Lorin Maazel
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Lorin Varencove Maazel (born March 6, 1930) is a conductor, violinist and composer.
Maazel was born to American parents in Neuilly-sur-Seine in France and brought up in the United States. He was a prodigy, taking his first conducting lesson at age seven and making his debut at age eight. At twelve he toured America to conduct major orchestras. He made his violin debut at the age of fifteen. He later studied at the University of Pittsburgh.
In 1960 he became the first American to conduct at Bayreuth. He was conductor of the Deutsche Oper Berlin from 1965 to 1971 and the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra from 1965 to 1975.
In 1972, Maazel began his tenure as Music Director at the Cleveland Orchestra, succeeding George Szell. Maazel's emotional, rich interpretation of music greatly differed from Szell's characteristic crisp, defined precision in performance. One of his most notable recordings during this time was the first complete recording of George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess, which used an entirely African-American cast. He held the post until 1982. He has not conducted the Cleveland Orchestra since his departure, although Maazel cancelled a scheduled return engagement in 2006 because of illness.[1]
Maazel then served at the Vienna State Opera from 1982 to 1984 as general manager and chief conductor. From 1984-1988, he was the Music Consultant to the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and its Music Director from 1988 to 1996. From 1993-2002, he was Chief Conductor of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra in Munich.
In 2000, Maazel made a guest-conducting appearance with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra after an absence of over 20 years.[2] This engagement led to his appointment as the orchestra's next music director, starting in 2002, succeeding Kurt Masur.[3] He is scheduled to relinquish this position with the New York Philharmonic in 2009.
In 2004, Maazel became the music director of the Arturo Toscanini Philharmonic. In March 2006, Lorin Maazel toured Asia with violinist Lidia Baich, conducting orchestras such as the Singapore Symphony Orchestra. In September 2006 Maestro Maazel conducted the orchestra of the new opera house of the Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències of Valencia, of which he is principal conductor.
Maazel has also composed an opera, called 1984, based on George Orwell's book of the same name.
[edit] Compositions
partial list
- 1984 (opera), Opera in Two Acts, based on the George Orwell novel
- Opus 16, The Empty Pot, for Orchestra, Childrens' Chorus, Boy Soprano and Narrator
- Opus 15, The Giving Tree, for Cello, Narrator, and Orchestra
- Opus 12, Music for Violin and Orchestra, premiered and recorded by Lorin Maazel
- Opus 11, Music for Flute and Orchestra, premiered and recorded by James Galway
- Opus 10, Music for Violoncello and Orchestra, premiered and recorded by Mstislav Rostropovich
[edit] References
- ^ Donald Rosenberg, "Maazel cancels". Cleveland Plain Dealer, 8 May 2006.
- ^ Martin Kettle, "The show goes on". The Guardian, 26 January 2001.
- ^ Norman Lebrecht, "At last, I've made my father happy". Telegraph, 31 May 2001.
[edit] External links
- Maestro Maazel's Website: Maestro Maazel
- Biography: Lorin Maazel, from New York Philharmonic
| Preceded by Ferenc Fricsay |
Principal Conductor, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin 1964–1975 |
Succeeded by Riccardo Chailly |
| Preceded by George Szell |
Music Director, Cleveland Orchestra 1972–1982 |
Succeeded by Christoph von Dohnányi |
| Preceded by Egon Seefehlner |
Director, Vienna State Opera 1982–1984 |
Succeeded by Egon Seefehlner |
| Preceded by André Previn |
Music Director, Pittsburgh Symphony 1988–1996 |
Succeeded by Mariss Jansons |
| Preceded by Sergiu Celibidache |
Principal Conductor, Orchestre National de France 1987–1991 |
Succeeded by Charles Dutoit |
| Preceded by Sir Colin Davis |
Chief Conductor, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra 1993–2002 |
Succeeded by Mariss Jansons |
| Preceded by Kurt Masur |
Music Director, New York Philharmonic 2002–2009 |
Succeeded by incumbent |
