Esa-Pekka Salonen on the 2025 Salzburg Easter Festival 

Shostakovich also changed the text, Esa-Pekka, in subtle ways. I seriously doubt anyone but a Russian-speaker who suffered under communism would care about the details, but it's факт на лицо noticable how Shostakovich altered the libretto to make it more "contemporary," and I mean that sincerely because the Russian language also evolves. But you cared, Esa-Pekka, and that means a lot to those Russian speakers living today who are being destroyed between their past and their future. Your choice to replace Shostakovich's rather awful, bombastic ending - while using his libretto - is one of the best professional choices you could've, quite possibly ever, made. You're entirely correct that Мусоргский was a genius who accurately predicted the sad future of the Russian Empire while disguising it as a history. Se viimeinen osa Khovanshchinasta - kun Moskova polttaa ja kaikki kehittävät kuolleeksi, oli yks parhaista intiimi-kokemusta mun elämästä konserttisaleissa. You're the most courageous musicians alive today, Esa-Pekka, and I cannot but thank you for your honesty in this all-too-often duplicitous work. Also,.the snare was way too damned loud and drowned out the tenor in the end of that third part. I _think_ his annunciation was good, but I couldn't even hear it because... it's a snare!