Greetings from Russia

On 22nd February, the Tatarstan State Symphony Orchestra will return to the stage for an invigorating concert featuring works by historical Russian composers and contemporary composer, Alexey Shor. The performance begins with an array of works by a number of acclaimed Tatar composers, starting with Nazib Zhiganov and Fuat Mansurov’s Festival Overture, before moving to Salih Saidashev’s Oriental Ballet, and culminating with the short but evocative work, Nardugan, from one of Tatarstan’s most exciting young composers, Elmir Nizamov. The first half then concludes with Shor’s Phantasms for Violin and Orchestra, a violin concerto in three movements featuring the 2010 Winner of the International Jean Sibelius Violin Competition in Helsinki, Nikita Boriso-Glebsky. The concert closes with Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4, a work in four movements that despite its initially lukewarm reception with both critics and the public, is now regarded as an important and engaging symphony from the famous Russian composer. The concert will be conducted by People's Artist of the Republic of Tatarstan and Winner of the III International Prokofiev Competition, Alexander Sladkovsky, and is organised by CMDI Group and SAMIT Event Group, with the support of the European Foundation for Support of Culture (EUFSC).

Programme:

N. Zhiganov, F. Mansurov

Festive Overture

S. Saidashev

Oriental ballet

E. Nisamov

Nardugan

A. Shor

Phantasms for Violin and Orchestra

-- Intermission --

P. Tchaikovsky

Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36

Alexander Sladkovsky

Alexander Sladkovsky is a Russian conductor, the People’s Artist of Russia, the People's Artist of the Republic of Tatarstan, who graduated from Moscow and Saint Petersburg conservatories. He is a winner of the III International Prokofiev Competition.

In 2001, he conducted in a concert at the Hermitage Theater in honor of the visit of Her Majesty Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands. He assisted Mariss Jansons and Mstislav Rostropovich and from 2006 to 2010 he was a conductor of the New Russia State Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Yuri Bashmet. Since 2010 Alexander Sladkovsky is an Artistic Director and a Chief Conductor of the Tatarstan National Symphony Orchestra in the city of Kazan (Tatarstan, Russia).

The TNSO under the direction of Alexander Sladkovsky is the first Russian regional orchestra recorded by Medici.tv and Mezzo channels. In 2014, the TNSO conducted by Alexander Sladkovsky performed at the La Folle Journée festival in Japan. In 2016, for the first time in the orchestra’s history, it gave concerts during a European tour in the Brucknerhaus (Linz) and in the Golden Hall of Musikverein (Vienna). In December 2018, the TNSO and Maestro Alexander Sladkovsky made the first tour in China, and in 2019, the TNSO conducted by Alexander Sladkovsky performed at the La Folle Journée festival in France.

In 2016 in cooperation with the Melodiya record label several global musical projects were realized: the recording of three symphonies of G. Mahler (Nos. 1, 5, 9) and all symphonies and concertos of D. Shostakovich. In May 2020, the digital release of the “Tchaikovsky-2020” box set took place — a recording of all symphonies and instrumental concerts by P. I. Tchaikovsky on the Sony Classical label. In August 2020, the TNSO under the direction of Alexander Sladkovsky recorded symphonic works by S. Rachmaninoff on the Sony Classical label. March 2021 concert-presentations of the box set «Sergey Rachmaninoff. Symphony Collection» were held in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Kazan. In July 2021, all of L. van Beethoven's symphonies and music of I. Stravinsky's ballets were recorded. The presentation concerts of the box set of I. Stravinsky's recordings will be held in April 2022 in Perm, Moscow, Kazan, St. Petersburg and Sochi.

Recordings of the concerts of the orchestra conducted by Alexander Sladkovsky are regularly broadcasted on radio Orpheus, BBC Radio 3, Kultura TV.

In 2019, Alexander Sladkovsky was awarded the Sergei Rachmaninoff International Award in the nomination “Special Project in the Name of Sergei Rachmaninoff” for special attention to his legacy and organizing the Sergei Rachmaninoff International Festival “White Lilac” in Kazan.

