The hero of our article today is Yuri Bashmet, a world-famous musician whom only lazy have not heard of. Honorary Academician of the London Academy of Arts, holder of several orders - he always wears black and loves the word "ambition". He loves life and loves the business he is engaged in. How his career took shape, who he is and what he dreams about is our story.
Who is he?
Yuri Bashmet is a person who does not need a special introduction. A world-famous musician and conductor - incredibly talented, lively, multifaceted - this person forever inscribed his name in the history of classical music of the XX century. Bashmet - People's Artist of the USSR; Laureate of the USSR State Prize and four RF State Prizes; and he is also a patriot, a patriot of Russia. And this is doubly pleasant when such gifted people do not change their principles for money, but try to do a lot (which is in their power) for their country; the country in which their descendants will live. After all, someone should do it.
He loves black in clothes and believes that you need to be consistent in everything. Claims that betrayal and failure to fulfill obligations given to anyone is pure crime.
You can talk about him for a long time and fascinatingly. Bashmet’s biography is multifaceted, and life is so full and diverse that it is very difficult to cover all areas of his activity. We will only touch on the facts from his personal story.
Facts from the biography
Bashmet Yuri Abramovich was born in Russia, in the city of Rostov-on-Don, in January 1953. His parents are representatives of the Jewish nation. In 1958, the family moved to Lviv. The fact is that the father of the future musician - Bashmet Abram Borisovich - an engineer of railway transport, was transferred to the territory of the Ukrainian SSR on duty.
I must say that the family did not have professional musicians, but music was always welcomed there, it was the main guest at any feast. From childhood, Yura was fond of this area of art, and his father, along with his grandparents, always supported this hobby.
Music has become an integral part of the weekly pastime of young Yuri Bashmet thanks to his mother, Krichever Maya Zinovievna. The woman, because of the fear that her son in difficult adolescence might get in touch with a bad company and go the wrong way, sent the boy to a music school. According to Maya Zinovievna, a permanent lesson in music school with
musical notation should somehow organize a teenager so that he does not have time for all sorts of stupid things.
Why alt?
If circumstances were different, the violinist Yuri Bashmet would have been known to the world. However, when Yura and his mother came to Lviv Secondary Special Music School, there were no places for learning the violin class. Maya Zinovievna was offered to give the child to the alt.
Of course, at that time the viola did not have such popularity and fame as the violin. Many believed that only losers were trained in the viola class, who were weeded out from playing the violin. In addition, a musical instrument is much larger than its relative, and in order to extract sounds from it, you need strong, hardy hands.
Parents of Yuri Bashmet, this fact is very alarmed, but the guy, on the contrary, was pleased. The fact is that a friend of the young man sang to his friend that the viola does not require such a huge return in training, like a violin. And this is a great chance to devote more time to playing the guitar. At that time, Jura, like many of his contemporaries, was listened to by the idols of the youth of that time - the Beatles group, whose members were musical gods - they were imitated, equated with.
But it should be said that this fact in the biography of young Bashmet turned out to be crucial. He liked the sound of viola so much that classes on this musical instrument carried the young man seriously. After some time, he became the winner of the republican music competition in Kiev.
First steps to success
I must say that in general, only thanks to Bashmet alt became so popular and famous. This musician brought the instrument to a new level and forever inscribed his name in the history of classical music. However, the worldwide fame of Yuri Bashmet was preceded by hard work - on technology, on execution and on himself.
After music school, Bashmet entered the Moscow Conservatory, which he graduated in 1976. Since that time, he began his active musical activity, in parallel with which there was an internship and training in the assistant of the same Moscow Conservatory.
The year 1976 is considered significant in the career of a musician - Bashmet won the International Viola Competition in Germany. He won the competition and went on a tour of the cities of the country. By the way, the competition was organized with the support of Bavaria's radio and television, and this undoubtedly played a leading role in the fact that the musician instantly became famous.
There is a very interesting fact in the biography of the maestro: the instrument of Yuri Bashmet, on which he plays from 1972 to the present day, is the work of the famous master Paolo Testore, created in the middle of the XVIII century. And it was Bashmet who was the first viola player in over 200 years who was entrusted with playing Mozart in German Salzburg on the viola.
Conducting
In addition to international recognition as a musician, Bashmet also gained fame as an orchestra conductor. His debut in this role took place in 1985 purely by accident. A music festival was held in the French city of Tours, and for compelling reasons Valery Gergiev, a close friend of Bashmet, could not attend it. Yuri Abramovich was asked for help in resolving this situation - he was persuaded to stand behind the conductor's console. It turned out - not in vain. Bashmet liked it so much that, in his own words, he simply fell ill with this affair.
