Taking a tour around Moscow’s freshly-renovated Theatre of Nations, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, known for his keen interest in music, could not resist the temptation to check out the venue’s brand new acoustic system for himself.
Stepping onto the stage, the PM was so captivated by the beautiful white grand piano that he immediately sat down at the instrument and started playing his favorite tune – an old Soviet number, From What the Homeland Starts.A quartet of young musicians from the theater joined in the impromptu performance, bringing in the sounds of Russia’s national instruments. Putin made his piano debut in December 2010 at a charity fundraiser dedicated to fighting children’s cancer. The PM played the beginning of Blueberry Hill, then took the mic and sang it in English himself.Earlier Putin sang with the exposed Russian agents extradited from the US last summer. By chance, the song chosen was also From What the Homeland Starts.