On September 1, 2021, by order of the rector of the N. Zhiganov Kazan State Conservatory artistic director and chief conductor of the TNSO Alexander Sladkovsky was appointed professor of the Department of Opera and Symphony Conducting at the N. Zhiganov Kazan State Conservatory.

The Tatarstan National Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Alexander Sladkovsky is currently the first and only regional orchestra that has been honored to have its own annual subscription in the Moscow State Philharmonic Society.

Nikita Boriso-Glebsky

Violin

Nikita Boriso-Glebsky was born in 1985 in Volgodonsk. He graduated from the Moscow State Conservatory and got the doctoral degree (class of Professor Eduard Grach and Associate Professor Tatiana Berkul), then he was improving his skills under the guidance of Augustin Dumay in Brussels and Anna Chumachenko in Kronberg. In 2018 Nikita Boriso-Glebsky became the Honored Artist of Russia.

In 2007, Nikita Boriso-Glebsky won the II prize and five special prizes in the XIII International Tchaikovsky Competition. Even before the results were announced, “Nesawisimaya Gazeta” awarded Nikita the title of "people's favourite". The victory was followed by an exclusive contract with the Moscow Philharmonic and an eventful tour around Russia. In 2021/22 season, Nikita Boriso-Glebsky is planning to perform with the leading Russian orchestras: the State Orchestra of Russia named after E.F. Svetlanov, Saint-Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, the Russian National Orchestra and conductor Dmitry Matvienko, the Russian National Youth Symphony Orchestra conducted by Alexander Lazarev and the Mariinsky Theatre Symphony Orchestra.

His victory at the Sibelius Competition in Helsinki in 2010 became significant for the violinist. Since then, he has become a welcome guest in Finland: a regular participant of the Turku Music Festival and the Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival. He has performed solo with the Finnish Radio Orchestra conducted by Hannu Lintu in Moscow and St. Petersburg at concerts dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Independence of Finland. The highlight of last season was a performance with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Emilia Hoving, and in 2021/22, the concert with the Lahti Symphony Orchestra in the Great Hall of the St. Petersburg Philharmonic and performances with Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, Kuopio City Orchestra and Kymi Sinfonietta are planned.

In 2010, Nikita became the I prize laurate of the Fritz Kreisler International Competition in Vienna. In July 2021 he performed at Vienna Konzerthaus as part of the "star" Quartet with Nikolai Lugansky, Narek Hakhnazaryan and Maxim Rysanov. Next season, 2022/23, he will become a resident of the Vienna Konzerthaus, presenting a chamber music subscription in a trio with Narek Hakhnazaryan and Georgy Tchaidze. He also performs in Graz and Linz on a regular basis.

The victories at the international competitions in Monaco, Brussels and Montreal opened additional opportunities for Nikita such as invitations to the best concert halls in the world and performances with the leading orchestras. The violinist collaborates with Sakari Oramo, Vasily Sinaisky, Dima Slobodeniouk, Vladimir Fedoseev, Boris Berezovsky, Vadim Repin, Klaus Mäkelä and others. In summer 2022, Nikita is waiting for a large-scale project in the Suntory Hall, Tokyo – a performance of all the string quartets by Ludwig van Beethoven.

He is a participant of festivals in Salzburg, Rheingau; La Folle Journee Festival in Nantes, Tokyo, and Yekaterinburg; "December Evenings of Svyatoslav Richter"; Beethoven Festival in Bonn; "Stars of White Nights" and "Arts Square" festivals in St. Petersburg; Violino il Magico in Italy and many others.

In 2019, Nikita was the first to record the previously unknown concert by Eugène Ysaÿe together with the Liege Philharmonic Orchestra and Jean-Jacques Kantorov. “A Tribute to Ysaÿe” CD, with a participation of Renaud Capuçon, Henri Demarquette, Pavel Kolesnikov, Stéphane Denève, was awarded the Diapason d’Or.

