Leonid Kogan
One of the 20th century's greatest violinists, Leonid Kogan was less widely known than his somewhat older contemporary David Oistrakh, but no less a first-tier artist. More concentrated in tonal focus and with a quicker vibrato than Oistrakh and others of the Russian school, Kogan was avowedly a man of his time. His espousal of the four-octave scale for exercises assured the infallibility of his technique by strengthening his fingering hand in the upper positions. Although he died at age 58, he had amassed a discography that remains as a commanding legacy. Although his were not especially musical parents, Kogan conceived a fascination for the violin by age three. At six, he began lessons with Philip Yampolsky, a pupil of Leopold Auer. When Kogan's family moved to Moscow when he was ten, he began studies with Abram Yampolsky (no relation to Philip, but another Auer disciple). Kogan progressed through the Central School of Music, then the Moscow Conservatory, where he trained from 1943 to 1948. Postgraduate studies at the conservatory occupied him from 1948 until 1951. At age 12, Kogan was heard by violinist Jacques Thibaud, who predicted a great career for him. Although his parents resisted exploiting their son as a prodigy, Kogan made his debut at 17 and performed in many Soviet venues while still a student. Wider recognition came when Kogan shared first prize at the 1947 Prague World Youth Festival. In 1951, he won first prize at the Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels. Oistrakh, who was a member of the jury (along with Thibaud), thereafter came to regard Kogan as a colleague, while Kogan closely observed his elder associate during the latter's evening classes for other students. After teaching at the Moscow Conservatory and playing a busy schedule of concerts in the Soviet Union over the next few years, Kogan made his first appearances in Paris and London in 1955, following those with a tour of South America in 1956 and another of the United States in 1957. Less gregarious than Oistrakh, Kogan was not as aggressively promoted abroad by the Soviet government. After being named People's Artist in 1964, Kogan received the Lenin Prize in 1965.
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Leonid Kogan & Grigory Ginsburg Play Haydn & Weber
Leonid Kogan, Grigory Ginsburg
Classical - Released by Music Online on 29 Oct 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Shostakovich: Violin Concerto No. 1 in A Minor, Op. 77 - Mozart: Violin Concerto No. 5 in A Major, K. 219 “Turkish” (Live)
Leonid Kogan, Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, Paris Conservatoire Orchestra, Kirill Kondrashin, Andre Vandernoot
Classical - Released by Russian Compact Disc on 4 Mar 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
J.S. Bach, Paganini & Vivaldi: Violin Works (Live)
Leonid Kogan, Paris Conservatoire Orchestra, Elizabeth Gilels, Alexander Ivanov-Kramskoi, Andre Vandernoot
Chamber Music - Released by Russian Compact Disc on 4 Mar 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven & Vieuxtemps: Violin Concertos
David Oïstrakh, Leonid Kogan, Orchestre National de France, The Ussr State Symphony Orchestra, André Cluytens, Kirill Kondrashin
Classical - Released by Russian Compact Disc on 17 Jul 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 77 (Live)
Leonid Kogan, USSR State Symphony Orchestra, Gennady Rozhdestvensky
Classical - Released by Archipel on 23 Oct 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Lalo, Mendelssohn & Brahms: Works (Live)
Leonid Kogan, USSR State Symphony Orchestra, Andrei Mytnik, Kirill Kondrashin, Yevgeny Svetlanov
Classical - Released by Russian Compact Disc on 6 Aug 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart & Grieg: Violin Works
Leonid Kogan, Karl Richter, Grigory Ginzburg, Moscow Chamber Orchestra, Rudolf Barshai
Chamber Music - Released by Russian Compact Disc on 6 Aug 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
J.S. Bach: Violin Works
Leonid Kogan, Karl Richter, Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, Kirill Kondrashin
Classical - Released by Russian Compact Disc on 6 Aug 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Emil Gilels, Leonid Kogan & Mstislav Rostropovich Play Mozart & Saint-Saens
Emil Gilels, Leonid Kogan, Mstislav Rostropovich
Classical - Released by Music Online on 29 Oct 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Leonid Kogan & Andrei Mytnik Play Schumann, Glazunov, etc.
Classical - Released by Music Online on 24 Oct 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Trio No. 7 in B-Flat Major, Op. 97 "Archduke": III. Andante cantabile, ma pero con moto
Emil Gilels, Leonid Kogan, Mstislav Rostropovich
Chamber Music - Released by The state51 Conspiracy Ltd on 3 Apr 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Grieg: Sonatas for Violin and Piano No. 1 & 3
Grigory Ginsburg, Leonid Kogan
Classical - Released by Music Online on 29 Oct 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Milestones of a Legend - Leonid Kogan, Vol. 5
Classical - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Jan 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Milestones of a Legend - Leonid Kogan, Vol. 1
Classical - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Jan 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Gragnani, Paganini, Giuliani: Chamber Music for Violin and Guitar
Alexander Ivanov-Kramskoy, Fyodor Luzanov, Leonid Kogan
Classical - Released by JSC Firma Melodiya on 1 Jan 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Milestones of a Legend - Leonid Kogan, Vol. 9
Classical - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Jan 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Violin Concerto No. 5 — Berg: Violin Concerto
Leonid Kogan, Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Grand Symphony Orchestra of All-Union National Radio Service and Central Television Networks
Classical - Released by JSC Firma Melodiya on 1 Jan 1968
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Trio In G Major, Op.9 No.1 / Trio In C Minor, Op.9 No.3
Leonid Kogan, Rudolf Barshai, Mstislav Rostropovich
Classical - Released by Artia Records on 18 May 1960
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Milestones of a Legend - Leonid Kogan, Vol. 6
Classical - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Jan 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven, Szymanowski & Albéniz: Works for Violin & Piano (Live)
Leonid Kogan, Emil Gilels, Andrei Mytnik
Chamber Music - Released by Russian Compact Disc on 6 Aug 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wieniawski, Szymanowski & Waxman (Live)
Classical - Released by JSC Mezhdunarodnaya Kniga Musica on 20 Feb 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo