Claudio Abbado
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Claudio Abbado, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI[1] (b. June 26, 1933), is an Italian conductor. He has held many of the most prestigious positions in the world of classical music, having served as music director of the La Scala opera house in Milan, principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, principal guest conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, music director of the 'Vienna State Opera, and, most recently, principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic orchestra from 1989 to 2002, when he retired from the position for health reasons.
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[edit] Biography
Born in Milan, Italy, Abbado was the son of the violinist and composer Michelangelo Abbado, who was his first main piano teacher. After studies at the Milan Conservatory, in 1955 Claudio Abbado studied conducting with Hans Swarowsky at the Vienna Academy of Music. In 1958, he won the international Koussevitsky competition for conductors, which resulted in a number of operatic conducting engagements in Italy. In 1963 he won the prestigious Dmitri Mitropoulos Competition for conductors, allowing him to work for five months with the New York Philharmonic.
Abbado recalls desiring to become a conductor for the first time as a child when he heard a performance of the Nocturnes by Claude Debussy. Abbado had the opportunity to attend many orchestral rehearsals in Milan led by such conductors as Arturo Toscanini, Bruno Walter, and Wilhelm Furtwängler. Abbado has told interviewers that Toscanini's tyrannical and sometimes abusive manner towards musicians in rehearsal repelled him, and that he resolved to behave in the gentler manner of Walter. Abbado is known to exhibit a friendly, understated, and unconfrontational manner in rehearsal.
Abbado made his debut at La Scala in his hometown of Milan in 1960. He served as its music director from 1968 to 1986, conducting not only the traditional Italian repertoire but also presenting a contemporary opera each year, as well as a concert series devoted to the works of Alban Berg and Modest Mussorgsky. While at La Scala, Abbado also founded the Orchestra della Scala, for the performance of orchestral repertoire in concert.
Abbado conducted the Vienna Philharmonic for the first time in 1965 in a concert at the Salzburg Festival. He served as music director for the Vienna State Opera from 1986 to 1991, with notable productions such as Mussorgsky's original Boris Godunov and his seldom-heard Khovanshchina, Franz Schubert's Fierrabras, and Gioacchino Rossini's Il viaggio a Reims.
He has been especially known for introducing 20th-century music both to operatic and orchestral repertory.
He was principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra from 1979 to 1987. In the US, he was principal guest conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra from 1982 to 1986. With both orchestras, Abbado made a number of recordings for Deutsche Grammophon.
In 1989, the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra elected Abbado as their chief conductor, to succeed Herbert von Karajan. Abbado held this post until 2002.[2] In 2004, he returned to conduct the Berlin Philharmonic and performed Mahler's Symphony No. 6 in a series of recorded live concerts. The resulting CD won Best Orchestral Recording and Record of the Year in Gramophone Magazine's 2006 awards.[3]
The Orchestra Academy of the Berlin Philharmonic established the Claudio Abbado Composition Prize in 2006 in Abbado's honour.[4]
Abbado has performed and recorded a wide range of Romantic works, in particular Gustav Mahler, whose symphonies he has recorded several times. He is also noted for his interpretations of modern works such as Arnold Schoenberg, Karlheinz Stockhausen and Luigi Nono.
In 1988, Abbado founded the music festival Wien Modern, which has since expanded to include all aspects of contemporary art. This interdisciplinary festival takes place each year under Abbado's direction.
Abbado is also well-known for his work with young musicians. He is founder and music director of the European Union Youth Orchestra (1978) and the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester (1986). He is also a frequent guest conductor with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, with whom he recorded a cycle of Franz Schubert symphonies to considerable acclaim. More recently, he has worked with the Orquesta Sinfónica Simón Bolívar of Venezuela.[5]
Abbado was diagnosed with stomach cancer in 2000, and the treatment led to the removal of a portion of his digestive system. After his recovery, he formed the Lucerne Festival Orchestra in 2003[6], and their concerts have been highly acclaimed[7]. Abbado is scheduled to remain as the orchestra's music director and chief conductor through 2010.[8] He also serves as music director of the Mozart Orchestra of Bologna, Italy.
In September 2007, Abbado announced that he was cancelling all of his forthcoming conducting engagements for the "near future", on the advice of his physicians.[9] In November 2007, Abbado resumed conducting concerts with an engagement in Bologna.[10]
Abbado's son is the opera-director Daniele Abbado. From his relationship with the violinist Viktoria Mullova, he is the father of her oldest child, Misha.[11] His nephew, Roberto Abbado, is also a conductor.
[edit] Awards
Abbado has received many awards and recognitions among which the Imperial Prize of Japan, Mahler Medal, Bundesverdienstkreuz, Khytera Prize, and honorary doctorates from universities of Ferrara, Cambridge, Aberdeen, and Havana.
In 1958, he won the Koussevitsky Competition, establishing him in Italy, and then won the 1963 Mitropoulos Prize, after which he rapidly became known internationally as an orchestral and opera conductor.
He has won 1997 Grammy Award in the Best Small Ensemble Performance (with or without conductor) category for "Hindemith: Kammermusik No. 1 With Finale 1921, Op. 24 No. 1" and 2005 Grammy Award in the Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with Orchestra) category for "Beethoven: Piano Cons. Nos. 2 & 3" performed by Martha Argerich.
[edit] References
- ^ quirinale.it
- ^ Alex Ross. "Beethoven Unbound", The New Yorker, 22 Oct 2001. Retrieved on 2007-08-07.
- ^ Best of Category (Orchestral), Gramophone Award Winner, and Record of the Year. Gramophone (June 2006). Retrieved on 2007-08-07.
- ^ Matthew Westphal. "Berlin Philharmonic Names Winner of First Claudio Abbado Composition Prize", Playbill Arts, 6 November 2006. Retrieved on 2007-09-01.
- ^ Charlotte Higgins. "Land of hope and glory", The Guardian, 24 November 2006. Retrieved on 2007-09-01.
- ^ Tom Service. "The maestro", The Guardian, 22 August 2007. Retrieved on 2007-08-30.
- ^ Andrew Clements. "Lucerne Festival Orchestra/Abbado (review of Prom 51, 2007)", The Guardian, 24 August 2007. Retrieved on 2007-08-30.
- ^ Ben Mattison. "Claudio Abbado Extends Tenure at Lucerne Festival Orchestra", Playbill Arts, 1 February 2005. Retrieved on 2007-09-01.
- ^ Daniel J. Wakin. "Abbado, Ill, Cancels Appearances", New York Times, 7 September 2007. Retrieved on 2007-09-07.
- ^ Matthew Westphal. "Claudio Abbado Returns to Podium Following Illness", Playbill Arts, 9 November 2007. Retrieved on 2007-11-11.
- ^ Tim Ashley. "And this one's by the Bee Gees", The Guardian, 2 February 2001. Retrieved on 2007-08-30.
[edit] External links
- Claudio Abbado at Allmusic
- Claudio Abbado at Deutsche Grammophon
- Claudio Abbado at Sony BMG Masterworks
- Claudio Abbado discography
| Preceded by Guido Cantelli |
Music Director, La Scala, Milan 1968–1986 |
Succeeded by Riccardo Muti |
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