Ufa Orchestra Artists Post in Defense of Detained Clarinetist Nazyullin

Colleagues have defended Arthur Nazyullin, the detained and placed under house arrest director of the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of the Republic of Bashkortostan.

On a VKontakte page, colleagues speak of his honesty and talent and do not believe that Nazyullin is involved in the Ministry of Culture case.

«We, the team of the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of the Republic of Bashkortostan (GASO RB), are absolutely confident in the impeccable honesty and dedication of Arthur Iskandarovich to his work. Under his leadership, our orchestra has become the calling card of the republic, reaching heights we could not even dream of before,» says a statement circulated among the artists.

Musicians express bewilderment and outrage at the chosen measure of restraint for him. They believe he cannot leave the country.

«Arthur Iskandarovich is a person who has dedicated his life to the culture of Bashkiria. He has gone on dozens of tours across the country and always returned. He poses no public danger. We believe that such a measure was unnecessary,» noted one of the orchestra«s soloists.

Colleagues emphasize that the financial issues under investigation are related to the organization of the «Romance of Autumn» festival. The event became key in the program for the 450th anniversary of Ufa and gathered over 60,000 spectators. The orchestra«s management, they say, acted within the exceptions provided by law. That is, purchases were made without full competitive procedures due to tight preparation deadlines, and that comprehensive reports were repeatedly provided for all expenses.

Recall that Nazyullin and Saetov are accused of misappropriation of funds. According to the investigation, they, without conducting competitive procedures and at inflated prices, entered into contracts for the provision of services for organizing the classical music festival «Romance of Autumn» and the international book fair «Kitap Bairam». Thus, the damage is estimated at 15 million rubles (approximately $150,000 at current rates).

Previously, we wrote about entrepreneur Gulnara Yurina, who in the industry was considered the queen of state contracts. Recently, in connection with this, the head of the «Bashkortostan» concert hall, Vildan Yarullin, came under investigation.