Isaac Karabtchevsky
Conductor Isaac Karabtchevsky was called "one of the living icons of Brazil" by London's Guardian newspaper, and he has pursued major career activities in Europe as well. In Brazil, he has been involved with notably innovative classical music projects.
Karabtchevsky was born in São Paulo on December 27, 1934. He traveled to Germany to study music, taking conducting classes with, among others, Pierre Boulez. He began his career as the conductor of the ensemble Madrigal Renascentista in the city of Belo Horizonte. In 1969, he became the conductor of the Orquestra Sinfônica Brasileira in Rio de Janeiro. He has also served as the artistic director of the city's Municipal Theater, possibly a role unique among orchestra conductors. Beginning in the late '80s, Karabtchevsky took on conductorships and artistic directorships in Europe as well, first at the Tonkünstlerorchester of Vienna from 1988 to 1994, then at Venice's Teatro La Fenice from 1995 to 2001, and finally, as the director of the Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire (2004-2010). In 1990, he made his recording debut, leading the Orquestra Sinfônica Brasileira in a complete recording of Villa-Lobos' Bachianas Brasileiras. He has appeared at the Salle Pleyel in Paris, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Musikverein in Vienna, the Royal Festival Hall in London, and the Washington Opera House, where he directed a critically acclaimed production of Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov in 1999.
In Brazil, Karabtchevsky was associated with unusual new enterprises in later life. He spearheaded the Aquarius project, a communications campaign dedicated to spreading awareness of classical music in Latin America. In 2004, he became the conductor of the Petrobras Symphony Orchestra, characterized (again, perhaps uniquely in the classical world) by employee self-management. He has served as conductor of the Heliopolis Symphony Orchestra, an ensemble based in a São Paulo slum, and in 2015, he was the subject of a competition presentation by the São Paulo samba school Unidos de Vila. Among Karabtchevsky's recording activities has been a cycle of the symphonies of Villa-Lobos with the São Paulo Symphony Orchestra (the Orquestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo), concluded in 2017, for which he also participated in the editorial reconstruction of the scores. In 2020, the 85-year-old Karabtchevsky released the first in a new series of the choros of Mozart Camargo Guarnieri on the Naxos label. He returned in 2023 on Naxos with a recording of Villa-Lobos' works for cello and orchestra, leading the São Paulo Symphony and cellist Antonio Meneses. Karabtchevsky has been named a Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres by the government of France and has also been honored by the Austrian government for cultural services to that country.
© James Manheim /TiVo
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Discography
14 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Villa-Lobos: Symphony No. 10, "Ameríndia"
Orquestra Sinfônica Do Estado De São Paulo, Saulo Javan, Leonardo Neiva, Isaac Karabtchevsky, Coro da Orquestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo
Klassiek - Released by Naxos on 3 nov. 2014
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Villa-Lobos: Symphony No. 12, Uirapuru & Mandu-Çarará
Orquestra Sinfônica Do Estado De São Paulo, Isaac Karabtchevsky, Coro da Orquestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo, Coro Infantil da Orquestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo
Klassiek - Released by Naxos on 30 mrt. 2015
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Villa-Lobos: Symphonies Nos. 8, 9 & 11
Orquestra Sinfônica Do Estado De São Paulo, Isaac Karabtchevsky
Klassiek - Released by Naxos on 9 jun. 2017
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Villa-Lobos: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 2
Orquestra Sinfônica Do Estado De São Paulo, Isaac Karabtchevsky
Klassiek - Released by Naxos on 10 nov. 2017
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Symphonies Nos 6 & 7
Orquestra Sinfônica Do Estado De São Paulo, Isaac Karabtchevsky
Klassiek - Released by Naxos on 1 sep. 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Symphonies n°3 et n°4
Orquestra Sinfônica Do Estado De São Paulo, Isaac Karabtchevsky
Klassiek - Released by Naxos on 4 mrt. 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Guarnieri: Chôros, Vol. 1 & Seresta
Olga Kopylova, Alexandre Silverio, Claudia Nascimento, Davi Graton, Orquestra Sinfônica Do Estado De São Paulo, Isaac Karabtchevsky
Klassiek - Released by Naxos on 28 aug. 2020
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Concerto pour piano
Bruno Leonardo Gelber, Isaac Karabtchevsky, Orchestra Della Svizzera Italiana
Klassiek - Released by TransArt Live on 1 jan. 2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
A Floresta do Amazonas de Villa-Lobos
Orquestra Petrobras Sinfônica, Isaac Karabtchevsky
Brazil - Released by + Edita on 9 jun. 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Villa-Lobos: Cello Concerto No. 2: II. Molto andante cantabile
Antônio Meneses, Sao Paulo Symphony Orchestra, Isaac Karabtchevsky
Concertmuziek - Released by Naxos on 25 aug. 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
O Clássico é Samba
Orquestra Petrobras Sinfônica, Isaac Karabtchevsky
Klassiek - Released by Deckdisc on 24 mrt. 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Compositores Brasileiros 1
Orquestra Petrobras Sinfônica, Isaac Karabtchevsky
Brazil - Released by + Edita on 12 jan. 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Compositores Brasileiros 2
Orquestra Petrobras Sinfônica, Isaac Karabtchevsky
Brazil - Released by + Edita on 19 jan. 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
A Petrobras Sinfônica e Isaac Karabtchevsky - Uma Coletânea
Orquestra Petrobras Sinfônica, Isaac Karabtchevsky
Klassiek - Released by + Edita on 5 mrt. 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo