Yevgeny Aleksandrovich Mravinsky (Russian: Евгений Александрович Мравинский, Evgenij Aleksandrovič Mravinskij; 4 June [O.S. 22 May] 1903–January 19, 1988) was a Russian conductor. June 4 is the 155th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (156th in leap years), with 210 days remaining. ... Old Style or O.S. is a designation indicating that a date conforms to the Julian calendar, formerly in use in many countries, rather than the Gregorian calendar, currently in use in most countries. ... 1900 (MCMIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Friday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar. ... January 19 is the 19th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A conductor conducting a band at a ceremony A conductors score and batons Conducting is the act of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. ...

Life and career

Mravinsky was born in Saint Petersburg. His father died in 1918, and in that same year, he began to work backstage at the Mariinsky Theatre. He first studied biology at the university in Leningrad, before going to the Leningrad Conservatory to study music. He served as a ballet repetiteur from 1923 to 1931. His first public conducting appearance was in 1929. Through the 1930s he conducted at the Kirov Ballet and Bolshoi Opera. In September 1938, he won the All-Union Conductors Competition in Moscow. Saint Petersburg (Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991) and... The Maryinsky (or Mariinsky) Theatre (or Theater), is the St Petersburg theatre where the Mariinsky Ballet is located. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The St. ... Allegory of Music on the Opéra Garnier Music is an art form that involves organised sounds and silence. ... The Mariinsky Ballet is one of the most famous ballet schools in history (formerly the Kirov Ballet, and also the Academic State Theatre), located in St. ... Theatre Square in Moscow. ...

In October 1938, Mravinsky took up the post that he would hold until 1988: principal conductor of the Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra, with whom he had made his debut appearance as a conductor in 1931.^[1] Under Mravinsky, the Leningrad Philharmonic gained a legendary reputation, particularly in Russian music such as Tchaikovsky and Shostakovich. During World War II, Mravinsky and the orchestra were evacuated to Siberia. The St. ... Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky[1] (Russian: Пётр Ильич Чайкoвский, Pëtr Il’ič ÄŒajkovskij;  ) (7 May [O.S. 25 April] 1840 – 6 November [O.S. 25 October] 1893), was a Russian composer of the Romantic era. ... Dmitri Dmitrievich Shostakovich   (Russian: , Dmitrij Dmitrievič Å ostakovič) (September 25 [O.S. September 12] 1906–August 9, 1975) was a Russian composer of the Soviet period. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...

Legend has it that at the first performance of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5, during the applause immediately after the performance, Mravinsky took the score in his hand and waved it above his head. Mravinsky gave world premieres of six Dmitri Shostakovich symphonies: numbers 5, 6, 8 (which Shostakovich dedicated to Mravinsky), 9, 10 and 12. He premiered Sergei Prokofiev's sixth symphony in Leningrad the year of its composition (1947, [1]). Dmitri Dmitrievich Shostakovich   (Russian: , Dmitrij Dmitrievič Å ostakovič) (September 25 [O.S. September 12] 1906–August 9, 1975) was a Russian composer of the Soviet period. ... The Symphony No. ... The Symphony No. ... The Symphony No. ... Symphony No. ... This article might not be written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia entry. ... The Symphony No. ... Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev (Russian: , Sergej Sergejevič Prokof’ev; 15/April 271, 1891–March 5, 1953) was a Russian composer who mastered numerous musical genres and came to be admired as one of the greatest composers of the 20th century. ... Sergei Prokofiev wrote his Symphony No. ...

Mravinsky made commercial studio recordings from 1938 to 1961. His issued recordings from after 1961 were taken from live concerts. His final recording was from an April 1984 live performance of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 12. The Symphony No. ...

Mravinsky first took the orchestra on tour in 1946 to the Prague Spring Festival. Later tours included a June 1956 itinerary to West Germany, East Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Their only tour to Great Britain was in September 1960 to the Edinburgh Festival and the Royal Festival Hall, London. Their first tour to Japan was in May 1973. Their last foreign tour was in 1984, to West Germany.

His last concert was on March 6, 1987 (Schubert 8 and Brahms 4). Mravinsky died in Leningrad in 1988. Saint Petersburg (Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991) and...

Conducting style

Recordings reveal Mravinsky to have an extraordinary technical control over the orchestra, especially over dynamics. He was also a very exciting conductor, frequently changing tempo in order to heighten the musical effect for which he was striving. Surviving videos show that Mravinsky had a sober appearance at the podium, making simple but very clear gestures without a baton. [2] [3] In music, dynamics refers to the volume or loudness of the sound or note, in particular to the range from soft (quiet) to loud. ... The first two measures of Mozarts Sonata IX, which indicates the tempo as Andante grazioso and the metronome marking as = 120. Andante redirects here. ... A podium is a platform that is used to raise something to a short distance above its surroundings. ...

The critic David Fanning has memorably described some of Mravinsky's Tchaikovsky performances:

The Leningrad Philharmonic play like a wild stallion, only just held in check by the willpower of its master. Every smallest movement is placed with fierce pride; at any moment it may break into such a frenzied gallop that you hardly know whether to feel exhilarated or terrified". [4]

Notes

1. ^ This fifty-year long association between a conductor and a major orchestra has been matched or approached only by Robert Kajanus with the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Willem Mengelberg with the Concertgebouw Orchestra, Ernest Ansermet with the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande and Eugene Ormandy with the Philadelphia Orchestra.

2. Tassie, Gregor, "A Truly Noble Conductor". Gramophone (US Edition), May 2002, pp. 36-37. 3. Biography: "Yevgeny Mravinsky The Nobel Conductor" by Gregor Tassie (The Scarecrow Press, 2005) Robert Kajanus (2 December 1856 - 6 July 1933) was a Finnish conductor and composer. ... The Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra (Finnish: Helsingin kaupunginorkesteri) is an orchestra in Helsinki, Finland. ... Willem Mengelberg (Utrecht, Netherlands on March 28, 1871 – Zuort, Switzerland on March 21, 1951) was a Dutch conductor. ... The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest in Dutch) is the best known and most respected orchestra in the Netherlands, and is generally considered to be among the worlds finest. ... Ernest Alexandre Ansermet (November 11, 1883 – February 20, 1969) was a Swiss conductor. ... The Orchestre de la Suisse Romande (Orchestra of French-speaking Switzerland, OSR) was founded in 1918 by Ernest Ansermet. ... Eugene Ormandy in the 1950s Eugene Ormandy (November 18, 1899 – March 12, 1985) was a conductor and violinist. ... The Philadelphia Orchestra, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is one of the Big Five symphony orchestras in the United States and usually considered among the finest in the world. ...

Media

Image File history File links Tchaik_4_mravinsky. ... Software development stages In computer programming, development stage terminology expresses how the development of a piece of software has progressed and how much further development it may require. ... Peter Ilich Tchaikovskys Symphony No. ...

External links

• http://www.mravinsky.org/ (Russian)
• Biography at allmusic.com
• Discography
• Legacy of Yevgeni Mravinsky
• Video of Mravinsky conducting Shostakovich 5th Symphony 2nd Movement at youtube.com
• Video of Mravinsky conducting Shostakovich 5th Symphony 4th Movement at youtube.com