Quatro the composition of the group V. Leonid Ovrutsky: biography, personal life, photo. "Y": What is the most important success factor for you

The "KVATRO" group is one of the most promising musical groups of the Russian stage. In the composition: Anton Sergeev, Leonid Ovrutsky, Anton Boglevsky and Denis Vertunov.

The group "QUATRO" was created in 2003 by graduates of the Academy of Choral Art A.V. Sveshnikov. The vocalists of the group have excellent vocal skills and exquisite musical taste; they studied in Italy for several years. The genre in which the young singers work can be called "pop-opera", in their repertoire there are works of a very different stylistic orientation - from classics in modern arrangement and romances to golden hits of Soviet and foreign pop music. "QUATRO" are frequent guests at events of the highest level, they performed on the same stage with Placido Domingo and Dmitry Hvorostovsky.

Nationwide fame for the "Quatro" group came after it became a worthy representative from Russia in the "Five Stars. Intervision" competition, according to the results of which it took first place. And the collective won national recognition in the selection round of Eurovision-2009, entering the top three leaders of the national selection.

Anton Sergeev was born in 1983 in the city of Norilsk. Graduated with honors from the Moscow Academy of Choral Art, majoring in choral conducting and classical vocal (tenor). Anton began to get involved in music in early childhood. Parents noticed their son's outstanding abilities, which later turned out to be perfect pitch. The end of the transitional age at Anton coincided with a passion for ensemble singing. Anton auditioned as a symphony conductor with Vladimir Spivakov and really wanted to be a tenor opera singer.

Leonid Ovrutsky was born in 1982 in the city of Moscow. Graduated with honors from the Moscow Academy of Choral Art, majoring in choral conducting and classical vocal (baritone). Leader of the KVATRO group. Leonid grew up in a musical family, his parents graduated from the conservatory in piano, and Leonid himself received a vocal and conductor's education. Prior to creating the group, he worked as an assistant to stage director Kirill Serebrennikov, sang for several years at the Helikon Opera, trained as a conductor in the Vladimir Spivakov's orchestra, and participated in the Mariinsky Theater production of Faster, Giuseppe and Verdi.

Anton Boglevsky was born in 1983 in the city of Moscow. Graduated with honors from the Moscow Academy of Choral Art, majoring in choral conducting and classical vocal (tenor). He grew up in a family of musicians. Despite the fact that all his adult life he studied exclusively classical music, in ordinary life he listened to everything except the classics. Anton writes songs himself and is the best in the group to feel the rhythm of the music, he has perfect pitch.

Denis Vertunov was born in 1977 in the city of Moscow. Graduated with honors from the Moscow Academy of Choral Art, majoring in choral conducting and classical vocals (bass). Denis is the oldest and most experienced in the group. I managed to take part in five jazz acapel groups, including the vocal group "COOL & JAZZY".

"Ytro": Tell us how it all began. How did you meet and decide to start a band?

Group "Quatro": In 2000 or 2001, we, as part of the choir (the Academy of Choral Art named after A.V. Sveshnikov) were on tour in France, in Colmar, where the festival was held with the participation of Spivakov. We decided to earn extra money to get to the Garou concert. We had no money, we did not want to borrow. The solution to the problem arose by itself: many musicians performed on the streets of the city, and then we decided to try to sing. And just when they started throwing money at us, there were distinct loud bangs behind us. They were our artistic director and Vladimir Teodorovich Spivakov. As a result, we got to the Garou concert, but we were no longer interested in it, since we knew that we were kicked out of the academy for this performance. So, once on the street, we realized what we were going to do. True, we still graduated from the academy, and with honors.

"Y": Was the name "Quatro" born in France too?

"TO": For a long time we did not have a name, moreover, we did not want to be named in any way. For a while we were introduced as the Quartet, but that sounds strange. I couldn't think of anything else. When we went to Italy, there was an almost criminal story - the police took us away.

"Y": For singing in the street?

"TO": Quite right! We were walking around the city, and Anton shouted: "Look! This is the house where Placido Domingo lives! Let's sing to him!" We sang O Sole Mio, but no one came out to us. But a police car arrived and we were taken to the station. I must say that in Italy everyone loves to sing. The head of the section was no exception. With him we also sang O Sole Mio. Throughout our time with the police, we were called "quattro rogazzi" (four young men), and we decided that the word "quattro" was quite suitable for the name of the group.

