music of Russian and foreign composers at the main scales of the New Hermitage (Terebilovskaia). A special excursion by halls and main treasures of human cultural heritage, exhibited at the museum, was given for the students of nuclear university, who successfully completed the contest of the project “Academic readings” by the order of Piotrovskiy.
The project “Academic readings”, conducted at one of the most leading universities, is aimed at giving an opportunity to penetrate in the treasury of intellectual and cultural achievements of the humankind to technical students, who are getting knowledge in the most developed industries of science and engineering thought. The project includes lectures, talks, and informal meetings with scientists, state and social actors, famous media people, who are leaders in their field. So, university students met with academicians, heads of institutes of philosophy, sociology, archeology A.A. Guseinov, M.K. Gorshkov, A.M. Moldovan, V.A. Tishkov (research supervisor of the project, academician-secretary of the RAS), N.A. Makarov, S.M. Rogov; famous social and religious people.
On March, 30, 2016 MEPhI was visited by M.B. Piotrovskiy. His lecture about the Hermitage, one of the best museum complexes of the world, provoked deep interest and gathered a record number of listeners. By the end of the lecture he answered numerous questions of the audience not only about the Hermitage, but also about scientific research in the East. The topic about restoration of architectural monuments, connected with the conflict in Syria and Palmira liberation, was discussed. During this visit the Head of the Hermitage invited students and choir to come to St Petersburg.
MEPhI male choir was founded in 1956, when MEPhI was one of the most closed and secret institutions, where mostly only young men were studying. For the past years it has become one of the best male choirs in the world. This year the 75th anniversary of MEPhI and 60th anniversary of the choir will be celebrated. For 30 years it has been headed by the Honoured artist of the RF Nadezhda Malyavina. Brilliant victories have been won under her supervision: being laureated in several international contests, performances at best concert areas of Russia and Europe, participation in religious and secular events of the highest level. In June last year at World choir games in Sochi, gathering several hundred choirs of the world, MEPhI choir has become an absolute winner in its nomination, winning two golden medals.
This time the audience also didn’t want to let the choir go and asked them to encore several times.
