Gergiev Valery Abisalovich

Gergiev Valery Abisalovich

Main article: History of music in Russia

Biography

In 1972 he graduated from the College of Arts (now the Vladikavkaz College of Arts named after V.A. Gergiev) in piano, in 1977 - the Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) State Conservatory named after N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov (class of conducting theorist, professor Ilya Mussin).

As a student at the Leningrad Conservatory, Gergiev won the competition named after Herbert von Karayan in Berlin and at the All-Union Competition of Conductors in Moscow, after which he was invited to the Kirov (now Mariinsky) Theater to replace the assistant chief conductor.

1978: Valery Gergiev conducts the first performance at the Mariinsky Theater

On January 12, 1978, Valery Gergiev, a recent graduate of the Leningrad Conservatory, conducted his first performance at the Kirov (Mariinsky) Theater. It was Prokofiev's opera War and Peace.

This is how the maestro himself recalls those days:

"My first step at the Mariinsky Theater is an unexpected opportunity for me to drive away the play 'War and Peace', which was then being prepared for the premiere, on which Yuri Temirkanov, Boris Pokrovsky and Joseph Sumbatashvili worked. I just became a theater intern and was Temirkanov's assistant in this production. In the theater, few people knew me. Yuri Khatuevich suddenly told me: 'Start a rehearsal, I want to listen to how it all sounds. A minute later I stood in front of the orchestra of the Kirov Theater.

After some time, Temirkanov told me: 'I think you will be the chief conductor in this theater, someday'.

1988: Elected Music Director of the Mariinsky Theatre

In 1988, Valery Gergiev was elected music director of the Mariinsky Theater, and in 1996 his artistic director was director (he took over the leadership of the orchestra, opera and ballet troupes).

Rehearsal "Khovanshchina», 1988. Evgenia Gorokhovskaya, Valery Alekseev, Valery Gergiev, Lyudmila Filatova

With the arrival of Valery Gergiev in the theater, large thematic festivals dedicated to the anniversaries of composers became a tradition. Within the framework of such festivals, not only well-known scores sounded, but also compositions rarely performed or not seen before.

The tradition of anniversary festivals continues in the KhKhІ century: the celebration of the 100th anniversary of Dmitry Shostakovich in 2006, the 175th anniversary of Pyotr Tchaikovsky in 2015, the 125th anniversary of Sergei Prokofiev in 2016, the 90th anniversary of Rodion Shchedrin in 2022, the 180th anniversary of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov in 2024.

1995-2022: Chief conductor of orchestras in Rotterdam, London and Munich

In 1995-2008, Valery Gergiev served as chief conductor of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, in 2007-2015 - the London Symphony Orchestra.

In 2015-2022 he was the chief conductor of the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra.

Under the leadership of Valery Gergiev, the Mariinsky Theater has become a large-scale theater and concert complex. In 2006, the Concert Hall was opened, in 2013 the second stage of the theater (Mariinsky-2), from January 1, 2016 the Mariinsky Theater had a branch in Vladivostok (Primorsky stage), and from 2017 - in Vladikavkaz.

Valery Gergiev is the founder of prestigious international festivals, including Stars of White Nights (1993), Moscow Easter Festival (2002), Gergiev Festival in Rotterdam, Music Festival in Mikkeli (Finland), 360 degrees in Munich.

Since 2011, he has been the head of the organizing committee of the Tchaikovsky International Competition.

At the initiative of Gergiev, the All-Russian Choral Society was revived, on the basis of which the Children's Choir of Russia was created, performing at the Mariinsky-2, the Concert Hall of the Mariinsky Theater, the Bolshoi Theater of Russia and at the closing of the KhKhІІ Winter Olympic Games in Sochi.

2023: Appointment as CEO of the Bolshoi Theater

On December 1, 2023, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin signed a decree appointing Valery Gergiev as the new general director of the Bolshoi Theater for a period of five years. He replaced Vladimir Urin, who was relieved of this position of his own free will, according to the Telegram channel of the Cabinet.

Valery Gergiev noted that his first step as general director of the theater and chief conductor will be the production of the opera Khovanshchina by Modest Mussorgsky.

People's Artist of Russia, pianist Denis Matsuev called the appointment of Valery Gergiev as the new general director of the Bolshoi Theater a historical event for the culture of Russia and for the theater itself. According to Matsuev, after the change of leadership, the Bolshoi Theater is waiting for great creative achievements.

I am sure that we will all be waiting for the great creative achievements of everything, the theater in particular, each troupe - opera and ballet, of course. If Valery Abisalovich takes on something, I know it very well, he immerses himself in this story absolutely completely and with incredible dedication, - said the pianist in a conversation with RIA Novosti[1]

Criticism

By decision of Gergiev, the Mariinsky Theater Music Library received the status of a departmental archive, as a result of which musicians and researchers lost access to unique musical materials. Researchers specializing in the restoration of 18th-century music have not had access to music for years. The rules set in the library are unexplained obscurantism. For more details, see the Library of the State Academic Mariinsky Theater.

Awards

Gergiev three times laureate of the State Prize of the Russian Federation, People's Artist of Russia, Honored Artist, Hero of Labor, was awarded the Order of Merit to the Fatherland, II, III and IV degrees, the Order of Alexander Nevsky.

Notes