"Y": How do you yourself determine the musical direction in which you work?

"TO": We call this genre "beautiful music", we also sing arias, opera classics, and perform at balls. In fact, the direction is not at all important - we can work in any genre, up to rap. We just sing any direction in our own way, and then we just have to add the word "classic" to the word "rap". For example, the song "I Love You", which we released recently, is classic pop. The main thing that unites the music we sing is the soul. If an artist is given a huge audience and the opportunity to carry emotion, thought, then we choose sincerity and love. Our creativity is based precisely on this.

Nowadays there is little music that affects a person. There is a background that everyone is used to, that no one likes, but everyone has to listen to it. We strive to avoid this in our work. With our music, we want to transfer people to an era in which there were real feelings and emotions, and not plastic love and naked bodies that everyone was tired of.

"Y": What is the most important success factor for you?

"TO": The main thing is that the artist has a close-knit team, absolute trust, only then will there be success. Therefore, we are grateful to the close people who surround us.

"Y": Is it a big breakthrough for the group to be in the top three of the national selection for Eurovision?

"TO": Yes, and we are very glad that so many people voted for us.

"Y": Did you expect this kind of success? What place among the 16 participants did you expect to take?

"TO": We hoped that we would enter the top five, but entered the top three. It seemed to us that the viewers did not know us very well, because although we have existed for a long time, but not on the big stage. We appeared on the big stage thanks to women, because they wanted to hear us and we think that they were the ones who voted for us in the national selection. Women know very well the value of the music we sing. If men "listened" to us, we would be in the first place. (They smile.)

"Y": Were you satisfied with your performance?

"TO": No, we set the bar much higher, so we didn't really like the way we sang.

"Y": And next year will you participate in the selection to represent our country in the competition?

"TO": I don’t want to guess. But we really love to take part in various competitions, for us it has become a kind of drug, and we cannot get rid of it. Based on this, of course, we can make an assumption that we will participate in the selection, but, we repeat, I would not like to guess.

"Y": Let's go back to the final of the national selection. While the judges were deciding who would represent Russia, you were asked who you see as the finalist. You answered: Anastasia Prikhodko. Why did you like her song so much?

"TO": The song "Mamo" is wonderful. She carries a strong enough emotional charge, she is sensual, there is simplicity in her. This is what catches her in her.

"Y": Tell us about your plans for the near future.

"TO": We will have concerts in Nicaragua, Portugal, Great Britain, Spain. Despite the fact that we do not represent Russia at the Eurovision Song Contest this year, we are starting the Euro tour. We are planning to give our first solo concert in Moscow, and a debut album is being prepared for release. We really hope that we will delight our listeners with original songs.

Kvatro- Moscow vocal group, created in 2003 by graduates of the Academy of Choral Art A. V. Sveshnikov.

Compound

• Leonid Igorevich Ovrutsky - baritone tenor (b. 08.08.1982, Moscow) Received a conductor's and vocal education. Prior to the creation of the group, he worked as an assistant to the director Kirill Serebrennikov, for several years he sang at the opera house "Helikon Opera". Trained as a conductor in the Vladimir Spivakov's orchestra, took part in a production of the Mariinsky Theater "Falstaff" by Giuseppe Verdi. He was awarded in the nominations "Student Debut on the Professional Stage" and "Best Role in Musical Theater. Vocals "at the Moscow Debuts festival (2001-2003 season).

• Anton Vladimirovich Sergeev - tenor (b. 02.11.1983, Norilsk) Earlier auditioned as a symphony conductor with Vladimir Spivakov.

• Anton Nikolaevich Boglevsky - tenor (b. 08.10.1983, Moscow) Conducted the chorus while studying at the Academy of Choral Art.

• Denis Ivanovich Vertunov - baritone (b. 07/05/1977, Moscow) Before the creation of the group, he took part in five jazz acapel groups ".

