Gergiev invited him to St Petersburg to the Rimsky-Korsakov Festival as
an observer. Noseda, a middle-class son of Milan, arrived in February
1994 with Russia mired in post-communist austerity. “That was a huge
experience. It changed my mind not only towards music but also life,
because I couldn’t find food. I lost 6kg in ten days. That makes a huge
impact on you.” He didn’t speak a word of Russian, and survived on
apples brought from home. But musically it opened a gate.
OC's dear Gianandrea Noseda, today in The Times, talks about dieting for your art, about Russia, about spaghetti & mandolins.