Temirkanov tchaikovsky biography

The Russian conductor Yuri Temirkanov has died in St Petersburg at the age of 84. A former Music Director of the St Petersburg Philharmonic and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, as well of a Principal Conductor of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, among many other associations with orchestras and opera companies, Temirkanov was particularly admired for his interpretations of the Russian repertoire, from Tchaikovsky to Shostakovich, Prokofiev and Rachmaninov.

In reviewing a series of DVDs of live performances of Tchaikovsky’s Symphonies Nos 4-6 (on BelAir) in February 2014, Gramophone’s David Gutman beautifully captured Temirkanov’s special manner on the podium: ‘His is an individualistic, sometimes perplexing podium presence, somewhere between Boulez’s traffic cop and Gergiev’s shimmering shaman. The baton is eschewed in favour of a gestural armoury which betrays little interest in the tonal sheen preoccupying Mikhail Pletnev for one. Tchaikovsky nutcracker suite.