Nikita Boriso-glebsky's repertoire includes music by contemporary authors and composers of the twentieth century. He is the first performer of several compositions by Rodion Shchedrin, Alexander Tchaikovsky and Kuzma Bodrov.

He plays the violin created by the Austrian master Martin Schwalb in 2020 on the model of the Guarneri del Gesù "Ole Bull" violin from 1744.

“Boriso-Glebsky is an astounding instrumentalist, with a prodigious technical armoury and an uncompromising artistic vision”.

— Weekend Special, 2018

Tatarstan National Symphony Orchestra

The Tatarstan National Symphony Orchestra has achieved worldwide acclaim for its sophisticated performances and dynamic programs. The orchestra was the inspiration of Nazib Zhiganov, former Chairman of the Composers Union of Tatarstan and Dean of the Kazan Conservatory. On the initiative of Zhiganov and Tabeev, the first secretary of the Tatar regional committee of the CPSU, conductor Natan Rakhlin was invited to Kazan. After his death in 1979, Renat Salavatov, Sergey Kalagin, Ravil Martynov, Imant Kotsinsh have worked with the orchestra. In 1985 Fuat Mansurov, the People’s Artist of Russia and the Kazakh SSR, was offered to be an artistic director and chief conductor; he has worked with the TNSO for 25 years. In 2010, after the death of Fuat Mansurov, the Honored artist of Russia (People’s Artist of Russia since 2016, People’s Artist of Republic of Tatarstan since 2020) Alexander Sladkovsky, with whom the Tatarstan National Symphony Orchestra opened the 45th concert season, was appointed the new Artistic Director and Chief Conductor.

The orchestra has entered a new phase since Maestro Sladkovsky came. Organized by the TNSO and Alexander Sladkovsky international music festivals such as Rakhlin Seasons, Miras, White Lilac, Kazan Autumn, Concordia, Denis Matsuev Meets Friends, International Organ festival and Creative Discovery are considered ones of the most prominent events in cultural life of Tatarstan and Russia. The orchestra runs the project “Property of the Republic” for talented pupils from music schools and conservatory students; the educational project for Kazan school pupils “Music lessons with an orchestra” and the project “Healing through music” for seriously ill children.

Among the creative partners of the TNSO are such famous performers and cultural figures as Ildar Abdrazakov, Boris Andrianov, Boris Berezovsky, Igor Butman, Aida Garifullina, Khibla Gerzmava, Veronika Dzhioeva, Placido Domingo, Barry Douglas, Simone Kermes, Sergey Krylov, Vasily Ladyuk Nikolay Lugansky, Mischa Maisky, Denis Matsuev, Mikhail Pletnev, Edward Radzinsky, Vadim Repin, Sergey Roldugin, Maxim Rysanov, Chulpan Khamatova, Dmitry Hvorostovsky, Nikolaj Znaider, Sumi Cho, Albina Shagimuratova and others.

Over the years, the orchestra has also collaborated with a number of conductors, including Yuri Bashmet, Vladimir Altshuler, Michael Güttler, Ken-David Mazur, Christopher Moulds, Andres Mustonen, Krzysztof Penderecki, Marc Piollet, Vladimir Spivakov, Ernst Theis, Vladimir Fedoseyev, Dmitry Jurowski, Kristjan Jarvi, Freddy Cadena and many others.

The TNSO under the direction of Alexander Sladkovsky is the first Russian regional orchestra recorded by Medici.tv and Mezzo channels. In 2014, the TNSO conducted by Alexander Sladkovsky performed at the La Folle Journée festival in Japan. In 2016, for the first time in the orchestra’s history, it gave concerts during a European tour in the Brucknerhaus (Linz) and in the Golden Hall of Musikverein (Vienna). In December 2018, the TNSO and Maestro Alexander Sladkovsky made the first tour in China. In 2019, the TNSO conducted by Alexander Sladkovsky performed at the La Folle Journée festival in France.

Recordings of the concerts of the orchestra conducted by Alexander Sladkovsky are regularly broadcasted on radio Orpheus, BBC Radio 3, Kultura TV.