Saxophonist Butman spoke about the cancellation culture in Ukraine and the USA

Attempts to abolish the legacy of Soviet culture, the demolition and desecration of monuments in Ukraine are the hysteria of the local regime. This opinion was expressed by People's Artist of Russia, saxophonist Igor Butman in the new issue of the Izvestia podcast.

"It's much easier for people to go against culture than to go along with it, than to preserve it. Those who have not created anything will gladly destroy everything. As they used to say: "In impotent anger." Culture is not defenseless, it is immortal, but it can be offended. You can try to burn the manuscript, but it doesn't burn," the musician is sure.

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In his opinion, when the conflict ends, the culture of cancellation will come to naught, primarily due to the great popular love for representatives of Soviet art.

"How can you pour paint over a monument to Leonid Utesov, who created the Russian stage? This is the soul of the Soviet Union, you can't imagine how much it was loved. Utesov, his art, has nothing to do with the conflict. Whole generations have lived with his music and still sing his songs. It is impossible to abolish culture," says the podcast guest.

The saxophonist himself has been the target of protests several times. So, in 2014, a group of pro-Ukrainian protesters demanded that the musician's concert in the United States be canceled due to the fact that he performed at a festival in Crimea.

"It was a funny case when there were protesters: I played with American musicians, it was the Blue Note club, famous. I came out during the break, an African-American woman came up to me and said, "I've never seen a person being protested against. Can I take a picture with you?" said Butman.

In 2021, a similar protest at the club failed: due to bad weather, the protesters had to disperse, the artist recalled. According to him, such demonstrations do not affect the quality of the performance, but they do affect the mood.

"During the concert, you don't have to think about anything at all, but to be honest, it's a bit insulting. You're trying to make people happy, you have a peaceful kind of activity," the artist emphasized.

Earlier, Italian political scientist Lorenzo Pacini commented on the cancellation of the performance of Russian singer Ildar Abdrazakov in the production of the opera "Don Juan" in Italy, calling this decision conscious Russophobia.