Latvian-Russian conductor. Born to a conductor father and opera singer mother during the Nazi occupation of Riga, he went on to study with his father and eventually in St. Petersburg with Yevgeny Mravinsky, conductor of the then Leningrad Philharmonic. He began studying with conductor Herbert von Karajan in St. Petersburg in May 1969 when the latter was there on tour with his Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. He was soon invited to participate in and won the Herbert von Karajan Conducting Competition in 1971 and was subsequently invited by him to become his assistant in Berlin but was forbidden to accept by the Soviet authorities. He gained worldwide fame when his set of the Tchaikovsky Symphonies with the Oslo Philharmonic was released on the British Chandos label. He was music director of the Oslo Philharmonic (1979-2000), the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra in the U.S. (1997-2004), the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam (2004-2015) and, until his death, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra in Munich (since 2003). He was one of the few conductors invited more than twice to conduct the famous New Year's Concert in Vienna with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and did so in 2006, 2012 and 2016. He was survived by his second wife, Irina, a daughter, Ilona, by his first wife, and leaves behind a huge recorded legacy of symphonic music, concerto recordings and opera. Of particular note is his set of the Beethoven Symphonies recorded live with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and interspersed with modern compositions meant to supplement the symphonies. The set was highly praised by British music critic Richard Osborne who compared the playing of the orchestra to that of the Berlin Philharmonic under Herbert von Karajan when the latter recorded his famous set of the Beethoven Symphonies in the early 1960s.
Latvian-Russian conductor. Born to a conductor father and opera singer mother during the Nazi occupation of Riga, he went on to study with his father and eventually in St. Petersburg with Yevgeny Mravinsky, conductor of the then Leningrad Philharmonic. He began studying with conductor Herbert von Karajan in St. Petersburg in May 1969 when the latter was there on tour with his Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. He was soon invited to participate in and won the Herbert von Karajan Conducting Competition in 1971 and was subsequently invited by him to become his assistant in Berlin but was forbidden to accept by the Soviet authorities. He gained worldwide fame when his set of the Tchaikovsky Symphonies with the Oslo Philharmonic was released on the British Chandos label. He was music director of the Oslo Philharmonic (1979-2000), the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra in the U.S. (1997-2004), the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam (2004-2015) and, until his death, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra in Munich (since 2003). He was one of the few conductors invited more than twice to conduct the famous New Year's Concert in Vienna with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and did so in 2006, 2012 and 2016. He was survived by his second wife, Irina, a daughter, Ilona, by his first wife, and leaves behind a huge recorded legacy of symphonic music, concerto recordings and opera. Of particular note is his set of the Beethoven Symphonies recorded live with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and interspersed with modern compositions meant to supplement the symphonies. The set was highly praised by British music critic Richard Osborne who compared the playing of the orchestra to that of the Berlin Philharmonic under Herbert von Karajan when the latter recorded his famous set of the Beethoven Symphonies in the early 1960s.
Bio by: Geoffrey D. Decker
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