Dmitri Kitayenko
Dmitri Kitaenko is among the leading Russian conductors of his generation. Though generally overshadowed by his contemporary Yuri Temirkanov, as well as older-generation figures like Kiril Kondrashin and Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Kitaenko has held several prestigious conducting posts and has made a spate of critically praised recordings for a variety of major labels in both operatic and symphonic repertory largely dominated by Russian composers.
Kitaenko was born in Leningrad, on August 18, 1940. He studied conducting at the Leningrad Conservatory, then later at the Moscow Conservatory under Lev Ginzburg. With the thaw in the Cold War allowing greater artistic freedom in the Soviet Union, he moved onto the Vienna Conservatory where he studied under famed conductor Hans Swarowsky.
The most crucial event in Kitaenko's early career was his entry in the first Herbert von Karajan Competition in 1969, where he won first prize. The following year he was appointed artistic director at the Nemirovich-Danchenko Music Theater in Moscow, a post that allowed him to gain much experience in operatic repertory. He also began conducting the leading Russian orchestras and soon became a regular conductor at the Bolshoi. He traveled abroad, too, leading important operatic productions in Brussels, Vienna, and Munich.
In 1976 he was appointed principal conductor of the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, succeeding Kiril Kondrashin. During his 14-year stint in Moscow, Kitaenko made many recordings for the Soviet label Melodiya, his releases including the complete symphonies of Prokofiev, and various works by Shostakovich, Rachmaninov, and, surprisingly, Gershwin. In 1990 he left the Soviet Union for Western Europe, taking two conducting posts concurrently, the Bergen (Norway) Philharmonic Orchestra, where he served until 1998, and the Hessischen Rundfunk Orchestra, Frankfurt, a post he held until 1996.
Among Kitaenko's first recordings to be released in the west was a 1991 Prokofiev disc on the Chandos label containing Alexander Nevsky and the Scythian Suite, made with the Danish National Radio Symphony Orchestra and Choir. After 1998, Kitaenko regularly began appearing as a guest conductor in Europe, Japan, and the U.S. In the new century he has made a number of successful recordings, including the 2001 cycle of the five Prokofiev piano concertos, with his former Frankfurt orchestra and pianist Vladimir Krainev on the Elektra label. In 2005, Kitaenko finished recording the 15 symphonies of Shostakovich, and the set was issued on the Capriccio label to a quite favorable critical response. Further recordings included efforts on Shostakovich, Stravinsky, and Tchaikovsky.
© TiVo
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Tchaikovsky: Complete Symphonies
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Leonard Elschenbroich, Lilya Zilberstein, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by Oehms Classics on 25 Sep 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade, Op. 35 - Lyadov: The Enchanted Lake, Op. 62
Dmitri Kitayenko, Natalie Chee, Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart des SWR
Classical - Released by SWR Classic on 13 Oct 2023
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Mussorgsky: St. John's Night on Bald Mountain & Songs and Dances of Death - Prokofiev: Alexander Nevsky
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Vladislav Sulimsky, Czech Philharmonic Choir, Brno, Agunda Kulaeva, Dmitri Kitayenko
Choral Music (Choirs) - Released by Oehms Classics on 16 Jun 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov & Lyadov: Works
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by Oehms Classics on 10 May 2019
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Shostakovich, D.: Symphonies Nos. 1, 3
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Philharmonischer Chor Prag, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by CapriccioNR on 1 Jan 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Prokofiev & Khachaturian: Orchestral Works
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by Oehms Classics on 21 Aug 2020
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Shostakovich, D.: Symphonies Nos. 2, 5
Philharmonischer Chor Prag, Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by CapriccioNR on 1 Jan 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tchaikovsky : Symphonie Nr. 5
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by Oehms Classics on 7 Feb 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Scriabin: Symphony No. 2 in C Minor, Op. 29 & Symphony No. 4, Op. 54 "Le poème de l'extase"
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, WDR Rundfunkchor Köln, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by Oehms Classics on 22 Jan 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 2 in E Minor, Op. 27 & Vocalise
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Valer Sabadus, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by Oehms Classics on 17 Mar 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tschaikowsky: Symphonie No. 4 - Capriccio Italien
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by Oehms Classics on 30 Sep 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Glazunov: The Seasons, Op. 67 - Tchaikovsky: Serenade for Strings, Op. 48
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by Oehms Classics on 14 Sep 2018
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Sibelius: Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 43
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by Oehms Classics on 8 Jun 2018
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker, Op. 71 - Stravinsky: Divertimento from Le baiser de la fée
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by Oehms Classics on 18 Nov 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bólero - Symphonic Poems
Classical - Released by Parlophone UK on 25 Nov 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Stravinsky: Symphony in E-Flat Major and Suites Nos. 1 & 2
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by Oehms Classics on 6 Apr 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Prokofiev: The Symphonies
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by Capriccio on 12 May 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tschaikowsky: Symphonie Nr. 2 - Rokoko-Variationen - Andante Cantabile
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Leonard Elschenbroich, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by Oehms Classics on 5 Nov 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tchaikovksy: Orchestral Works
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Dmitri Kitayenko, Leonard Elschenbroich
Classical - Released by Oehms Classics on 20 Aug 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Shostakovich, D.: Bolt / the Golden Age Suite / the Tale of the Priest and His Servant Balda Suite
MDR-Sinfonieorchester, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by CapriccioNR on 1 Jan 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Shostakovich, D.: Symphonies Nos. 6, 7, 9
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Dmitri Kitayenko
Classical - Released by CapriccioNR on 1 Jan 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo