The fate of Shchedrin and Plisetskaya's piano will be decided in court

The fate of the piano from the Munich apartment of composer Rodion Shchedrin and ballerina Maya Plisetskaya, which was donated to the Russian House in Berlin, will be decided in court, Svetlana Nekrasova, acting director of the cultural center, told the Vesti Information Agency.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadefuhl announced on Tuesday that Germany would close the Russian General Consulate in Bonn and terminate the agreement governing the activities of the Russian House in Berlin. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that as a result of this decision, the offices of the Goethe Institute in Russia would be closed. The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the closure of the consulate general in Bonn as a step toward the destruction of relations between Russia and Germany.

"Now our successors will have to wait for the court's decision, and I hope that this piano will indeed remain in the Russian House (in Berlin - ed.). Or, perhaps, in the Russian House in another country, or even go to Russia," Nekrasova said.

It is expected that the German court will confirm the decision to donate the musical instrument to the Russian House in Berlin by the end of 2026.