Leonidas Kavakos
Encyclopedia
Leonidas Kavakos is a Greek virtuoso
violin
ist .
into a musical family, Kavakos began studying violin at five years old and continued his studies at the Hellenic Conservatory
with Stelios Kafantaris. An Onassis Foundation scholarship enabled him to attend master classes with Josef Gingold
at Indiana University
. He made his concert debut at the Athens Festival
in 1984. In 1985, at age 18 (the youngest contestant), he won the International Sibelius Competition
in Helsinki
and in 1986 won silver medal in the Indianapolis International Violin Competition. He also took first prizes at the Naumburg Competition
in New York
(1988) and the Paganini Violin Competition (1988)—all by the age of 21.
, and Montreal
Symphony Orchestras.
, Salzburg Festival
, where he first appeared in 1994, the Lucerne Festival, and the Stars of White Nights Festival. He has appeared throughout the UK with numerous orchestras, starting in 1992 performing the Stravinsky
concerto at the London Proms
.
and given concerts with the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra and the New Japan Philharmonic.
He was called "The Violinist of Violinists" by the Strad Magazine.
in both its final version and in the original 1903/04, version. He has made various other recordings for Delos and Finlandia Records with works by composers such as Debussy
, Paganini
, Schubert
, Tchaikovsky
, Wieniawski
and Ysaÿe
.
2006 he recorded for Sony/BMG the five violin concertos and one symphony by W.A.Mozart as soloist and conductor of the Camerata Salzburg
. For his recording as conductor and soloist of the Mendelssohn
Violinkonzert e-Moll op. 64 with the Camerata he was awarded with the "ECHO-Klassik 2009" prize in the category "recording of the year - concerts - 19th century - violin".
2007 in this position. On July 1, 2009 he announced his resignation from his position as artistic director that fall. Kavakos explained that he could not hope to perform his duties as artistic director in setting a creative direction for the ensemble in the face of ongoing turmoil in the ensemble's management (7 complete changes in 8 years), a recent motion of no confidence (in the current management) passed by the ensemble's musicians, as well as the failure of musicians and staff to inform him of that vote, suggesting communication within the organisation had completely broken down.
of 1724 from February 2010. He has sold the "Falmouth" Stradivarius
of 1692, and a 1782 violin by Giovanni Battista Guadagnini (Torino).
Kavakos now owns only the Abergavenny and three modern violins (as of September 4, 2010).
North American Management: Opus 3 Artists, LLC http://www.opus3artists.com/artists/leonidas-kavakos
Virtuoso
A virtuoso is an individual who possesses outstanding technical ability in the fine arts, at singing or playing a musical instrument. The plural form is either virtuosi or the Anglicisation, virtuosos, and the feminine form sometimes used is virtuosa...
violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
ist .
Beginnings
Born in AthensAthens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
into a musical family, Kavakos began studying violin at five years old and continued his studies at the Hellenic Conservatory
Hellenic Conservatory
The Hellenic Conservatory was founded in Athens in 1919 by the composer Manolis Kalomiris. Kalomoiris was the conservatoire's director until 1926, when he left to found the National Conservatoire. The conservatoire early on opened a number of branches throughout Athens, in a number of cities in...
with Stelios Kafantaris. An Onassis Foundation scholarship enabled him to attend master classes with Josef Gingold
Josef Gingold
Josef Gingold was a Russian-Jewish-born classical violinist and teacher, who lived most of his life in the United States...
at Indiana University
Indiana University Bloomington
Indiana University Bloomington is a public research university located in Bloomington, Indiana, in the United States. IU Bloomington is the flagship campus of the Indiana University system. Being the flagship campus, IU Bloomington is often referred to simply as IU or Indiana...
. He made his concert debut at the Athens Festival
Athens Festival
Athens - Epidaurus Festival is an annual arts festival that takes place in Athens and Epidaurus, from May to October. It is one of the most famous festivals in Greece. The festival includes musical, theatrical and other cultural events....
in 1984. In 1985, at age 18 (the youngest contestant), he won the International Sibelius Competition
International Jean Sibelius Violin Competition
The International Jean Sibelius Violin Competition, named after Finnish composer Jean Sibelius, is a competition for violinists up to age 30. It is held every five years in Helsinki and is considered to be one of the top 3 most appreciated violin competitions in the world. The first competition...
in Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
and in 1986 won silver medal in the Indianapolis International Violin Competition. He also took first prizes at the Naumburg Competition
Walter W. Naumburg Foundation
The Walter W. Naumburg Foundation sponsors competitions and provides awards for young classical musicians in North America. It was founded in 1925 by Walter Wehle Naumburg, a wealthy amateur cellist and son of noted New York music patron and philanthropist Elkan Naumburg. Elkan Naumburg, owner of...
in New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
(1988) and the Paganini Violin Competition (1988)—all by the age of 21.
America
His United States debut was in 1986, and, the following year, he gave recitals at venues across the country. Kavakos now tours North America annually and works with numerous major orchestras, including the ChicagoChicago Symphony Orchestra
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the five American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1891, the Symphony makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival...
, and Montreal
Montreal Symphony Orchestra
Orchestre symphonique de Montréal is a symphony orchestra based in Montréal, Québec, Canada, with Montréal's Place des Arts as its home.-History:...
Symphony Orchestras.
Europe
In Europe, following his competition win in Helsinki, Kavakos' reputation spread quickly. He now works extensively in major concert halls across the continent, working with world class orchestras, including the Berlin Philharmonic and the Vienna Philharmonic. He has appeared at festivals such as the Verbier FestivalVerbier Festival
The Verbier Festival is an international music festival that takes place annually for two weeks in late July and early August in the mountain resort of Verbier, Switzerland.Founded by Swedish expatriate Martin T...
