Inlägg 95Irena Bay (Germany) skrev:den 22 juli 2009 kl. 11:15
PART 4
(translated by Irena)

- Who plays violin, he/she must be good at playing guitar, as well.
- That’s right. Both, Igor and Alexander play guitar wonderfully. They often play bardic songs in their house: Gorodnizki, Nikitiny, Berkovski, Visbor. Igor, himself, composes great songs.
- Usually, musicians are wussies, unathletic guys. You really can’t say that about the older and the younger Rybak.
- Igor is a passionate traveller. I remember how I bought him an inflatable boat as a present with my first Army salary. And he travelled all the rivers in Belorussia up and down in it. He tried to engage his son in such travelling. In Norway, they used to hike into the mountains, up to the ice peaks. In summers, they ride their bikes up the serpentine of mountain trails and sail with a sail boat along the fjords. As it is, sports have been risen up to the rang of the Norwegian politics. The Norwegian people are extremely active in sports. Sasha, for instance, had finished training for a fitness instructor. Got his diploma. It is not surprising that he attended “Eurovision” in good physical shape. [Irena: We all are know, ‘cause we watched veeery closely ;)]
- Alexander Rybak grew up in Norway, so he probably prefers smoked moose and herring-cake?
- No, he is nuts about draniki with meat-filling which Whiterussian call “kolduny”. [Natalia: Kolduny means "wizards", and they are pancakes, made from grated potatoes, eggs and wheat flour, and minced meat is added in different ways]
- Did your nephew come for a visit to you to Moscow?
- When Sasha [Irena: I thought his family calls him Sushka…] was 15, he came to Moskow with the exchange program for talented students. I decided to arrange for my nephew an audience with a famous musician - Eduard Gratch, who was discordantly considered as country’s first violin. We arrived in the conservatory, as it was planned, at 1 pm. We waited for the professor until 3. Sasha made me laugh, saying: “In my opinion, this gentleman is everything but a gentleman.” An hour later, my nephew played brilliantly the concert in d-minor by the Finnish composer, Jan Sibelius. Eduard’s verdict: “Such a talented young man. I would like him to be my student.” Maestro did not offer such a chance every day, so you really should grab it. But Natasha and Igor came to the conclusion not to leave the 15 years old boy in Moscow. [Irena: *million Russian girls just screamed: Nooooo!!! He would have been here with us!!!! Damn!! *] He continued studying in Oslo. [Irena: *million Scandinavian girls: oofs! that was close!*]
- I remember that it was freezing cold in Moscow, but Sashka, who grew up in a Northern country, felt great. By that time, he had already seen many countries of the world. But, as he saw Kremlin and the Red Square covered with snow, he said: “There is nothing more beautiful than Moscow.”

PART 5
(translated by Irena]

His parents wanted for Alexander a career as violinist. There was no doubt about the talent of the young man: he performed at concerts, kept winning first prices. But the boy was obsessed as well by Mozart as by Beatles, Sting.
It was his father who opened up the borders of classical music for him: they played violin together in the Norwegian musical by Morten Harket, the frontman of the band „A-ha“. They went [with it] on tour through Europe, America, China. [Natalia: I suppose he is talking about the musical "Some Sunny Night", in which Harket participated as a guest star and Alex played his violin]
Like father, Alexander began to compose his own songs.
- I remember that when I came for a visit to Nessoden, Sasha showed me astonishingly beautiful song „Angel“. He performed all parts himself (piano, violin, vocals) and then combined them into one composition. I know that he participated, later on, in the Norwegain aquivalent to „The Star Factory“ – „Idol“. Afterwards, he snatched away the price of the cultural fond Anders Iachres.
- How did he spend the price money?
- As far as I know, he received 100 000 krones which he used to buy some stocks and a huge flat-screen TV. Knowing that Igor and Natasha had been paying off the credit, they took for the house, for 18 years, I confronted my nephew: „Sasha, did papa and mama have a share in that money?" He replied with the humour typical for him: „Shurik, don't you know that it’s parents who supposed to help their children!“
Sasha was into music as into computer games. He kept dragging me to show what score he had achieved in this or that game.
When he applied to the conservatory, Alexander moved out from the parents' house. He has been renting a small apartment in central Oslo for three years now.
- Being a famous violinist and vocalist, according to the Norwegian tradition, Sasha went travelling as strolling musician for the whole summer last year. He went from house to house. In exchange for a place to sleep and food, he gave village people open air concerts. His parents did not disapproved that: such trips give the chance to see new marvelous corners of the country, but also to study local folklores and to introduce oneself.
- It is said that Alexander must have graduated from the conservatory by now.
- Yes, this year. But all his energy was invested into the „ESC“. He’s planning to defend his diploma by playing a concert in a Opera House. In addition, he will attend some exams afterwards.
- Was it a total surprise that Sasha decided to participate in the „ESC“?
- Everybody was stunned! He took a risk in the same manner as his father did 18 years ago, when he decided to stay in Norway. It was very spontaneously. My nephew send the cd with his songs to the commitee, and was immediately called back, receiving an invitation to the studio. A violin solo elevated beautifully his „fairytale-like song“ which resembled the folkloristic instrumental compositions. In the national round of the ESC in Oslo, Sasha even outran a born Norwegian. He was voted by 700 000 viewers, whereas the pop-singer Tone Damli Aaberge got 120 000 votes. The Norwegians considered Sashka as his won.
- During the ESC performance, Alexander was wearing a plain white shirt, pants and a vest. Does that illustrate an indifference toward fashion?
- He wanted to create an image of a boy from a fairytale [Irena: *And he succeeded! :D Leaving us suffering in fairytale-like day-dreaming*]. However, the Norwegian people prefer cloths which are practical. They don’t have a problem to show up in sport suits or shorts even in the conservatory. But Sasha is through and through a Rybak, a dandy. He likes to wear designer labels. Even his underwear is designer made. [Irena: *aha!!*]
- Alexander sang: „I’m in love with a fairytale , even though it hurts. And I don’t care if I loose my mind, I’m already cursed“ – Is this song autobiographical?
- His first love was Ingrid Berg Mechus. It was 5 years ago. First the girl loved him and he became indifferent, and then the exact same thing happened but in the other way. But, unfortunately, everything in life is temporal: the bad, the good. The feelings disappear, but the memory of happy times, when life seemed to be a fairytale, remained and emerged in a song.
- Does Sasha have a car, a motorbike?
- Suprisingly enough, it is only Natasha in the Rybal family who drives a car. They keep the charmingly old VW in the garage [because] the ferry goes directly from their house to the islands and to Oslo.
- Does Sasha know that he has a half-sister?
- Of course. They travelled together with their father.