Virtuosos of Moscow

In 1979, the outstanding violin virtuoso violinist Vladimir Spivakov united the best musicians of the Russian capital in the chamber orchestra Moscow Virtuosi. The principles of the legendary partnership of musicians remain inviolable today. The Star Ensemble of Soloists and Concert Masters of the Best Moscow Orchestras, which included members of the renowned Borodin Quartet Mikhail Kopelman, Andrei Abramenkov, Dmitry Shebalin and Valentin Berlinsky, handed over the baton to new generations of talented musicians, winners and laureates of international and national competitions. Not only professionalism and skill, but also human qualities and a high ethics of relations have always been and remain in the first place.

Today musicians do not have undeveloped areas of the world’s cultural space. The orchestra’s concerts are triumphant in European countries, the USA, Canada, Mexico, South America, Israel, China, Korea, Japan, Turkey and others. The musicians perform not only in the best, most famous halls (Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Musikverein in Vienna, Royal Festival Hall and Royal Albert Hall in London, Pleyel in Paris, Carnegie Hall and Avery Fisher Hall in New York, Suntory Hall in Tokyo, etc.), but also in ordinary concert halls of small towns. The geography of Moscow Virtuosi tours also includes all regions of Russia and the post-Soviet space. Traveling around Russia is invaluable, and meetings with a wonderful audience are unique. 

The orchestra has been performed by such outstanding musicians as Mstislav Rostropovich, Elena Obraztsova, Yehudi Menuhin, Vladimir Krainev, Saulus Sondeckis and Jesse Norman, Yuri Bashmet, Maxim Vengerov, Hibla Gerzmava, Evgeny Kisin, Misha Maisky, Denis Matsuev, Shlomo Mints, Mikhail Pletnev, Julian Rachlin, Giora Feydman, Michel Legrand, Pinchas Zuckerman. Excellent contemporary musicians Christian Zacharias, Vadim Repin, Peter Gut, Andres Mustonen, Dmitry Sitkovetsky, Vladimir Feltsman and others became conductors. Young talents make their debut and perform with the orchestra, some of them – violinist Daniel Lozakovich from Sweden, Israeli cellist Daniel Akta, Russian pianist Alexander Malofeev – have today become real stars on the stage. The concert programme entitled Moscow Virtuosi. Today and Tomorrow, where the soloists are talented scholars of the Vladimir Spivakov International Charitable Foundation, laureates of international competitions. 

In every performance, the Moscow Virtuosi succeeds in the main thing: to emotionally excite and intellectually entice anyone, even unprepared people, to give them the joy of communicating with musical masterpieces, to awaken in them a desire to come to the concert once again. Moscow Virtuosi treats traditions with care. The orchestra’s extensive repertoire includes music from various styles and eras, from Baroque to works by Dmitry Shostakovich, Sergei Prokofiev, Bela Bartók, Astor Piazzolla, Krzysztof Penderecki, Rodion Shchedrin, Alfred Schnittke, Sofia Gubaidulina, Arvo Pärt and Giya Kancheli. 

The orchestra continues its hard but joyful creative work, maintaining the highest performing level and the right to the ambitious title Moscow Virtuosi. Here every musician is a bright personality, and together they form a world-class ensemble. What distinguishes him from many other chamber orchestras is a truly high European culture of ensemble performance, attention to the smallest details and nuances, careful, informal, active creative position in relation to the author’s idea, bright artistry, love and respect for the audience who came to the concert. 

The outstanding violinist and conductor Vladimir Spivakov has been the permanent artistic director and chief conductor of the Moscow Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra since its creation. It is thanks to Maestro Spivakov, his many years of painstaking work with the orchestra that Moscow Virtuosi are among the best chamber orchestras in the world, with a constant and grateful audience everywhere, recognition and the highest reputation that has been won over years of hard work and creativity. Since 2003, the Orchestra’s permanent rehearsal base has been the Moscow International House of Music.

Vladimir Spivakov, an outstanding violinist and conductor, has brightly realized his multi-faceted talent in the music art and in various fields of social life. As violinist, Vladimir Spivakov had passed the brilliant school of Yuri Yankelevich, a famous professor of the Moscow Conservatory. Not less was the impact of his second teacher and idol—David Oistrakh, one of the greatest violinists of the 20th century.

While still very young, Vladimir Spivakov was awarded high prizes at several important international contests, such as the Marguerite Long—Jacques Thibaud Competition in Paris (1965), the Paganini Competition in Genoa (1967), the Montreal International Competition (1969) and the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow (1970).

