Alexander F. Sklyar: “Most of all I appreciate silence”

He worked as a diplomat in North Korea, but left a prestigious position for the sake of rock and roll. His group “Va-Bank” is deservedly called a veteran of the intellectual domestic punk rock. And on his solo albums, he sings songs by Vertinsky and Utyosov, Solovyov-Sedoy and Astor Piazzola. Musician, artist and TV presenter Alexander F. Sklyar flips through an album with personal photos and comments on the most important.

Alexander F. Sklyar is 50 years old.

The letter “F” in the stage name is a sign of respect for Father Felix. In 1986, he created the Va-Bank group, which has more than ten albums to its credit. Released seven solo records. In 1994, he founded the youth musical movement “Learn to Swim”, directed against hard drugs and fascism. Now he hosts several TV shows: “Fatal Nights with A.F. Sklyar” on “Culture” and “Another Cinema with A.F. Sklyar” (TV3 channel). Acting in films. The last work is in Igor Lebedev’s film “Closed Spaces” (at the box office from August 14).

“I want to listen to my own life”

“Everything that surrounds us is music. And the sound of my car, and the sound of the wind breaking through the half-open window. And the human voice, and the chirping of a dragonfly. Listening to music is a complex mental and at the same time spiritual process. I don’t want outside music to invade my life, especially against my will. That’s why I value silence the most.”

“Family for me is my own, special world”

“The family is a world largely closed from outside influence. This is your own circle of duties, your own measure of responsibility, your own experiences. My son Peter, wife Lena, parents Irina Viktorovna and Felix Sidorovich are my closest people. Recently I invited my parents to the CDL restaurant and felt that I had never tasted so good. The presence of their own walls, habitable space is simply necessary for me. I can’t create in a strange environment, and I can’t even live at a party for a long time. I never invite strangers to my home. In general, outsiders are not allowed to enter my office. ”

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“I started my musical career later than is customary, and therefore I avoided many of the mistakes of my youth associated with rock and roll: I didn’t get on the needle, I didn’t turn on the “star”, I didn’t splatter myself with tattoos, I didn’t kill my liver, but you never know what more. I became a musician consciously and then I didn’t turn anywhere. Usually, by the age of thirty, real rock musicians have time to give all their best and even leave the stage, sometimes to nowhere. Only a few musicians who have crossed this critical age do not gradually fade away, but become seasoned living legends. Such as David Bowie, Robert Plant, Tom Waits. Naturally, Utyosov and Vertinsky. I myself am not experienced yet, but I would like to become just that.

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