Group history

The collective was created in 2003. All members of the group - Anton Sergeev, Anton Boglevsky, Leonid Ovrutsky and Denis Vertunov - graduated with honors from the Academy of Choral Art named after V.I. A.V. Sveshnikova, studied singing in Italy for several years and now continue to study at the postgraduate course of the Institute of Contemporary Art. They have established themselves as a group singing exclusively live. The vocal capabilities of the band members allow them to perform works of various styles - from classics in modern processing to jazz and soul. Often in the repertoire of "KVATRO" there are Russian and Soviet, Italian songs, songs from films, as well as remakes of world hits. In general, the genre in which the artists work can be called "pop-opera" - pop-style arrangements are harmoniously combined with vocals and accompaniment of a symphony orchestra. Leonid Ovrutsky, one of the four musicians, writes his own compositions for the group.

The collective did not immediately hit the stage. For some time, young people sang in the church choir of the Sretensky Monastery, traveled a lot around the world with the mission of uniting the Catholic and Orthodox churches, performed at such major concert venues as the State Kremlin Palace, the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, KZ im. PI Tchaikovsky, BZ Conservatory named after PI Tchaikovsky, Moscow International House of Music, State Concert Hall "Russia", Big Concert Hall "Oktyabrsky", Mikhailovsky Theater, Concert Hall "Festival", Lincoln Center (New York). And after a meeting with the representative of the Directorate of the First Channel, Yuri Aksyuta, the road to show business opened in front of the group.

On April 23, 2008 in Moscow, in the Hall of Church Councils of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, a solemn ceremony of presenting the National Awards was held, established by the International Academy of Social Sciences and the International Academy of Patronage under the general motto "Creating in the name of Great Russia ...", and all four soloists became holders of the highest public awards in the "Flaming Heart" nomination.

"KVATRO" performs at the leading concert venues in Moscow and other Russian cities. And the first experience of the group's work on the Russian professional stage was participation in the television competition "The Secret of Success", where they received the support of Valery Meladze. Since then, the group has participated in many well-known competitions and festivals. Among them are "Slavyansky Bazar", "STS Lights a Superstar", "New Wave". KVATRO is also the winner of the 2008 ZD Awards in the Breakthrough of the Year category. But their main achievement is winning the Five Stars. Intervision ”, where a competent jury awarded the team the first prize, after which the soloists of the group received an offer to become the first artists produced by the new national label RussiaRecords, headed by Elena Kiper. She also became the director of the debut video for the song "I Love You", which was filmed in Moscow on January 19, 2009.

The collective won national recognition in the qualifying round of Eurovision-2009, entering the top three leaders in the national selection and gaining 12% of the votes according to the results of the vote of the viewers.

Young singers are frequent guests at events of the highest level; they performed on the same stage with Placido Domingo, Dmitry Hvorostovsky, Alessandro Safina. The group enjoys particular popularity among the country's business elite and participates in presidential and governor's balls.

Currently, the team is working on the recording of the first album, and it is also planned to hold the first solo concert.

Photo from the officer. VK page

Anton Sergeev: The four of us graduated from the Sveshnikov School of Music, class of choral conducting and vocal. Now it has been renamed the Popov Academy. Most of the graduates are choral conductors, there are several singers, but they work in the operatic genre. We - this is the first time that someone began to engage in pop music. This direction is close to us, but this is not a pure stage, it is "weighed down" by the baggage of the classics. (Laughs.)

How do you describe the style in which you sing?

A. S .: It's hard to say. They say that a person with education can do anything. We do not drive ourselves into frames - we sing both opera and pop music, we can even record something clubbing sometimes. I like to give classic arias a modern twist. We prefer not to drive ourselves into a certain framework.

Leonid Ostrutsky: I sang at the Helikon-Opera at the age of 19 and quickly realized that it was not mine. At the same time, I was engaged in conducting, and it was closer and more interesting to me. And in my opinion, the theater is in a depressing state. I understood that I could not in any way influence the situation when the theater soloists receive for their work as much as the cleaning lady in the office. And that's the pay for 15 years of hard work?

A. S .: We are less serious people compared to opera performers. Our performances are accompanied by jokes.

L.O .: We remain children and continue to play as in childhood.

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How do you differ from a classical ensemble, such as the Turetsky Choir?

L. O .: I have experience of cooperation with the Turetsky Choir. The main difference is that the choir has a leader and no personalities, the choir is an instrument. In our ensemble you see four people, and everyone contributes, creates something. The chorus is the result of the leader's work. We sometimes perform a repertoire similar to the Choir - famous arias, popular Soviet hits, but we are from a different generation, and we see them differently. This is neither good nor bad, it's just different - some people like Turetsky's Choir, and some like Kvatro.

