Dmitry Albertovich Yablonsky (russian: Дмитрий Альбертович Яблонский) (born 1962) is a Russian
classical cellist and conductor, who was educated at the
Juilliard School of Music
The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most e ...
and
Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...
.
Early life and education
Dmitry Yablonsky was born in
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
into a musical family, his mother is famed pianist
Oxana Yablonskaya
Oxana Yablonskaya (russian: Оксана Михайловна Яблонская; born December 6, 1938, Moscow) is a Russian pianist who has had an active international performance career since the early 1960s. She began her career in the USSR ...
and his father is Albert Zayonts, who has been solo oboe of the Radio and Television orchestra in Moscow for 30 years.
Dmitry began playing the cello when he was 5 years old and was accepted into the Central Music School for gifted children. At the age of 9 he gave his orchestral debut playing
Haydn
Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions to musical form have le ...
´s cello concerto in C major. In Russia, Dmitry studied with Stefan Kalianov, who has been
Mstislav Rostropovich
Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich, (27 March 192727 April 2007) was a Russian cellist and conductor. He is considered by many to be the greatest cellist of the 20th century. In addition to his interpretations and technique, he was well ...
´s assistant and Isaak Buravsky, who for many years was solo cello of
Bolshoi Theatre
The Bolshoi Theatre ( rus, Большо́й теа́тр, r=Bol'shoy teatr, literally "Big Theater", p=bɐlʲˈʂoj tʲɪˈatər) is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, originally designed by architect Joseph Bové, which holds ballet and op ...
Orchestra. Before immigrating to the United States he performed on many occasions in Moscow and many cities of the former
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
. Leaving the Soviet Union was not that easy in the 1970s, and the visa application was first refused and it took a few years and many signatures from many well known personalities such as
Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...
, and
Katharine Hepburn
Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress in film, stage, and television. Her career as a Hollywood leading lady spanned over 60 years. She was known for her headstrong independence, spirited perso ...
to convince the Soviet authorities to issue a visa to allow his mother to leave the country.
Upon arrival in New York in 1977, he auditioned to the Juilliard School of Music and was accepted to study with
Lorne Munroe
Lorne Munroe (November 24, 1924 – May 4, 2020) was an American cellist.Gibson, Ronald and Winters, Kenneth"Munroe, Lorne*, ''Encyclopedia of Music in Canada''. Accessed March 12, 2009 He was principal cellist of the Philadelphia Orchestra from ...
principal cellist of the
New York Philharmonic Orchestra.
In the summer of 1979, at the age 16, Dmitry was accepted to participate in
Marlboro Music Festival
The Marlboro Music School and Festival is a retreat for advanced classical training and musicianship held for seven weeks each summer in Marlboro, Vermont, in the United States. Public performances are held each weekend while the school is in sess ...
in
Vermont
Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the ...
and was the youngest participant that summer. In Marlboro he met many great musicians as M. Horszowski, M.Tree, M. Shneider, M.Foley and many others. He played for
David Soyer, cellist of
Guarneri Quartet, who offered for Dmitry a place at the
Curtis Institute of Music
The Curtis Institute of Music is a private conservatory in Philadelphia. It offers a performance diploma, Bachelor of Music, Master of Music in opera, and a Professional Studies Certificate in opera. All students attend on full scholarship.
...
.
In the summer of 1980, Dmitry met
Aldo Parisot, distinguished cellist and professor at
Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...
where Dmitry spent 4 years. At Yale he became interested in conducting after meeting Otto Werner Muller, conducting professor.
Career
After graduating from Yale, he spent two years in the artist diploma program at the
Juilliard School of Music
The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most e ...
with
Zara Nelsova. During these years Dmitry played with
János Starker
János Starker (; ; July 5, 1924 – April 28, 2013) was a Hungarian-American cellist. From 1958 until his death, he taught at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, where he held the title of Distinguished Professor. Starker is conside ...
,
Mstislav Rostropovich
Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich, (27 March 192727 April 2007) was a Russian cellist and conductor. He is considered by many to be the greatest cellist of the 20th century. In addition to his interpretations and technique, he was well ...
,
André Navarra
André-Nicolas Navarra (Biarritz, 13 October 1911 – Siena, 31 July 1988) was a French cellist and cello teacher.
Early life
He was born into a musical family in Biarritz, his father being a bassist of Italian descent."'Play From The Stomach, ...
,
Maurice Gendron
Maurice Gendron (26 December 1920, near Nice20 August 1990, Grez-sur-Loing) was a French cello, cellist, conductor and teacher. He is widely considered one of the greatest cellists of the 20th century. He was an Officer of the Legion of Honor and a ...
and many more.
