David Geringas

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David Geringas (born 1946) is a world-renowned cellist and conductor. In 1970 he won the Gold Medal at the International Tchaikovsky Competition.

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[edit] Biography

Considered to be Rostropovich's favorite pupil, he has performed all over the world as a soloist with numerous major orchestras - London Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, NHK Symphony Orchestra in Tokyo, Israel Philharmonic and with the greatest conductors of our time. He is a regular guest at several major chamber music festival and has a vast repertoire, from baroque to contemporary music, much of which he has recorded, being awarded the Grand Prix du Disque of the Charles Cros Academy in 1989. He is a cello professor in Berlin.

Important contemporary composers such as Sofia Gubaidulina, Peteris Vasks and Erkki-Sven Tüür have dedicated new compositions to Geringas. In July 2006, Anatolijus Senderovas' composition "David's Song for Cello and String Quartet" was premièred in Kronberg – a dedication to Geringas's 60th birthday.

David Geringas is one of the most versatile musicians of our time. The cellist and conductor has an unusually broad repertoire from the earliest baroque up to contemporary music. He was the first musician to play in the West works of the Russian and Lithuanian avant garde and many composers dedicated works to him. For his worldwide engagement for Lithuanian music and its composers he was awarded highest distinctions of his country. In October 2006 the President of the Federal Republic of Germany Horst Köhler awarded the "Verdienstkreuz 1. Klasse des Verdienstordens der Bundesrepublik Deutschland" (Federal Cross of Merit) to David Geringas for his over all efforts as musician and German Cultural Ambassador to the world music scene.

Born in Vilnius, Lithuania, David Geringas studied at the Moscow Conservatory from 1963 until 1973 with Mstislav Rostropovich. In 1970 David Geringas won the First Prize and the gold medal at the Tchaikovsky competition. In 2000 he took over a professorship for violoncello at the 'Hanns Eisler' Academy of Music in Berlin. Moreover he is honorary professor at the Moscow Conservatory. David Geringas also heads various master-classes all over the world for the up-and-coming musicians. His students are winners of prizes and awards of international competitions.

David Geringas performed with renowned orchestras among others the Berlin and Munich Philharmonic Orchestras, the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, all German Radio Symphony Orchestras, the top orchestras in Vienna, Amsterdam, London, Paris, Warsaw, St. Petersburg and Moscow, Montreal, Chicago, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Tel Aviv, Tokyo and Seoul. He played under conductors as Gerd Albrecht, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Andrey Boreyko, Myung-Whun Chung, Charles Dutoit, Christoph Eschenbach, Vladimir Fedossejew, Kyrill Kondraschin, Krzysztof Penderecki, Simon Rattle, Mstislav Rostropovich, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Yurij Temirkanow, Klaus Tennstedt und Michael Tilson Thomas.

Renowned composers of contemporary music dedicated works to David Geringas, thus the Concerto in Do by Anatolijus Šenderovas, being played by David Geringas for the first time in 2002 and being awarded the European Composers Prize in Berlin, the Cello Concerto by Ned Rorem, world premiere 2003 in the USA, the Cello Concertos by Vytautas Laurušas and by Vidmantas Bartulis, world premiere 2004 respective 2005 in Latvia. A special event was the world premiere of Anatolijus Šenderovas' work "David's Song for Cello and String Quartet" in July 2006 in Kronberg which the composer had written on the occasion of David Geringas' 60th birthday.

David Geringas' concerts with the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Moscow State Philharmonic Orchestra, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande and the Berner Symphonie-Orchester, the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra as well as his first performance with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra at once being reinvited for 2007, belong among others to the highlights of the concert season 2005/2006. He was also guest at prestigious festivals in Germany, Great Britain and France this summer. In the season 2006/2007 David Geringas will give concerts among others with the Beethoven Orchester Bonn, the Nationaltheater-Orchester Mannheim and the Galicia Symphony Orchestra. On the occasion of D. Shostakovich's 100th Birthday David Geringas is invited by the Tonhalle in Düsseldorf to arrange and to head a weekend of several performances dedicated to the composer.

[edit] Discography

For about 50 CDs which David Geringas has up to now recorded he received a large number of distinctions, among them the Grand Prix du Disque for the recording of the 12 cello concerti by Luigi Boccherini. His extensive discography also includes many award-winning recordings such as the chamber music by Henri Dutilleux (Diapason d'Or) or the cello concertos by Hans Pfitzner (Jahrespreis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik).

  • Johann Sebastian Bach (1989)
    Suite No. 1
    Suite No. 2
    Suite No. 6
    David Geringas, violoncello
  • Johann Sebastian Bach (1989)
    Suite No. 3
    Suite No. 4
    Suite No. 5
    David Geringas, violoncello
  • Quasi Improvisata (2003)
    Anatolijus Senderovas - Songs of Sulamite
    Sofia Gubaidulina - In Croce
    Lepo Sumera - Quasi Improvisata
    Eduardas Balsys - Habanera
    Astor Piazzolla - Tanti Anni Prima, Oblivion, Hommage à Liège
    David Geringas, violoncello, Geir Draugsvoll, bajan
  • Mozartiana - Hommage à Mozart (1992)
    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Andantino for piano and violoncello KV Anh. 46
    Ludwig van Beethoven - Seven variations in E-flat Major for violoncello and piano
    "Bei Männern, welche Liebe fühlen" from Mozarts "Zauberflöte"
    Helene Liebmann - "Grande Sonate pour Pianoforte et Violincelle" B-flat Major op.11
    Ludwig van Beethoven - Twelve variationa in F Major op. 66 for violoncello and piano
    "Ein Mädchen oder Weibchen" from Mozarts "Zauberflöte"
    Joseph Wölfl - "Grand Duo pour Piano et Violoncelle" d minor op. 31
    Franz Xaver Mozart - From the Grande sonata for piano and violoncello op. 19
    David Geringas, violoncello - Tatjana Schatz, piano
  • Luigi Boccherini - 12 Concerti per il Violoncello (1988)
    Concerto No. 1 in E-flat major G 474
    Concerto No. 2 in A Major G 475
    Concerto No. 3 in D major G 476
    Concerto No. 4 in C Major G 477
    Concerto No. 5 in D Major G 478
    Concerto No. 6 in D Major G 479
    Concerto No. 7 in G Major G 480
    Concerto No. 8 in C Major G 481
    Concerto No. 9 in B-flat Major G 482
    Concerto No. 10 in D Major G 483
    Concerto No. 11 in C Major G 573
    Concerto No. 12 in E-flat Major
    David Geringas, Violoncello
    Orchestra da Camera di Padova e del Veneto
    Conductor: Bruno Giuranna
  • Ali Baba and the forty robbers (1997)
    Musical fairytale from the "Thousand and One Nights"
    Narrator: Manfred Steffen
    Music: Alexander Geringas
    Violin: Natalia Prishepenko
    Flute: Wolfgang Ritter
    Piano/song: Alexander Geringas
    Violoncello: David Geringas
    Bass: Johannes Huth
    Drums: Martin Engelbach
  • Franz Joseph Haydn (1994)
    Concerto for Violoncello and Orchestra C Major Hob. VIIb-1
    Concerto for Violoncello and Orchestra D major Hob. VIIb-2
    Andante from Symphony No. 13 for Violoncello and Orchestra
    David Geringas, Violoncello and conductor
    Czech Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra
  • Hans Pfitzner (1993)
    Concerto for Violoncello and Orchestra, A minor op. 52
    Concerto in G major for Violoncello and Orchestra in One Movement op. 42
    Concerto for Violoncello and Orchestra, A minor op. posth.
    David Geringas, Violoncello
    Bambert Symphony Orchestra
    Werner Andreas Albert
  • Alfred Schnittke (1998-99)
    Epilogue from the ballet "Peer Gynt"
    Musica nostalgica
    Cello Sonata No. 1
    David Geringas, Violoncello
    Tatjana Schatz, Piano
  • David Geringas * Tatjana Schatz (1994)
    Robert Schumann
    Adagio und Allegro op. 70
    Fantasiestücke op. 73
    Stücke im Volkston op. 102
    Franz Schubert
    Sonate in a minor "Argeggione" D 821
    David Geringas, violoncello
    Tatjana Schatz, piano
  • David Geringas * Tatjana Schatz (1993)
    Richard Strauss - Sonata for violoncello and piano op. 6
    - Romance F Major
    Erwin Schulhoff - Sonata for violoncello and piano op. 17
    David Geringas, violoncello
    Tatjana Schatz, piano
  • Anatolijus Senderovas (2002)
    Concerto in Do
    David Geringas, Violoncello
    Symphony Orchestra of the Lithuanian Academy of Music
    Robertas Servenikas, Conductor
  • Peteris Vasks
    Concerto for Cello and Orchestra
    String Symphony - Voices (Balsis)
    David Geringas, violoncello
    Riga Philharmonic Orchestra
    Jonas Aleksa, Conductor
  • Krzysztof Meyer (2006)
    Canzona für Violoncello und Klavier
    David Geringas, Violoncello - Tanja Schatz, Klavier

[edit] Chamber music

David Geringas is also a welcome guest at international chamber music stages. So Tatjana Geringas and Ian Fountain belong to his closest partners on the piano. In the season 2004/2005 David Geringas gave together with Ian Fountain a concert series entitled "Beethoven plus…" at the Philharmonie Berlin. He also works closely together with the Artemis Quartett, the Vogler-Quartett and the Bläserquintett of the Staatskapelle Berlin.

[edit] Conducting

To an ever growing extent David Geringas has been engaged as conductor. Among others he conducted the Norddeutsche Philharmonie Rostock, the Kammerphilharmonie of the MDR Leipzig, the Jenaer Philharmonie, the chamber orchestra of the Wiener Symphoniker (Concert-Verein), the Danish National Symphony Orchestra/DR, das Iceland Symphony Orchestra, the Kremerata Baltica as well as orchestras in Latvia, Italy, the Netherlands, Mexico and Costa Rica. In February 2007 David Geringas will conduct for the first time the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, give his debut as conductor in China in the 2007/2008 season and will be guest again in Japan.

For his first CD recording as conductor he received the 'Choc de la Musique' of the music review 'Le Monde de la Musique'.

Since 2005 David Geringas has been Chief Guest Conductor of the Kyushu Symphony Orchestra.

[edit] Cello

David Geringas plays a G. B. Guadagnini cello made in Turin, Italy in 1761.

[edit] External links