Sopranos

Ekaterina Imsokva

In the choir since 2022

Ekaterina Imsokva graduated from the Tchaikovsky South Ural State Institute of Music majoring in choral conducting (O. Safronova’s class) in 2012. She has been working in the musicAeterna choir since 2022.

From 2012 to 2013 she worked as an artist of the Alias choir. Since 2015 she has been an artist of the Festino Chamber Choir. From 2015 to 2018 she worked as an artist of the Music Hall Theatre and a teacher of jazz vocals in the theatre’s children studio. Since 2017 she has been the artist of the ensemble in the Tovstonogov BDT production of “What is to be done?” (directed by Andrey Moguchy).

She has collaborated with such ensembles and orchestras as The Pocket Symphony, The One Orchestra, the St. Petersburg MolOt Ensemble, the Orchestra 1703, as well as with conductors Georg Grün and Peter Phillips.

WHAT MAKES MUSICAETERNA DIFFER FROM OTHER ENSEMBLES?

About ten years ago, I heard about Teodor for the first time, and in a while I got acquainted with the recordings of musicAeterna. It was a true revelation: some kind of new breathing, a new way of hearing music. Since childhood, we have been taught the 'only proper' interpretations of works: you can sing one way and not another. At musicAeterna, the first thing that struck me was courage. When I joined the choir myself last year, I learned by experience how much freedom there is — both spiritual and physical. I opened up vocally, my voice began to sound in a new way — wider and stronger. It turned out that there are open and friendly people around who accept you as a rightful part of the team.

DO YOU PREFER CHORAL OR SOLO PROJECTS?

Of course, it is more comfortable for us, 'choir people', to perform as part of a large ensemble. When you go on stage solo, as part of a duo or trio, it's always a challenge. At the same time, the more often chamber concerts take place, the more stress-resistant you become, the more you grow above yourself. In addition, in these cases, you do not depend on anyone in your reading of music, you manifest yourself as you wish.

DO YOU LIKE EXPERIMENTING ON STAGE?

I really like all kinds of artistic experiments — in music and beyond. For example, in Andrey Moguchy's staging of What Is to Be Done? at BDT, I sing the music by Nastasia Khrushcheva as part of a chamber ensemble. I once had a chance to sing in a ballet Intuition to the music by Artur Zobnin, and this was also a kind of experiment: I was placed in the orchestra pit, and the voice acted as a separate instrument. Some stage practices have been a real challenge for me personally — for example, going on stage practically naked in De temporum fine comoedia at the Diaghilev Festival or in Don Giovanni staged by Castellucci at the Salzburg Festival. It is difficult and at the same time interesting.

WHAT DO YOU FIND INTERESTING ABOUT THE MUSIC BY MODERN COMPOSERS?

I really love cutting-edge music, I like to try different vocal techniques and approaches. The opportunity to personally communicate with the authors in this sense is extremely important: you can clarify some details and even suggest rewriting the impracticable fragments. Of course, as musicians, we first of all try to accept and live through the author's idea, their artistic vision. But if the composer is able to listen to the performer, change something for him, this is especially valuable.

WHO ARE YOUR FAVOURITES IN MODERN MUSIC?

Among the latest vivid impressions in the aspect of listening experience have been the Cries of London by Luciano Berio performed by the Festino choir, and IM ÄTHER and Lullabies by Andreas Moustoukis, the works we performed at the Hermitage. Among the revelations that I have experienced as a performer, there are Vladimir Martynov's The Lament of Jeremiah, very sincere and tender works by Vangelino Currentzis, works by Nastasia Khrushcheva (working with her music is always a special pleasure for me).

WHAT DO YOU LISTEN TO IN YOUR FREE TIME?

I love jazz and everything related to it. Still as a child, I listened to all the recordings of Ella Fitzgerald, and later taught jazz vocals to children for a while. It was jazz that I brought me to the interest in Baroque music. I also love rock music, ranging from System of a Down to Rammstein. I also listen to Soviet pop music, my favourite singer is Lyudmila Senchina, especially her album of 1983 recorded together with Igor Talkov.