The competition was to be held in the museum this weekend, but the leadership of the institution, having learned about the connections of the organizers of the festival with people who support Putin, refused to provide them with their premises.
In a conversation with reporters, the director of the ASA MARNELL museum admitted that, providing these people with a museum, did not conduct a “fairly high -quality investigation” to find out who they are actually.
Russian trace
SVT emphasizes that, despite the name, the Stockholm International Music Competition (SIMC) for children and youth in the field of classical music originates from the All-Russian Musical Competition of Savshinsky in Russian St. Petersburg. At the same time, the same people are engaged in the organization of these competitions, and the entrance fee is listed directly to the Russian operator.
In addition, all 14 members of the jury are employees of Russian state institutions who publicly support the war of the Russian Federation against Ukraine. The TV channel found that the partner of both competitions indicates the friendly St. Petersburg University named after Herzen. It is emphasized that the university supports the war and sends humanitarian aid to the Russian front.
The editors noted that in 2022 the Sweden government “gave a clear instruction to the Swedish cultural institutions not to cooperate with Russian figures.” Commenting on this, Marnell assured that she did not know anything about the connections of the organizers of the competition with Russia and Putin. At the same time, despite the government’s order, SIMC has been held in the Historical Museum for many years.
Upon learning of the ties of the competition with Russia, the head of the museum assured that they stop cooperation with the festival, “since this contradicts the policy of the authorities.”
In addition to the museum, several SIMC contests are also held at the NACKA municipal music school. Her operating manager Katarina Gruner Kronkvist also stated that she did not know anything about the Russian ties of the organizers. But, even having learned the truth, she did not cancel the planned events.
The co-founder of the SIMC contest, Russian pianist Galina Erngren, rejected any connection with Russia, saying that “they are just engaged in music.”
What is actually hiding behind SIMC
SVT journalists found that the so -called Swedish music competition, which calls itself international, has a number of obvious relations with Russia, including state cultural and educational institutions that openly support the war in Ukraine. The founder of the competition is also registered in Russia.
During the investigation, it was found that in 2009, two Russian musicians founded the Savshinsky International Competition in St. Petersburg, which is held annually. A year later, one of the founders of this competition – Dmitry Mikhailov -, together with Erngren and the Russian violinist, Anna Sundin organized a competition in Stockholm, which is still held under the guise of international.
Mikhailov himself was registered in St. Petersburg as an individual entrepreneur, and in information about the competition to participants from the Russian Federation who cannot use bank cards due to SWIFT suspension, it is proposed to pay an entrance fee in the Russian Sberbank.
In order to hide the Russian origin of the competition, the official rules indicate that the jury members represent “many countries”, but there are no references to the Russian Federation, although 18 out of 47 judges are of Russian origin and work in state cultural or education institutions that openly support the Russian Federation’s invasion.
It was also established that several jury members work at Herzen University in St. Petersburg, which is headed by a certain Sergey Tarasov. In March 2022, he signed the appeal of the Association of Directors in support of President Putin and the occupation Russian army. In addition, this university also sends humanitarian aid to the front, including vehicles.
Some of the-Russian judges have been working at the Mariinsky Theater, which since the spring of 2023 provides free tickets to Russian occupiers.
