Teodor Currentzis |

Teodor Currentzis

Teodor Currentzis is one of the most famous and unique young conductors of our time. Concerts and opera performances with his participation always become unforgettable events. Theodor Currentzis was born in 1972 in Athens. He graduated from the Greek Conservatory: Faculty of Theory (1987) and Faculty of String Instruments (1989), also studied vocals at the Greek Conservatory and the “Academy of Athens”, attended master classes. He began studying conducting in 1987 and three years later he headed the Musica Aeterna Ensemble. Since 1991 he has been Principal Conductor of the Summer International Festival in Greece.

From 1994 to 1999 he studied with the legendary professor I.A. Musin at the St. Petersburg State Conservatory. He was an assistant to Y. Temirkanov in the Honored Collective of Russia Academic Symphony Orchestra of the St. Petersburg Philharmonic.

In addition to this team, he collaborated with the Academic Symphony Orchestra of the St. Petersburg Philharmonic, the Mariinsky Theater Orchestra, the Russian National Orchestra (in particular, in February-March 2008 he made a big tour of the USA with the RNO), the Grand Symphony Orchestra. P.I. Tchaikovsky, the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia named after. E.F. Svetlanova, the New Russia State Symphony Orchestra, the Moscow Virtuosos State Chamber Orchestra, the Musica Viva Moscow Chamber Orchestra, the Greek National, Sofia and Cleveland Festival Orchestras. Since 2003 he has been a permanent guest conductor of the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Russia.

Creative cooperation connects the conductor with the Moscow theater “Helikon-Opera”. In the autumn of 2001, the theater hosted the premiere of G. Verdi’s opera Falstaff, in which Teodor Currentzis acted as a stage director. Also, Currentzis repeatedly conducted another opera by Verdi, Aida, at the Helikon-Opera.

Teodor Currentzis has performed at many international music festivals in Moscow, Colmar, Bangkok, Carton, London, Ludwigsburg, Miami. Conductor-producer of the world premiere of the Russian opera performance “The Blind Swallow” by A. Shchetinsky (libretto by A. Parin) in Lokkum (Germany) as part of a music festival (2002).

In 2003, he acted as conductor-producer of the ballet “The Fairy’s Kiss” by I. Stravinsky at the Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theater (choreographer A. Sigalova), in March 2004 – the opera “Aida” by G. Verdi (stage director D. Chernyakov), which was awarded several awards at the Golden Mask (2005), including in the nomination “conductor-producer”.

Since May 2004, T. Currentzis has been the chief conductor of the Novosibirsk State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre. In the same year, on the basis of the theater, he created the Chamber Orchestra Musica Aeterna Ensemble and the Chamber Choir New Siberian Singers, specializing in the field of historical performance. Over the 5 years of their existence, these groups have become popular not only in Russia, but also abroad.

At the end of the 2005-2006 season, according to leading critics, the conductor was named “Person of the Year”.

At the beginning of the 2006-2007 season, Teodor Currentzis again acted as a conductor-producer of the performances of the Novosibirsk State Opera and Ballet Theater – “The Wedding of Figaro” (stage director T. Gyurbach) and “Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District” (stage director G. Baranovsky) .

The conductor is widely known as a specialist in vocal and operatic style. Concert performances of the operas Dido and Aeneas by H. Purcell, Orpheus and Eurydice by K.V. , “Cinderella” by G. Rossini, “The Soul of a Philosopher, or Orpheus and Eurydice” by J. Haydn. As part of the project “Offering to Svyatoslav Richter” on March 20, 2007, on the birthday of the great pianist, in the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory, Teodor Currentzis presented to the public “Requiem” by G. Verdi, changing the usual interpretation and bringing the composition of the instruments closer to what sounded at the premiere in 1874.

In addition to the interest in the music of baroque and classic composers, successful experiences in the field of authentic performance, Teodor Currentzis pays great attention to the music of our days in his work. Over the past few years, the conductor has performed more than 20 world premieres of works by Russian and foreign authors. Since the autumn of 2006, among the well-known young cultural figures, he has been a co-organizer of the festival of contemporary art “Territory”.

In the 2007-2008 season, the Moscow Philharmonic presented a personal subscription “Teodor Currentzis Conducts”, whose concerts were a phenomenal success.

Teodor Currentzis twice became the winner of the Golden Mask National Theater Award: “For the vivid embodiment of the score by S.S. Prokofiev” (ballet “Cinderella”, 2007) and “For impressive achievements in the field of musical authenticity” (opera “The Marriage of Figaro” by V. A. Mozart, 2008).

In June 2008 he made his debut at the Paris National Opera (director of G. Verdi’s Don Carlos).

In the fall of 2008, the record company Alpha released a disc with the opera Dido and Aeneas by H. Purcell (Teodor Currentzis, Musica Aeterna Ensemble, New Siberian Singers, Simona Kermes, Dimitris Tilyakos, Deborah York).

In December 2008, he acted as musical director of the production of G. Verdi’s opera Macbeth, a joint project of the Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theater and the Paris National Opera. In April 2009, the premiere was also a huge success in Paris.

By the Decree of the President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev dated October 29, 2008, Teodor Currentzis, among the cultural figures – citizens of foreign states – was awarded the Order of Friendship.

From the 2009-2010 season Teodor Currentzis is a permanent guest conductor of the State Academic Bolshoi Theater of Russia, where he prepared the premiere of A. Berg’s opera Wozzeck (staged by D. Chernyakov). In addition, under the direction of maestro Currentzis, new performances were staged at the Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theatre, concerts in Novosibirsk with the Musica Aeterna Ensemble, in which works by Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev and Shostakovich were performed (soloists A. Melnikov, piano and V. Repin, violin) , concert in Brussels with the Belgian National Orchestra on March 11, 2010 (symphony “Manfred” by Tchaikovsky and Piano Concerto by Grieg, soloist E. Leonskaya) and many others.

Since 2011 – artistic director of the Perm Opera and Ballet Theater named after Tchaikovsky.

Source: Moscow Philharmonic website