On November 9-10, the 12th "Russian Song over the Danube" festival successfully took place in Ružomberok, gathering both lovers of Russian music and professional musicians. The age range of participants varied from the youngest (Luna Aurora Žolnaj, age 5) to seasoned musicians. This year, the festival welcomed guests from Austria, Spain, Hungary, Poland, Belarus, and Russia. The performers and audience were equally diverse: Slovaks, Russians, Belarusians, Poles, Ukrainians, Kazakhs, and Bashkirs—who all came together as one family during these days. Not all Slovaks understood Russian, but the language of music and the power of Russian songs united everyone, making them breathe in rhythm with familiar melodies, grasp the meaning, and share emotions.
Natalia Yadryshnikova, Vice-President of the European Fund for Slavic Literature and Culture, attended the festival as an honorary guest and visited festival events. At the award ceremony for the winners of the preliminary round, she highlighted the special contributions of the festival’s organizers. High praise was given to the jury members—strict judges who provided valuable insights to young and non-professional performers, enriching their experience through workshops and performance analyses.
Commemorative gifts (the book by I. I. Bondarenko and D. V. Klimov "Biography of a Country: One Hundred Years of Russian History, 1917-2018") were presented to: director Maria Vladimirova, co-organizer Marina Galayiova, jury members Ivan Zelenin, Valentina Zelenina, Evgenius Malinovsky, and young festival hosts Ekaterina Panyushenko and Egor Arefyev. Young participants and children were especially delighted with a large gift of Russian sweets from the European Fund!