This is just one of the powerful truths shared by Yelena Dudochkin, acclaimed opera singer, entrepreneur, and cultural leader, and last but not least, a beloved jury member of VIRTUOSOS – in her recent Haute Living Executive Interview.
From Wall Street to the world’s great stages, Yelena Dudochkin’s journey is as bold as her call to reinvest in the arts as a pillar of American identity. In this compelling interview, she explores how classical music can engage new generations, why the arts matter in diplomacy and education, and what it will take to revive a thriving creative economy. She also shares the defining moment in Davos that sparked her mission to “save classical music and opera.” A must-read for anyone who believes in the transformative power of the arts.
1. As an acclaimed opera singer and ambassador for the arts, how do you see classical music and opera evolving to resonate with new generations of Americans?
Music, the oldest and most natural form of human communication, serves as our universal language, conveying emotions on a visceral level.
Classical music and opera particularly embody the highest intensity of this language, possessing the potential to unite us and in doing so, foster a powerful sense of community.
The stories they carry are universal and timeless. We need to convey them naturally, with carefully curated updates for the modern world, which means immersive staging and audience engagement – these elements being key to the success of live performances.
This challenge is just as relevant for theater, Broadway, and film today.
But how do we translate the short attention span, dopamine-producing practices of social media to the long form?
To answer this question, I am collaborating with forward-thinking technology innovators and like-minded producers to curate what we believe to be the winning formula. And we are excited to start to share more with the world.
2. What role do the arts play in shaping American identity and diplomacy, and how can cultural investment help strengthen the nation’s global influence?
Music is the universal language that transcends political conflicts and wars, fosters community and extends olive branches in the middle of conflict.
In the 1980s, the United States, with its robust investment in the arts and cultural identity, gifted the world conductors Lenny Bernstein, violinists Isaac Stern and Isaac Perlman, and also attracted the most talented immigrants like Russian-Ukrainian pianist Vladimir Horowitz, and Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff, among many other musical giants who shaped global culture from within the United States.
This era not only garnered international attention, but also attracted more international talent, such as ballet dancer Mikhail Barishnikov and the like.
All this support of music and the arts symbolized a victory for democracy and freedom, indeed which the US offered. The Metropolitan Opera reached its zenith in popularity, and the Three Tenors dominated world music charts, surpassing even the Beatles.
This period ultimately marked the United States as a global cultural powerhouse.
However, the decline in funding for music and arts education has contributed to the decline in both domestic and international standing. Classical music and opera, with their profound ability to develop the brain-mind-body connection and emotional intelligence, have played a crucial role in fostering excellence, and inspiring individuals to strive for success.
In contrast to the United States, nations like China and Korea have embraced western classical music and culture, elevating pianists like Lang Lang to superstardom and thus making excellence, brilliance, and success integral to their national identity. And their societies – cultural, technological and entrepreneurial – have flourished in parallel.
Their efforts were influenced by the success of the West and the leading powers in the 1980s and 1990s, including the United States and Russia who were competing in the cold war with sports and the arts, in-part as a proxy.
To truly lead our nation and humanity, we must commit to investing in arts and culture. The responsibility falls on everyone – Our government should sponsor the arts in-part, but corporations, foundations and donors can also play an important role.
Moreover, music organizations should handle these investments responsibly, running smarter business models that keep the interests and wishes of their audience in mind.
Smart productions that cater to their audience can become more self-sustaining in their operations – but only if done right.
3. You’ve performed on some of the world’s most prestigious stages – Can you speak to a moment in your career that redefined your understanding of the transformative power of the arts?
Every performance on stage, in one way or another, is transformative.
When we perform well, we witness enthusiasm and the gratitude of the audience with a standing ovation. And after a performance, it’s incredibly rewarding to hear people come up and recount stories of remembering their first love, a family member, or being transported back to their childhood.
On the flip side, as musicians, we constantly strive for improvement and evolution, so any performance that doesn’t go as planned serves as a valuable learning opportunity.
But if I had to pick one performance that was transformative to my mission, I have to say it was when I first attended the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos in 2017 as a spouse to a WEF Young Global Leader.
While there, I listened to a session on philanthropy in which a CEO of a major bank announced they no longer sponsored the arts as they perceived them to be a luxury and instead reallocated their dollars to focus on hunger efforts.
While I believe in helping address hunger in the world, their perception of the arts as a “luxury” was deeply troubling to me – clearly many in power with major funds at their disposal have a poor understanding of how essential music is for humanity.
I spoke to one of the organizers of the program and she immediately suggested I do a performance talk first thing the next morning; there was a small slot that became open at 10am and I could have it.
My husband saw me thinking about the opportunity amidst the heavy jet lag I was suffering from, as I was just arriving from the US, had a lack of any musical accompaniment on site and of course it being last minute…he quickly jumped in and said, “she’ll do it!”
The next morning I got up in front of the unsuspecting audience, introduced myself and referenced the philanthropy discussion from the day before in speaking about the essential nature of music and the arts and sang an excerpt of an aria a cappella.
The resounding standing ovation that I received from this audience was exceptionally meaningful and transformative – I knew I needed to take on the mission to save classical music and opera, and it started with this opportunity!
4. The creative economy contributes over $1 trillion annually to the U.S. GDP. Why do you believe the arts are still underfunded and under-appreciated, and how can this be changed?
Taking a quick side step back – many don’t know that before pursuing music full-time, I was deeply immersed in the financial world.
Right after graduating from Columbia University, I stepped into a post-MBA position in Equity Research at Morgan Stanley—one of the most prestigious firms on Wall Street—while there, I was working with the top Institutional Investor-ranked team covering Emerging Markets Strategy.
At Columbia, I studied Political Science and Economics, but my true passion since I was two years old was always music.
While completing my undergraduate degree, I also continued my serious piano competition winning trajectory at Juilliard and additionally studied voice at the Manhattan School of Music.
I wanted to save the world—a conviction that led me through a string of internships, from the NYC Commission for International Business and the United Nations, to the Soros Foundations, to Lehman Brothers. And so, as I was completing my junior year, I landed the Morgan Stanley role, which I couldn’t turn down.
It was an opportunity to make a real impact globally, while still studying voice on the side. After all, I reasoned, “…why wait tables as starting musicians often do when I could build financial models and help solve international economic crises by day”?
But balancing both careers wasn’t easy. I had to keep them largely separate. Likewise, the music world didn’t accept serious performers to show up with a full time job in a tailored suit.
So I found creative ways to juggle it all – I’d pack dance clothes in my corporate gym bag, dash across the street to Broadway Dance Center after work and swap my blazer for leotards to train with other dancers. I squeezed in voice lessons during off-hours and attended masterclasses on weekends.
Soon, I took leave of absence from Morgan Stanley to dive deeper into music—spending two-month stretches in masterclasses with Mirella Freni and later joining the Young Artist Program at the Mariinsky Opera Theater. Suddenly, I was back in jeans, sleeping in a dorm with a roommate, singing my heart out and working hard to perfect my craft.
I felt fully alive—spiritually and emotionally fulfilled. So in due course, I jumped into opera full time when I landed a principal role in my first professional audition with Opera Boston – I used the opportunity as a sign to take the plunge.
Long story short, having worked in the high-stakes corporate world and walked the immigrant path to achieving the “American Dream,” I carry with me a perspective that’s rare in the music world.
I understand both sides of the coin—what it takes to build financial strategy at the highest levels and what it means to risk everything to follow your passion.
Make no mistake – We need a PR campaign for the music and the arts! People view the arts as elite luxury, but in reality, they are truly essential to our emotional and social well-being.
Concerts and productions not only uplift and inspire, they heal and bring people together. The arts are also great for business!
People also need to know that arts provide great financial benefits to neighboring businesses and communities. Tourism, retail, and restaurants are just some of the obvious beneficiaries, the arts bring life to each place and they create joyous atmosphere for it all.
We should think about how many partaking in the creative economy grow up playing an instrument? And where did they get the inspiration to do that? Additionally, it turns out many of the greatest scientists, inventors, and entrepreneurs grew up studying classical music—think Albert Einstein and his violin.
So I ask – What happens if there is no inspiration?
5. In your view, what is the responsibility of public figures and cultural leaders in ensuring that future generations have access to meaningful artistic experiences and education?
Public figures have to provide incentives and facilitate investment in music and the arts. And there is a lot more that the government can do in addition to just giving money.
Making public spaces free and available for arts organizations to create public performances and providing support services would go a long way towards a win-win proposition for local arts organizations and public access.
But we need to get music education back in the schools. It’s so important for our next generations during their formative years.
One of many hats I wear is serving as the Artistic Director of the Chamber Music Foundation of New England, a position I took over right before COVID hit. While many organizations went online with old recordings and Zoom performances, which was useful and also had an overwhelming impact on the streaming music industry worldwide, we decided to take a different approach.
People were feeling isolated, and we quickly recognized the importance of live human connection in music performance. Now more than ever, we all felt the void, and it affected our mental and emotional state.
We decided to offer live performances in an intimate but outdoor setting, as we would have control of the venue and be able to ensure the safety of our audience. The turnout was amazing and much more than our venue could handle, making it standing room only.
We found everyone enjoying the closeness of the vibration of the strings and the passionate exchange of energy of a quartet spilling over to the audience in a powerful wave. Experiencing it closer together, off the grand stages we are used to, was overwhelmingly powerful for the audience – and for us as performers! And all of it brought a much tighter sense of community with people continuing to talk about those concerns even four years later.
The magic that ensued was no accident – chamber music was written for and was meant to be enjoyed in a “salon.”
We started a whole series, now based on this truly authentic chamber music experience, in addition to the main stage series, which we focused on as special events.
Curating authenticity and offering live performances where we can experience the power of music together has immense power to heal and build community. In a world where AI and the digital permeate our lives, creating these experiences is more important than ever.
Cultural leaders also have an opportunity to work together to ensure the future for music and the arts. This year I had the honor of joining the distinguished jury for ‘Virtuosos’, a classical music competition and TV show in its tenth season, based in Hungary, now including 10 European countries airing on 17 TV channels and YouTube, and with combined views on social media reaching some 125 million people.
It was a privilege to join Maestro Plácido Domingo and José Carreras, two surviving members of the legendary “Three Tenors” since the unfortunate passing of Pavarotti; as well as others, including well-known crossover artists HAUSER and Dimash, producer Veronica Bocelli, and filmmaker Mikko Kodisoja – it was a truly amazing team.
Not only did we adjudicate the finale filmed live over many hours in a brand new state-of-the-art film studio, but we took the time to mentor and advise the young talents, helping them grow and develop their voice in music.
A great example of a cultural leader in the best sense is the chairman of the jury, Maestro Domingo, who selflessly dedicates his time and passion for music to elevate young talent. I took tremendous pride in working with some of these young musicians and to see them deliver outstanding performances.
As part of the commitment to Virtuosos, the jury members offer opportunities and a future platform for these young talents to step up and become the performers of tomorrow.
Seeing such vibrant and passionate talent and classical music performances is inspiring for adults and kids alike, including my own! And it gives me confidence that we can deliver on the cultural needs of the future.
I’m today working to expand this competition to include the US and inspire young people in this country and give them a performance platform for the future.
The interview was published on June 27, 2025
Haute Living EXECUTIVE INTERVIEW – Ms. Yelena Dudochkin by
Akshay Kumar