Acclaimed Russian composer and conductor, Anton Lubchenko said Varesh International Film Festival (VIFF) could play a role in fostering the “cultural diplomacy”.

Anton Lubchenko, who is attending in the VIFF currently underway in the northern city of Babol, in Mazandaran Province, stressed the significance of boosting cultural ties between Iran and Russia.

The official composer for Lenfilm (St. Petersburg), the oldest film studio in Russia, said that Russia and Europe are not familiar with the Iranian music.

He said Iran and Russia should expand the musical cooperation via forming a joint venture.

Lubchenko, who is a prizewinner of many international competitions and was given the honorary title of "The Muses of St. Petersburg", also called for holding a joint music festival between Iran and Russia.

He reiterated that the Iranian people know the Russian cinema more that the Russian music.

Although Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky the most popular Russian composer of all time, best known for his ballets Swan Lake and The Nutcracker, is well-known in Iran, other Russian musicians are not popular in Iran.

Referring to his previous visit to Iran, he described the Iranian people as “friendly and kind”.