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Mstislav Rostropovitsj

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Mstislav Rostropovitsj · Mstislav Rostropovich (1927 to 2007) was a Soviet-Russian cellist and conductor. He was born in Baku, the son of the cellist Leopold Rostropovich, a pupil of Pablo Casals, and the pianist Sofiya Fedotova. At the age of four he had piano lessons from his mother, and at eight he began learning the cello from his father. During the Second World War the family moved to Orenburg and in 1943 to Moscow, where he entered the conservatory at sixteen.

Music and breakthrough

Rostropovich was known for his interpretation and technique, but even more for his role as an inspirer of new music. He commissioned more than a hundred pieces and gave their first performances. In doing so he enriched the cello repertoire more than any cellist before or after him. He collaborated with composers such as Dmitri Shostakovich, Sergei Prokofiev, Henri Dutilleux, Witold Lutosławski, Olivier Messiaen, Luciano Berio, Alfred Schnittke and Benjamin Britten. The records from his career include the cello concertos of Dvořák, the Rococo Variations and the Symphony-Concerto for cello and orchestra.

Influence

Rostropovich was also an outspoken advocate of human rights. In 1974 he received the prize of the International League of Human Rights. He was married to the soprano Galina Vishnevskaya and received, among other honours, the Polar Music Prize. His name shows that a performer could also change classical music by prompting others to write new work.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to a movement of a cello concerto that he recorded and notice how the cello sings like a human voice, with a warm, full tone.

Discography

Studio albums

Categories: Artists