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At the beginning of her career, Alexandrina Pendachanska was "the favorite child of the Bulgarian opera stage." Only 17 years old, she performed the aria of Violetta from Verdi’s La Traviata and a year later made her debut at the National Opera House in the same role. Now, Alexandrina Pendachanska is to mark the 25th anniversary of this event with a big anniversary concert in Sofia on December 21 accompanied by the Orchestra of the Sofia Opera and Ballet Theater.
What does she singer recall from her first appearance on the big stage in Sofia - the year before her opera premiere: "I remember this moment very well. I have kept a very strong, bright feeling. It was a storm of emotions out of joy of being on stage. I so much wanted this to happen that I didn’t think much. Maybe I was too young for this. Actually, I was not thinking at all about what I was supposed to sing, I felt like I just pushed a button and it worked. I was 17 years old and for the first time I put shoes with high heels and was dressed in a long strapless evening gown. To be honest, I was thinking about one thing only – to avoid having my dress slip off. I was so afraid that this might happen and at one point I decided that this had already happened, but people around me did not look at me strangely so it meant that everything was fine. So I calmed down and kept singing. What do I see now in the recording of this moment? This child that I see on the stage bears all the marks of youth which is uncompromising and indomitable. And so it should be. Youth needs that confidence to protect from all the fears that inevitably accompany it."
Alexandrina Pendachanska has dozens of roles in her repertoire. Some of them she learnt literally within the space of three days only, others - with many rehearsals and effort. Such as Salome - one of her last stage incarnations in the eponymous opera by Richard Strauss, on which she worked longer. Today, the opera singer lives between Bulgaria and the world. Just a brief look at her artistic program at the end of the year shows she was in November at the Staatsoper in Berlin for premiere performances of Mozart’s La Finta Giardiniera (The Pretend garden girl) in the part of Arminda. Close to Christmas she is to sing to the city of Oviedo, Spain, in the role of Princess Eboli in Verdi’s Don Carlos and she will sing Donna Anna in Mozart’s Don Giovanni in Hamburg. Meanwhile, she managed to come for a day or two in Sofia to see the Bulgarian premiere of “Unveiling Salome”. The film was among the Bulgarian proposals at Cinemania 2013 Film Festival in Sofia. It shows the famous singer in a production of Salome in St. Gallen, Switzerland, that turned into a sensation thanks to her portrayal of the character. Could the experienced artist take a look at herself through the eyes of the average viewer? "It is possible but you need time”, Pendachanska says. “When you live with the role, when it passes through your thoughts and emotions, even when your body speaks, you cannot distance yourself. The premiere of Salome was more than a year and a half ago. Now I manage to look at this character from a distance. Watching the film, I saw many things that I had not noticed before."
Alexandrina Pendachanska’s portrait would be incomplete if we miss the fact that in 1989-1990, when the country's political changes were taking place, she was always part of the rallies, always on the side of democratic forces. Here is her commentary on the endless protests in 2013:
"It turns out that my position and that of my family has not changed in these 24 years. We are the same, fighting for the same values. It's nice talking about integrity and loyalty to principles. The bad thing is that here things have not changed much. I see a way out and I think it is not so far away as we think. I am convinced that in a few years’ time strong personalities will come to the fore, devoted to the noble cause of making the life of Bulgarians better. I think a true politician works for the benefit of everyone, doing everything possible to achieve the best. I am constantly working abroad, my children study abroad, but I have never left the real Bulgaria. I am connected with our country with such strong ties that my separation from it is impossible. And yes, probably I will definitively come back physically at some point when it becomes possible.”
The audio file contains the following performances:
Aria of Violetta from Act 1 of Verdi’s La Traviatta Fragment from Five Malagasy songs (Chansons madécasses) by Maurice Ravel, on the piano Semyon Skigin Aria of Fiordiligi from Mozart’s Cosi Fan Tutte
