Leonard Slatkin |

Leonard Slatkin

Leonard Slatkin, one of the most sought-after conductors of our time, was born in 1944 into a family of musicians (violinist and cellist), immigrants from Russia. He received his general and musical education at Los Angeles City College, Indiana State University, and the Juilliard School.

Leonard Slatkin’s conducting debut took place in 1966. Two years later, the famous conductor Walter Suskind invited him to the post of assistant conductor in the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, where Slatkin worked until 1977 and, in addition, in 1970 founded the St. Louis Youth orchestra. In 1977-1979. Slatkin was musical consultant to the New Orleans Symphony, and in 1979 he returned to the St. Louis Symphony as artistic director, a position he held until 1996. It was during these years, under the direction of Maestro Slatkin, that the orchestra experienced its highest heyday in its more than 100 years of history. In turn, a number of significant events in Slatkin’s creative biography are associated with this group – in particular, the first digital stereo recording in 1985 of the music of P.I. Tchaikovsky’s ballet “The Nutcracker”.

In the late 1970s – early 1980s. the conductor conducted a series of Beethoven Festivals with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra.

From 1995 to 2008 L. Slatkin was the music director of the Washington National Symphony Orchestra, replacing M. Rostropovich in this post. At the same time, in 2000-2004, he was the chief conductor of the Air Force Symphony Orchestra, in 2001 he became the second non-British conductor in history (after C. Mackeras in 1980) of the final concert of the BBC “Proms” (festival “Promenade Concerts” ). Since 2004 he has been Principal Guest Conductor of the Los Angeles Symphony Orchestra and since 2005 of the London Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. In 2006, he was Musical Consultant for the Nashville Symphony. Since 2007 he has been Music Director of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and since December 2008 of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.

In addition, the conductor actively collaborates with the Russian National Orchestra, the Russian-American Youth Orchestra (in 1987 he was one of its founders), the Toronto, Bamberg, Chicago Symphony Orchestras, the English Chamber Orchestra, etc.

The basis of the repertoire of orchestras conducted by L. Slatkin are works by Vivaldi, Bach, Haydn, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, Mahler, Elgar, Bartok, Gershwin, Prokofiev, Shostakovich, American composers of the 2002th century. In XNUMX, he was stage director of Saint-Saens’ Samson et Delilah at the Metropolitan Opera.

The conductor’s numerous recordings include works by Haydn, Liszt, Mussorgsky, Borodin, Rachmaninoff, Respighi, Holst, American composers, Tchaikovsky’s ballets, Puccini’s opera The Girl from the West, and others.

Many outstanding musicians of our time collaborate with L. Slatkin, including pianists A. Volodos, A. Gindin, B. Douglas, Lang Lang, D. Matsuev, E. Nebolsin, M. Pletnev, violinists L. Kavakos, M. Simonyan , S. Chang, G. Shakham, cellist A. Buzlov, singers P. Domingo, S. Leiferkus.

From January 2009, for three months, L. Slatkin hosted the weekly half-hour program “Making Music with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra” on the air of Detroit television. Each of the 13 programs was dedicated to a specific topic (the composition of classical music ensembles, music education, concert programming, musicians and their instruments, etc.), but in general they were designed to acquaint a wide audience with the world of classical music and with the orchestra.

The conductor’s track record includes two Grammy awards: in 2006 for the recording of William Bolcom’s “Songs of Innocence and Experience” (in three categories – “Best Album”, “Best Choral Performance” and “Best Contemporary Composition”) and in 2008 – for the album with a recording of “Made in America” ​​by Joan Tower performed by the Nashville Orchestra.

By decree of the President of the Russian Federation D.A. Medvedev dated October 29, 2008, Leonard Slatkin, among the outstanding cultural figures – citizens of foreign countries, was awarded the Russian Order of Friendship “for his great contribution to the preservation, development and popularization of Russian culture abroad.”

On December 22, 2009, L. Slatkin conducted the Russian National Orchestra in the concert of the season ticket No. 55 of the MGAF “Soloist Denis Matsuev”. The concert was held in the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory as part of the 46th Russian Winter Arts Festival. The program includes Concertos No. 1 and No. 2 for piano and orchestra by D. Shostakovich and Symphony No. 2 by S. Rachmaninov.

Source: Moscow Philharmonic website