In 1975 following his triumphal recitals in the USA, Vladimir Spivakov started his brilliant international career. He performed as soloist with the most important symphonic orchestras in the world, including philharmonic orchestras of Moscow, Leningrad, Berlin, Vienna, London and New-York, symphonic orchestras of Paris, Chicago, Philadelphia, Pittsburg and Cleveland under the baton of the most eminent conductors of the 20th century, such as E.Mravinsky, E.Svetlanov, K.Kondrashin, Y.Temirkanov, M.Rostropovich, L.Bernstein, S.Ozawa, L.Maazel, C.M.Giulini, R.Muti and C.Abbado. Critics of the leading musical countries unanimously appreciate Spivakov’s deep insight into composers’ intentions, the richness, beauty and volume of his tone, his fine phrasing and love for nuance, the emotional impact onto the audience, his refined artistry and intelligence.

Until 1997 Vladimir Spivakov had played a violin of Francesco Gobetti, a present from Professor Yankelevich. Since 1997 he plays a Stradivari which was given to him for life ownership by his admirers.

In 1979 Vladimir Spivakov together with some of his colleagues who shared his flavour for chamber music formed a new chamber orchestra named “Moscow Virtuosi” and has been its artistic director, conductor and soloist ever since. He studied conducting with Professor Izrail Gusman in Russia as well as with great Leonard Bernstein and Lorin Maazel in the USA Leonard Bernstein presented him with his own conducting stick as the sign of his sympathy and belief into his conducting future. Vladimir Spivakov never parts with the precious gift.

As chamber and symphony orchestra conductor, Vladimir Spivakov has appeared in the world's most important concert venues and conducted European and American orchestras, such as symphony orchestras of London, Chicago, Philadelphia, Cleveland and Budapest, La Scala Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestra of the Academia “Santa Cecilia”, the Cologne Philharmonic Orchestra, the French Radio Orchestra and best Russian orchestras.

V.Spivakov has recorded extensively both as soloist and conductor, and his over 40 compact discs reflect different music styles and periods from European baroque music to the works of the 20th century’s composers: Prokofiev, Shostakovich, Penderecki, Schnittke, Pyart, Kancheli, Shchedrin and Gubaydulina, mostly recorded with the BMG Classics.

V.Spivakov was the founder of the International Colmar Music Festival (France) in 1989, and has been its Artistic Director ever since. Many prominent musical groups and collectives have appeared at the Festival during the 16 years of its existence, a considerable part of them being the best Russian orchestras and choruses as well as great world-known artists such as Mstislav Rostropovich, Yehudi Menuhin, Evgeny Svetlanov, Krzysztof Penderecki, Jose van Dam, Jessye Norman, Robert Hall, Thomas Quasthoff, Kristian Zimmermann, Michel Plasson, Evgeny Kissin, Vadim Repin, Nikolay Lugansky, Vladimir Kraynev, Sergey Leiferkus.

V.Spivakov has taken part as a jury member in many well-known international competitions since 1989 (e.g., in Paris, Genoa, London, Montreal); he is President of the Sarasate Violin Contest in Spain. In 2002 he presided over the Jury of the Tchaikovsky International Violin Competition in Moscow. V.Spivakov followed Nathan Milstein in leading the very prestigious annual violin master classes in Zurich in 1994.

For many years V.Spivakov has been involved in humanitarian and charity activities. Together with the "Moscow Virtuosi" Chamber Orchestra he performed in Armenia soon after the horrible earthquake of 1988 and in Ukraine 3 days after the Chernobyl disaster, gave hundreds of charity concerts throughout the territory of the former Soviet Union.

In 1994 V.Spivakov founded the Vladimir Spivakov International Charity Foundation aimed at humanitarian, artistic and educational targets, such as improving life standards for orphans and disabled children, as well as creating conditions for creative development of young talents, i.e. providing musical instruments, allocating scholarships and grants, attracting the most talented musicians, children and teenagers, to “Moscow Virtuosi” performances and at the Colmar Music Festival, organizing international art exhibitions for young artists, etc. Through the years of its existence the Foundation has furnished tangible assistance to hundreds of children and young talents.

In 1999-2002 Spivakov had been Principal Conductor of the Russian National Orchestra, whereas since 2003 V.Spivakov is Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the National Philharmonic of Russia and President of the Moscow Performing Arts Centre.

V.Spivakov was awarded the honorary title of the People’s Artist of the USSR (1989), the State Prize of the USSR (1989) and the Order of Peoples’ Friendship (1993). The Russian Space Center gave the name of Spivakov to one of small planets on the occasion of his 50th birthday.

In 1996 V.Spivakov was awarded the Order for Merits of Grade III (Ukraine). In 1999 V.Spivakov was decorated with high state awards in several countries such as l’Officier de l’Ordre des Arts et Letters (France), the St. Mesrop Mashtots Order (Armenia), the Order for Services To Fatherland, Grade III (Russia). In 2000 V.Spivakov received l’Ordre de la Legion d’Honneur from the President of France. In 2002 he was elected an Honorary Doctor of the Moscow Lomonosov University, while in May 2005, together Alexander Solzhenitsyn and Leonid Roshal, he was chosen the Russian of the Year in the “Russia Without Borders” nomination.