Italy's Culture Minister against concert by Russian Gergiev

"Art is free and must not be subject to censorship," argued the Minister of Culture. However, there was a risk that a concert with Putin's friend Gergiev would send the "wrong message." "Ukraine is an occupied country," wrote Giuli. The appearance of the Putin-affiliated conductor could turn the musical event "into a mouthpiece for Russian propaganda." Giuli emphasized, however, that the Campania regional government, which organized the concert, was independent in its choice of events.

Navalny's widow puts pressure on

Yulia Navalnaya, widow of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died in 2024, had previously called on Italy to cancel a concert by Gergiev, who has been criticized in the West since Russia's attack on Ukraine and is considered a close confidant of Putin. Gergiev is scheduled to perform at the festival in the castle of Caserta near Naples on July 27.

The 72-year-old Gergiev is scheduled to conduct a local philharmonic orchestra and soloists from the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg, which he directs. In a guest article for the Italian newspaper "La Repubblica" (Tuesday edition), Navalnaya called Gergiev an "accomplice of Putin" and a "cultural ambassador of the Kremlin." Three years after the start of the war in Ukraine, she said it was "unbelievable" that Italy was offering him a platform. She also referred to her husband's sudden death in 2024 in a penal camp in the Russian Arctic.

Gergiev did not comment on allegations

As early as 2022, institutions such as La Scala in Milan, the Munich Philharmonic, and Carnegie Hall in New York had severed all ties with Gergiev due to his proximity to the Kremlin. Vincenzo De Luca, President of the Campania region, which includes Naples and Caserta, defended Gergiev's invitation, arguing that they wanted to "keep channels of communication open even with those who think differently." Israeli conductor Daniel Oren was also invited for the same reason. "We do not ask artists to answer for the political decisions of their governments," De Luca said, according to media reports.

Italy's right-wing government under Giorgia Meloni supports Ukraine and Western sanctions against Russia. Last week, the Navalny Anti-Corruption Foundation officially requested the Italian Interior Ministry to deny Gergiev entry and also appealed to the Ministry of Culture and the management of the Palace of Caserta to cancel the concert. Gergiev was appointed director of the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow in 2023—after being banned from most Western concert venues.