Composer Eduard Artemiev and film director Nikita Mikhalkov have been granted the Dmitry Shostakovich Award “for keeping up the traditions of honest creativity”.

This was announced by the president of the International Charitable Foundation, the founder of the award, and the People's Artist of the USSR, Yuri Bashmet when handing in the award at the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall, Moscow.

"Great Dmitry Shostakovich lived his life honestly, with profound understanding of the tragedy of his time. In works by the remarkable composer, Eduard Artemyev, there is no influence of Dmitry Shostakovich' music, whereas Nikita Mikhalkov does not even compose music, but these two laureates are honest in their creative work, they do not deceive themselves. These people are more than worthy of the Shostakovich Award,"- Yury Bashmet said.

Nikita Mikhalkov has become the first film director ever granted the Shostakovich Award.

"To tell you the truth, I have looked through the list of those who received this award before, and realized that I am a stranger on this list. But I am absolutely convinced that Eduard Artemiev is a brilliant Russian composer, who has lived his whole life with music, and he himself is music. I am very glad that I have been coupled with the name of Eduard Artemiev, "- the chairman of the Cinematographers Union of Russia pointed out.

As for Eduard Artemiev, he emphasized that Shostakovich Award is the biggest event in his life. "For me, Dmitry Shostakovich is a rare phenomenon in the history of art, the embodiment of selfless service to the mission of composer," – he commented.

Creative Tandem
The creative union of Eduard Artemiev and Nikita Mikhalkov debuted with A Calm Day at the End of the War. It was the film director’s graduation work at VGIK, the All Union State Institute of Cinematography, in 1970. After that, they co-created a number of popular films, such as The Cherished Outsider, The Slave of Love, Unfinished Play for the Mechanical Piano, and Burnt by the Sun.

"Soon it will be 50 years of our working together. There was only one film without him - Black Eyes. "We have made all the other films together," Nikita Mikhalkov emphasized.

According to him, the film script titled Chocolate Revolver is being worked on now. Besides, among the upcoming joint projects there is the large-scale musical The Slave of Love, which the Theater of Film Actor will open with upon reconstruction.

Concert in Honor of Award Winners
As tradition goes, Yuri Bashmet together with the winners gave a gala concert at the Tchaikovsky Hall. The program Classics of Cinema included masterpieces of Russian and foreign cinema music performed by the State Symphony Orchestra "New Russia". The second part of the concert was dedicated to the composition by Eduard Artemiev.

The Shostakovich Award
The Shostakovich Award is conferred for large-scale contribution into the world musical culture. Once a year the group of experts makes a list of candidates and Yuri Bashmet takes the final decision. The award is $ 25,000 worth. The greatest performers and cultural figures became the award laureates: conductor Valery Gergiev, violinist Gidon Kremer, composer Victor Tretyakov, opera singer Olga Borodina, president of the Pushkin Fine Arts Museum, Irina Antonova, pianist Yevgeny Kisin, violinist Maxim Vengerov, and others.

The Yuri Bashmet Foundation was established in 1994 to preserve the spiritual and artistic values ​​of the world and national culture, and support talented young musicians.