During one festival, which took place in
Camerino
Camerino is a town in the province of Macerata, Marche, central-eastern Italy. It is located in the Apennines bordering Umbria, between the valleys of the rivers Potenza and Chienti, about from Ancona.
Camerino is home to the University of Ca ...
, Italy he was asked to replace a conductor, who cancelled at the last minute, in conducting the
Stravinsky Octet with members of
Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia of Rome. This was quite challenging as he never conducted before. Dmitry was 26 years old and that was his conducting debut.
As a cellist he has played all over the world in venues as Carnegie Hall, La Scala, Moscow Great Hall, St. Petersburg Philharmonic Hall, Taiwan National Hall, Teatre Mogador, Cite de la Musique, Louvre and many others. Some chamber music partners have included, Victor Tretyakov, Leif Ove Andsnes, Yuri Bashmet and many more.
For several years Dmitry has been Principal Guest Conductor of
Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra The Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra is an orchestra based in Moscow, Russia. It was founded in 1951 by Samuil Samosud, as the Moscow Youth Orchestra for young and inexperienced musicians, acquiring its current name in 1953. It is most associated wi ...
and has conducted many orchestras all over the world including:
Belgian National Orchestra,
Catania Opera Orchestra, Netherlands North Orchestra, Holland symphonia, Bologna Chamber Orchestra, Taiwan National Orchestra,
Russian State Orchestra, Orchestre National d´Ile de France, Israel Symphony Orchestra,
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London, that performs and produces primarily classic works.
The RPO was established by Thomas Beecham in 1946. In its early days, the orchestra secured profitable ...
.
He has collaborated with soloists as
Montserrat Caballé
Montserrat Caballé i Folch or Folc (full name: María de Montserrat Bibiana Concepción Caballé i Folch (, , ; (12 April 1933 – 6 October 2018), known simply as Montserrat Caballé, was a Catalan Spanish operatic soprano. She sang a wide v ...
,
Roberto Alagna
Roberto Alagna (; born 7 June 1963) is a French operatic tenor. He obtained French citizenship in 1981, while also retaining his previous Italian citizenship.
Early years
Alagna was born in Clichy-sous-Bois, outside the city of Paris, in 1963 t ...
,
and performed
Krzysztof Penderecki
Krzysztof Eugeniusz Penderecki (; 23 November 1933 – 29 March 2020) was a Polish composer and conductor. His best known works include '' Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima'', Symphony No. 3, his '' St Luke Passion'', '' Polish Requiem'', ...
cello concerto with composer at the podium.
He has organized many festivals all over the world including Gabala Festival in Azerbaijan, Wandering Stars Festival, which takes place in different countries of the world each year. such as Israel, Italy, Russia, USA and more.
Dmitry Yablonsky is Co-Artistic Director of
Gabala International Music Festival in
Gabala,
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
. He is an academician of the Independent Academy of Aesthetics and Liberal Arts in Moscow, and also teaches cello at the Baku Academy of Music, since 2012 he is the Principal Guest Conductor of State Symphony Orchestra.
Dmitry has two cellos, which he uses for his cello concerts, a
Joseph Filius Andrea Guarneri and a
Matteo Goffriller. He lives on the border of France and Spain in a beautiful Catalan Village in the mountains,
Angoustrine-Villeneuve-des-Escaldes.
On March 1, 2015 he performed with the
Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra in a program including music from
baroque,
classical, and
romantic period
Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...
s.
Yablonsky is also a conductor of the
Ukrainian
Ukrainian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Ukraine
* Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe
* Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine
* Som ...
-based 'Kyiv Virtuosos' orchestra.
Dmitry Yablonsky is Online Master Teacher at
iClassical Academy
iClassical Academy is a limited company organized according to Swiss law, it is domiciled in Crans-Montana.
The company is committed to producing educational online video for musicians, in particular master classes and courses.
It provides ...
with whom he has recorded several online Masterclasses.
Recordings
The piano trio recording for
Erato/Warner with
Vadim Repin and
Boris Berezovsky has won numerous awards. He has transcribed and edited works for cello, which was released by International Music Company and Dover Publications. His recording of all 40 Popper etudes for solo cello was released by Naxos records in the fall of 2008 to a great critical acclaim.
Dmitry has made more than 70 recordings as conductor and cellist for Naxos, Erato-Warner, Chandos, Belair Music, Sonora, Connoisseur Society. Some of his recordings have won many prizes as, Berlin critic prize, Shostakovich's Jazz suites recording have been on charts in UK and US. Grammy nomination for 2007 and much more.
References
External links
Yablonsky's web siteYablonsky's biography on the AllMusic web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yablonsky, Dmitry
1962 births
Living people
Russian classical cellists
21st-century Russian conductors (music)
Russian male conductors (music)
21st-century Russian male musicians
21st-century cellists