Are there groups abroad that are similar to you?

A. S .: It seems to me that the closest analogue is the English quartet El VIVO, but we are not 100% alike. Their style, so to speak, is more "brutal" - they are happy to demonstrate their voices. Their show is built on the beauty of the arrangement, the voices, and we take it with emotions.

Do you perform your own songs?

A. S .: Leonid writes music. Just recently, for the anniversary of Vladimir Dobronravov, Leonid wrote music to his poems, and we will gladly perform it. Dobronravov really liked it - he only asked to change the name from "I pray for you!" to "You are mine."

There are four of you - is there a leader in the team?

A. S .: We did not plan anything on purpose, everything happened by accident. In a team of four, it is difficult to distribute responsibilities. Basically, Leonid and I organize everything - we are active figures, and the guys trust us.

Would you like to participate in Eurovision next time?

A.S .: During the qualifying round, we took third place. At that time we were in a difficult situation - we worked with the former producer and performed what we said. But it turned out that a few days before the show we still didn't have a song - we had to improvise.

L.O .: I composed a song. It is clear that venerable composers could have done something better. It is a pity that we had to work in a hurry, we were on the nerves. We didn’t do what we could have done one hundred percent, but nevertheless we got a lot of audience support and received good reviews. Participation in a competition is always an incentive for development. Eurovision is a special competition. If we had a Eurovision song, we would love to go.

What kind of music do you yourself like to listen to?

L.O .: A lot of composers have been “crammed” into us since childhood, and later I fell in love and understood music. I think the main thing is the mood. If I am in high spirits - I can listen to Stevie Wonder's positive sunny music, and think about what worries - I will stage Brahms' Fourth Symphony. After all, the range of musical genres allows you to reflect all the feelings.

It's like a huge amount of colors - the larger your palette, the richer the image. I could never say: my favorite band is such and such.

A. S .: But in the car I usually monitor the market - I listen to Russian Radio, Europa Plus - this is work.

L.O .: By the way, for many, music is a background. We believe that we are listening to music when we hear a melody out of the corner of our ears while cleaning or cooking. It is difficult to convince the modern average person to sit down and listen to a four-minute composition - let alone a classical concert.

Who is your audience?

A. S .: These people are from thirty to sixty. This is also due to the repertoire - we perform a lot of old hits. But the presentation of the material is closer to older people. We are often told: my mother adores you. It's nice.

L.O .: We also perform modern songs, and we choose the old ones because people put more serious emotions into them.

Why are there four of you in the team?

AS: This is the merit of our teacher at the academy. In ensemble singing classes, we gathered as an a capella collective - tenor, high tenor, baritone and bass. The quartet is, one might say, the gold standard for a male ensemble.

The KVATRO group was organized in 2003 by graduates of the Academy of Choral Art named after A. V. Sveshnikova. The group included L. Ovruchkiy, A. Sergeev, A. Boglevsky and D. Vertunov. According to the official website of the agent of the KVATRO group, the performers perform exclusively live. Their excellent vocal abilities allow performing compositions of various orientations - from classical to modern styles. Their repertoire often includes Italian, Russian songs, works from films, as well as remakes of songs that were world hits at one time or another. If, in general, we characterize the genre in which the collective works, then it will most likely be a pop-opera direction. In addition to world hits, the group also performs songs of its own writing. They are written by Leonid Ovrutsky, who is part of KVATRO.
The musicians began to sing in the church choir, went on a mission to unite the Orthodox and Catholic churches. Thanks to this work, the musicians became the recipients of the highest award in the Flaming Heart nomination. They came to the stage only later and already now perform at the best Moscow venues. Their first job on stage was on the Secret of Success show. Then there were STS lights a superstar, New Wave, Slavianski Bazaar. QUATRO was the breakthrough of the year. But the group gained even more fame after participating in the selection for the Eurovision Song Contest, in 2009.
Now they are actively touring Russia and are favorite guests of various events and you can always invite KVATRO to an event, to a holiday. They are especially loved at balls, including provincial and even presidential ones. Currently, the KVATRO group is working on their first album and a solo concert.