Matthew Krel (194520 May 2009) was a

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...

ish conductor who migrated to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and in 1988 founded the SBS Radio and Television Youth Orchestra, of which he was the chief conductor until his death. Like his

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

friend, the composer

Dmitry Kabalevsky Dmitry Borisovich Kabalevsky ( ; – 14 February 1987) was a Soviet composer, conductor, pianist and pedagogue of Russian gentry descent. He helped set up the Union of Soviet Composers in Moscow and remained one of its leading figures during ...

, he was passionate about creating quality musical performance ensembles for young people. He was also profoundly influenced by

Zoltán Kodály Zoltán Kodály (, ; , ; 16 December 1882 – 6 March 1967) was a Hungarian composer, ethnomusicologist, music pedagogue, linguist, and philosopher. He is well known internationally as the creator of the Kodály method of music education. ...

's philosophy.Australian Jewish News
''ajn.com.au'',

Biography

Matthew Krel was born in

Krasnoyarsk Krasnoyarsk is the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and administrative center of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. It is situated along the Yenisey, Yenisey River, and is the second-largest city in Siberia after Novosibirsk, with a p ...

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

, to Zalman and Doba Krel, who were not musically trained. He studied in Moscow at the Gnessin State Musical College, graduating with a Master in Music in

piano accordion A piano accordion is an accordion equipped with a right-hand keyboard similar to a piano or organ. Its acoustic mechanism is more that of an organ than a piano, as they are both aerophones, but the term "piano accordion"—coined by Guido Deir ...

and other keyboard instruments, and conducting. He conducted student and youth orchestras, worked at the Pushkin Drama Theatre, and toured internationally with Russian orchestras. He had a very close association with

. He left the Soviet Union for

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

in the mid-1970s, and moved to

in 1978, settling in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

. His wife Faina, who had studied with him at the Gnessin College, played violin with the

Sydney Symphony Orchestra The Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) is an Australian symphony orchestra based in Sydney. With roots going back to 1908, the orchestra was made a permanent professional orchestra on the formation of the Australian Broadcasting Commission in 1932. ...

. He taught music privately, worked as a pianist in the evenings, started the Strathfield Music Centre School, and was assistant conductor with the Sydney Youth Orchestra. He was also conductor of th
Strathfield Symphony Orchestra
from 1987 to 1994 where he instigated a short lived young performers concerto competition (1987–1988). In 1987 he approached the

Special Broadcasting Service The Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) is an Australian hybrid-funded public broadcasting, public service broadcaster. About 80 percent of funding for the company is derived from tax revenue. SBS operates six TV channels (SBS (Australian TV chann ...

(SBS) about creating an SBS orchestra of young people. In 1988 the management agreed, but it was up to Krel to make it work. Virtually no funds would be available to the non-profit orchestra, and neither state nor federal governments would support them financially. However SBS did provide the new organisation with free rehearsal space, storage space for instruments and use of a photocopier. The orchestra gave its first public performance at the Sydney Town Hall in 1989. Under Krel's baton, the SBS Radio and Television Youth Orchestra performed the Australian premieres of

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic music, Romantic period. With a diverse List of compositions by Franz Liszt, body of work spanning more than six ...

's newly discovered Piano Concerto No.3 (with pianist Roman Rudnytsky), Respighi's ''Belkis, Queen of Sheba'', Elena Kats-Chernin's ''

Wild Swans ''Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China'' is a family history that spans a century, recounting the lives of three female generations in China, by Chinese writer Jung Chang. First published in 1991, ''Wild Swans'' contains the biographies of her m ...

'' Suite, and other works. He made his first return trip to his homeland in 1999, when he took the orchestra to Russia, one of their many international tours. Their playing was featured in the documentary ''The Russian Enigma'', first broadcast on SBS in 2001. It was repeated on 7 June 2009 in tribute to Krel. On 9 November 2008 he conducted the orchestra in only the sixth showing of the silent film '' The New Babylon'' (1929) with

Dmitri Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded as a major composer. Shostak ...

's film score played by a live orchestra, and the first such presentation in Australia. Matthew Krel died on 20 May 2009 of a rare form of

encephalitis Encephalitis is inflammation of the Human brain, brain. The severity can be variable with symptoms including reduction or alteration in consciousness, aphasia, headache, fever, confusion, a stiff neck, and vomiting. Complications may include se ...

. He was being treated for

lymphoma Lymphoma is a group of blood and lymph tumors that develop from lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). The name typically refers to just the cancerous versions rather than all such tumours. Signs and symptoms may include enlarged lymph node ...

when he caught a virus previously unrecorded in Australia. The virus is not normally fatal, but in his case it proved to be. His funeral was held on 25 May at Temple Emanuel, Sydney, and it featured a piece for string quartet called ''Consolation in Memory of Matthew Krel'', written for the occasion by his friend Elena Kats-Chernin. He was survived by his wife Faina, daughter Yelena and granddaughter Adrianna. In November 2013, the Board of the SBS Youth Orchestra announced the disbanding of the orchestra, and the endowment of a position in the Fellowship Program, one of the main education programs of the

, in perpetual remembrance of Matthew Krel.SBS Youth Orchestra to continue its legacy of musical training and excellence through the Sydney Symphony Orchestra’s Fellowship Program
Retrieved 14 April 2014

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Krel, Matthew 1945 births 2009 deaths Australian conductors (music) Soviet emigrants to Australia Musicians from Krasnoyarsk Gnessin State Musical College alumni Russian Jews 20th-century Australian musicians 20th-century Russian conductors (music) Russian male conductors (music) 20th-century Russian male musicians