Mikhail Pletnev
Reaching the highest level of prominence as both pianist and conductor, Mikhail Pletnev is a major figure on the contemporary Russian musical scene. He is also a prolific composer and a competent amateur violinist.
Pletnev was born on April 14, 1957, in Archangelsk in the far north of what was then the Soviet Union. His family was musical; his father played and taught the bayan button accordion, and his mother was a pianist. When the family moved to Kazan in Russia's Tatarstan region, Pletnev began piano studies with Julia Shaskin. He moved to Moscow at 13 to study at the Moscow Central Music School with Evgeny Timakin, and a Grand Prix at the Jeunesses Musicales International in 1945 proved to be the first in a long series of prizes for the young pianist. At 15, Pletnev moved to the Moscow Conservatory for studies with Yakov Flier, whose teaching propelled him to gold medals in two of the Soviet Union's toughest events, the All-Union Competition in 1977 and the Tchaikovsky Competition in 1978. Pletnev launched a touring career that went fully international as restrictions on Soviet musicians loosened in the 1980s. His fluent, elegant style was sometimes likened to those of Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli and even Vladimir Horowitz. He made his recording debut in 1988 on the Virgin Classics label with Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 1 in F sharp minor, Op. 1, and Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 43, with the Philharmonia Orchestra.
In the late '80s, Pletnev struck up an acquaintance with Soviet head of state Mikhail Gorbachev, who aided him in founding the Russian National Orchestra in 1990; it was the first privately funded orchestra in Russia since 1917. The new orchestra, with Pletnev as conductor and artistic director, was successful from the start. It toured the U.S. in 1992 and 1993. In 1994, he moved to Deutsche Grammophon, recording Rachmaninov's Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27, as conductor of the Russian National Orchestra. His repertory runs from Scarlatti to Rachmaninov, with whom he is especially identified; he is a superb Mozartian and a strong interpreter of a variety of Russian works, but he rarely performs contemporary music.
From the early '90s forward, Pletnev performed somewhat less often as a pianist, although he continued to record both as a pianist and conductor. He stepped down as the Russian National Orchestra's conductor in 1999 but continues (as of 2022) to hold the position of artistic director and to conduct the group occasionally. In the 2010s, he and the Russian National Orchestra often recorded for PentaTone Classics, and in 2022, he moved to Profil, leading the Russian National Orchestra and violinist Ivan Pochekin in violin concertos by Tchaikovsky and Glazunov. By that time, his recording catalog numbered well over 100 items.
© James Manheim /TiVo
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Grieg: Lyric Pieces; Sonata; Fugues
Classique - Paru chez Deutsche Grammophon (DG) le 1 janv. 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tchaikovsky: Symphonic Poems incl. 1812, Fatum, The Voyevoda, Hamlet, Francesca da Rimini; Manfred Symphony
Russian National Orchestra, Mikhail Pletnev
Classique - Paru chez Deutsche Grammophon (DG) le 1 janv. 2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Shchedrin: Carmen Suite - II. Dance: Allegro
Rachmaninoff International Orchestra, Mikhail Pletnev
Classique - Paru chez EuroArts Music International le 16 févr. 2024
24-Bit 192.0 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart - Piano Concertos
Mikhail Pletnev, Die Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen
Classique - Paru chez Warner Classics le 15 janv. 2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Enchanted Kingdom
Russian National Orchestra, Mikhail Pletnev
Classique - Paru chez Deutsche Grammophon (DG) le 1 janv. 1996
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5 - Francesca da Rimini
Russian National Orchestra, Mikhail Pletnev
Classique - Paru chez PENTATONE le 1 mai 2011
5 de Diapason24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Tchaikovsky: The Symphonies
Russian National Orchestra, Mikhail Pletnev
Classique - Paru chez Deutsche Grammophon (DG) le 22 déc. 1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Piano Sonatas No. 14 "Moonlight", No. 21 "Waldstein" & No. 23 "Appassionata"
Classique - Paru chez Warner Classics le 1 janv. 1996
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Grieg. Piano Works
Classique - Paru chez CDK Music Classical le 1 mars 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Dvorak: Danses slaves
Mikhail Pletnev, Russian National Orchestra
Classique - Paru chez Universal Music Division Decca Records France le 1 janv. 1995
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Variations & Bagatelles
Classique - Paru chez Deutsche Grammophon (DG) le 1 janv. 1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninov: Symphonies Nos.1-3; The Bells; Symphonic Dances
Russian National Orchestra, Mikhail Pletnev
Classique - Paru chez Deutsche Grammophon (DG) le 1 janv. 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninov: Symphony No.2 In E Minor, Op. 27; "The Rock" Fantasy, Op. 7
Russian National Orchestra, Mikhail Pletnev
Classique - Paru chez Deutsche Grammophon (DG) le 1 janv. 1994
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Shostakovich, D.: Symphony No. 15 / Hamlet (Excerpts)
Classique - Paru chez Pentatone le 1 avr. 2009
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake; The Nutcracker; The Sleeping Beauty
Classique - Paru chez Deutsche Grammophon (DG) le 1 janv. 2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Liszt: Piona Sonata in B Minor / Après une lecture de Dante / Funérailles / Gnomenreigen
Classique - Paru chez Deutsche Grammophon (DG) le 1 janv. 1998
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Chopin: Concerto For Piano And Orchestra No. 2 In F Minor, Op. 21 (Arr. By Mikhail Pletnev), 3. Allegro vivace
Daniil Trifonov, Mahler Chamber Orchestra, Mikhail Pletnev
Classique - Paru chez Deutsche Grammophon (DG) le 4 août 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4 - Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture
Russian National Orchestra, Mikhail Pletnev
Classique - Paru chez Pentatone le 1 févr. 2011
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Glazunov - Kabalevsky : Violin Concertos
Gil Shaham, Russian National Orchestra, Mikhail Pletnev
Classique - Paru chez Deutsche Grammophon (DG) le 1 janv. 1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Chopin: Sonata Op.58; Waltzes; Etudes
Classique - Paru chez Deutsche Grammophon (DG) le 1 janv. 1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Weber: Konzertstück; Overtures: Der Freischütz · Euryanthe · Oberon
Russian National Orchestra, Mikhail Pletnev
Classique - Paru chez Deutsche Grammophon (DG) le 1 janv. 1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo