From Russia to Love

The great violinist Viktoria Mullova's story is one of striking contrasts and huge challenges. As a young musician she was a bright star in the Soviet musical firmament, but she stunned the world when she escaped the KGB and fled to the West, leaving behind her family, friends and all she knew. And in her flight from Finland, Viktoria also abandoned on her hotel bed the priceless Stradivarius she'd played during her triumph at the International Tchaikovsky Competition. From Russia to Love recounts the journey of a remarkable woman. Armed only with her violin bow and her exceptional talent, Viktoria went on to conquer the West. As her new life unfolded, first in America and then in Europe, Viktoria met fellow exiles Nureyev and Rostropovich, fell in love with conductor Claudio Abbado and learned to throw off the shackles of her Russian training. Granted unparalleled access to her subject, Eva Maria Chapman paints an intimate, truthful and sensitive portrait of a unique artist.