PERM, June 20 The Diaghilev Festival opened in Perm with a performance of the large-scale oratorio “St. Matthew Passion” by Johann Sebastian Bach, conducted by Teodor Currentzis, the correspondent reports.
The concert began in the large hall of the Perm Philharmonic, this venue seats 820 listeners. All tickets for the event were sold out almost at the start of sales in May. 
< br />Before the start of the concert, the festival organizers warned the audience that there would be no applause after the performance of the oratorio, as well as applause between parts of the work.
«The best gratitude to the artists and maestro will be your reverent attitude towards the atmosphere that we will try to create,» the message said.
The duration of the oratorio is more than three hours. 
«St. Matthew Passion» will be performed by the musicAeterna choir and orchestra, the Ponomarev children's choir «Vesna» and soloists, including Elizaveta Sveshnikova, Elene Gvritishvili, Andrey Nemzer, Natalya Buklag and Egor Semenkov, conducted by Teodor Currentzis. The libretto was prepared by Christian Friedrich Henrici, the translation was carried out by Abbot Peter (Meshcherinov).
The festival's website states that the Passion was performed in Leipzig's St. Thomas Cathedral during Bach's lifetime until 1800; the work later gained worldwide fame.
The International Diaghilev Festival has been held in Perm since 2003. During this time, it has become one of the largest music forums in Europe. Its goal is to maintain and develop the traditions of the outstanding impresario and promoter of Russian culture Sergei Diaghilev (1872-1929), whose childhood was spent in Perm. The festival program includes world premieres of opera and ballet performances, performances by contemporary dance troupes, art exhibitions and more. Since 2012, the artistic director of the festival has been Teodor Currentzis.