, Salzburg Festival
Salzburg Festival
The Salzburg Festival is a prominent festival of music and drama established in 1920. It is held each summer within the Austrian town of Salzburg, the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart...
, where he first appeared in 1994, the Lucerne Festival, and the Stars of White Nights Festival. He has appeared throughout the UK with numerous orchestras, starting in 1992 performing the Stravinsky
Igor Stravinsky
Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ; 6 April 1971) was a Russian, later naturalized French, and then naturalized American composer, pianist, and conductor....
concerto at the London Proms
The Proms
The Proms, more formally known as The BBC Proms, or The Henry Wood Promenade Concerts presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hall in London...
.
Asia
Kavakos made a highly successful Japanese debut in 1988 including a recital at Tokyo's Casals Hall and has since toured Japan with the English Chamber OrchestraEnglish Chamber Orchestra
The English Chamber Orchestra is a British chamber orchestra based in London. The full orchestra regularly plays concerts at Cadogan Hall, and the ECO Ensemble performs at Wigmore Hall...
and given concerts with the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra and the New Japan Philharmonic.
He was called "The Violinist of Violinists" by the Strad Magazine.
Recordings
Having won the Sibelius contest, Kavakos went on to win another coveted distinction, once again working on Sibelius. He won the 1991 Gramophone Concerto of the Year Award for the world premiere release on the BIS label of the Sibelius Violin ConcertoViolin Concerto (Sibelius)
The Violin Concerto in D minor, Op. 47, was written by Jean Sibelius in 1904.-History:Sibelius originally dedicated the concerto to the noted violinist Willy Burmester, who promised to play the concerto in Berlin...
in both its final version and in the original 1903/04, version. He has made various other recordings for Delos and Finlandia Records with works by composers such as Debussy
Claude Debussy
Claude-Achille Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
, Paganini
Niccolò Paganini
Niccolò Paganini was an Italian violinist, violist, guitarist, and composer. He was one of the most celebrated violin virtuosi of his time, and left his mark as one of the pillars of modern violin technique...
, Schubert
Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
, Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Russian: Пётр Ильи́ч Чайко́вский ; often "Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky" in English. His names are also transliterated "Piotr" or "Petr"; "Ilitsch", "Il'ich" or "Illyich"; and "Tschaikowski", "Tschaikowsky", "Chajkovskij"...
, Wieniawski
Henryk Wieniawski
Henryk Wieniawski was a Polish violinist and composer.-Biography:Henryk Wieniawski was born in Lublin, Congress Poland, Russian Empire. His father, Tobiasz Pietruszka, had converted to Catholicism. His talent for playing the violin was recognized early, and in 1843 he entered the Paris...
and Ysaÿe
Eugène Ysaÿe
Eugène Ysaÿe was a Belgian violinist, composer and conductor born in Liège. He was regarded as "The King of the Violin", or, as Nathan Milstein put it, the "tzar"...
.
2006 he recorded for Sony/BMG the five violin concertos and one symphony by W.A.Mozart as soloist and conductor of the Camerata Salzburg
Camerata Salzburg
The Camerata Salzburg is an Austrian chamber orchestra based in Salzburg, Austria. The Camerata's principal concert venue is the Mozarteum Salzburg....
. For his recording as conductor and soloist of the Mendelssohn
Mendelssohn
Mendelson is a Polish/German Jewish family name, meaning "son of Mendel", Mendel being a Yiddish diminutive of the Hebrew given name Menahem, meaning "consoling" or "one who consoles".Mendelssohn is the surname of a number of people:...
Violinkonzert e-Moll op. 64 with the Camerata he was awarded with the "ECHO-Klassik 2009" prize in the category "recording of the year - concerts - 19th century - violin".
Chamber music
Kavakos is also a keen chamber music performer, and presents his own chamber music festival annually in his home town of Athens as well as performing in many international festivals.Conducting
Kavakos is also working as a conductor. He was announced principal guest artist of the Camerata Salzburg in 2001 and performed with them as a soloist and conductor. He is designated as artistic director of the Camerata Salzburg and followed Sir Roger NorringtonRoger Norrington
Sir Roger Arthur Carver Norrington, CBE is a British conductor. He is the son of Sir Arthur Norrington and his brother is Humphrey Thomas Norrington....
2007 in this position. On July 1, 2009 he announced his resignation from his position as artistic director that fall. Kavakos explained that he could not hope to perform his duties as artistic director in setting a creative direction for the ensemble in the face of ongoing turmoil in the ensemble's management (7 complete changes in 8 years), a recent motion of no confidence (in the current management) passed by the ensemble's musicians, as well as the failure of musicians and staff to inform him of that vote, suggesting communication within the organisation had completely broken down.
Instruments
Kavakos plays the "Abergavenny" StradivariusStradivarius
The name Stradivarius is associated with violins built by members of the Stradivari family, particularly Antonio Stradivari. According to their reputation, the quality of their sound has defied attempts to explain or reproduce, though this belief is controversial...
of 1724 from February 2010. He has sold the "Falmouth" Stradivarius
Stradivarius
The name Stradivarius is associated with violins built by members of the Stradivari family, particularly Antonio Stradivari. According to their reputation, the quality of their sound has defied attempts to explain or reproduce, though this belief is controversial...
of 1692, and a 1782 violin by Giovanni Battista Guadagnini (Torino).
Kavakos now owns only the Abergavenny and three modern violins (as of September 4, 2010).
External links
North American Management: Opus 3 Artists, LLC http://www.opus3artists.com/artists/leonidas-kavakos