In the same 1985, Yuri Abramovich created his own chamber orchestra called "Moscow Soloists". However, the first composition of this musical organism did not last long - until 1991. It so happened that one maestro returned to Moscow from a tour in France - the orchestra of Yuri Bashmet fell apart. All orchestra students decided to leave their homeland and stay abroad. It was a difficult situation for the musician - life tested him for strength. However, he survived and a year later gathered a new composition of Moscow Soloists.
Creative biography
To this day, conductor Yuri Bashmet has been touring with the Moscow Soloists Orchestra around the globe. Over the years of concert activity, musicians have circled the globe at least 30 times.
In 1996, Yuri Bashmet organized and headed the "Alto Experimental Department". At first, it was scary to throw this head at first into this adventurous idea. The department was conceived for those students who differed from the classical graduate of the conservatory. Maybe with a slightly weaker technique, but with no less charisma and personality. However, everything worked out.
Today, Yuri Abramovich is an assistant professor and teaches at the Moscow Conservatory. He also holds master classes in various cities of Russia and abroad.
In addition, under the direction of Bashmet is the New Russia State Symphony Orchestra. The maestro is the artistic director and chief conductor of the orchestra. Parallel to his leadership, Yuri Abramovich is engaged in a solo career, participates in chamber programs.
And he also has enough time to take a direct part in organizing festivals in the French Tour and the Italian Elbe.
In addition, from 1998 to this day, the maestro has been the artistic director of the December Evenings festival. It’s Yuri Bashmet who deals with all creative and organizational issues.
A family
Bashmet is married. His wife, Natalya Timofeevna, is a colleague in the music department. Many years ago, young people studied together at the violin department at the Moscow Conservatory and met at a dorm party.
Yuri immediately drew attention to a pretty girl, but Natalia was in no hurry to show her feelings. However, she later realized that the young man was a real man to rely on, and accepted from Yuri an offer of marriage. Young people decided to unite their destinies as fifth-year students.
Yuri Abramovich Bashmet and his wife Natalya Timofeevna have two children - son Alexander and daughter Ksenia.
Ksenia followed in the footsteps of her parents and became a good pianist, she was interested in classical music. Bashmet admits that he is proud of the success of his daughter. However, initially he did not think to instill this profession in his children. In his opinion, this is a very difficult specialty.
Everything was decided by chance. When the girl was five years old, she was sent to Lviv for the summer to her grandmother, who, along with her older brother Yuri Bashmet, instilled in Ksyusha a rumor. She returned home with a baggage of knowledge.
Bashmet’s son didn’t follow his father’s musical path. He plays the flute and piano well, draws talentedly, he is close to classical music, but the guy is studying at the Faculty of Economics.
About the man of Yuri Bashmet
Yuri Bashmet, whose biography of creative activity is striking in its scale, loves not only to work, but also to have a good rest. Reading is considered the best rest for the soul - she loves to read a lot. Yuri Abramovich admits that the book can fascinate him so much that he sometimes forgets about sleep and bodily food.
Physical pleasure Bashmet brings a game of billiards. Do not mind the maestro and tease fortune - he is a frequent guest in the casino.
Bashmet is quite a companionable person, communication gives him real pleasure. The doors of the Bashmet family house are always open for guests. By the way, one of the favorite holidays of Yuri Abramovich is the New Year. The musician prefers to celebrate it not in a restaurant or in a noisy city, in principle, but in a secluded silence in the circle of relatives and relatives - in the country. Among his friends there are more actors. The musician frankly says that in his element it is more difficult for him to communicate with people.
Bashmet loves his homeland. He does not change Russia. And although on duty he has to travel to various countries in which he has a favorite city, his heart still breaks here, home. The maestro frankly declares that only in the halls of Russian cities there is a special atmosphere that is not found anywhere else.
Charity
Bashmet Yuri Abramovich - an integral person. As noted earlier, he tries to be consistent in everything, does not recognize betrayal. The musician is really helping those who need help and whom he can really help. And these are not always material resources.
In 1994, the maestro founded and headed the International Charitable Fund of Yuri Bashmet. After some time, the fund established the International Prize. D. Shostakovich "for outstanding achievements in the field of world art."
According to Yuri Abramovich, to help everyone, of course, is impossible. But targeted - under the force, most importantly, there would be a desire.
Here he is, Yuri Bashmet, great and incredibly talented, distant and so close, his own and real.