The Russian National Orchestra gave Carnegie Hall Bartok surrounded by Shostakovich on Feb. 3. 2004. <...>
RUSSIAN NATIONAL ORCHESTRA — Alexander Vedernikov, conductor; Hélène Grimaud, pianist. Shostakovich ("Festive Overture"; Symphony No. 5), Bartok (Piano Concerto No. 3). Carnegie Hall, 8
Tuesday's concert was led by Alexander Vedernikov, and especially notable was the Shostakovich Symphony's slow movement, done with deep, straining yet beautifully prepared intensity. Shostakovich's powerful massing of sound occupied a different world than Bartok's.
Bernard Holland, The New York Times, Feb. 9, 2004
Source.
Czech Style.
The Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra Debuts with Jiří Bělohlávek
In recent years, the Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra has increasingly surprised audiences with high-quality symphonic programs, transcending its original "opera and ballet" profile. Audiences, in turn, have welcomed this transformation—according to season ticket sales at the Moscow Philharmonic, the Bolshoi Theatre's season ticket has become the leader. Last year, in addition to concerts with its artistic director, Alexander Vedernikov, the Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra delighted the audience with a superb Mozart concerto with the Austrian conductor and patriarch, Leopold Hager. This year, it promises an equally remarkable evening of music by Dvořák and Janáček, featuring the most prominent Czech musician of our time, conductor Jiří Bělohlávek.
Mikhail Golitsyn, Weekend, February 14, 2007
Source.
“Alexander Vedernikov conducted brilliantly, and the lurid colours and goose-pimple glissandi of the orchestra were exceptionally vivid.”
Anna Picard, The Independent Jul 30th 2006
“The Liszt made for a grand opening to the concert. Vedernikov’s fluid, expressive style of direction elicited a powerful and intense performance by the orchestra. The climax came at full power from the orchestra to produce a majestic lead-in to the Sibelius. “
Andre S. Hughes, South Bend Tribune Review Dec 2nd 2006
“Vedernikov relishes detail and adds an edge to the music he conducts (aided by a lucid and expressive technique), which came into its own in Tchaikovsky 4, the opening brassy ‘fate’ motif grandly stated, Vedernikov keeping the opening movement on the move without forcing the pace, tempo- and dynamic-dovetailing linking the chains persuasively “
ClassicalSource.com Oct 30th 2009
"Praise be … to Glinka and Tchaikovsky for showing what glittering substance is all about, and to Alexander Vedernikov for perfection of style in both. (★★★★)".
David Nice, The Arts Desk
“This last in the series featured the First Symphony, and a rousing performance it was, capturing the young Sibelius’s rumbustiousness as he set off on his epic symphonic odyssey. The Russian conductor Alexander Vedernikov, who had opened the evening with a swaggering account of Shostakovich’s suite from The Bolt, threw himself into the symphony with an enthusiasm that swept up orchestra and audience.”
Andrew Clark, Financial Times May 13th 2012
Source.
“In this utterly compelling (63-minute) performance, Vedernikov brought unequivocal shape and direction to a Symphony that can seem overblown and empty; not a bit of that here as he lived the music, sometimes stood back from it, alternating a mix of ‘proper’ conducting with something off the cuff, and in doing so aligning himself to the charismatic and maverick Rozhdestvensky. Certainly Vedernikov has a formed a close rapport with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, magnificently responsive here, with future appearances from this estimable conductor keenly anticipated. “
Colin Anderson, ClassicalSource.com Mar 22nd 2013
“The conductor Alexander Vedernikov may have adopted a broad-brush approach to the latter work, but as a former music director of the Bolshoi, he was certainly at home in this music. And the main work itself? Vedernikov’s Rite had powerful individuality. Though not short of virtuosity, which the BBCSO delivered with trademark ease, it stood out for its melancholic tone, with even the big orchestral howls carrying unusual anguish. A characterful conductor, Vedernikov supplied his own wild-man choreography on the podium, very different from Nijinsky’s contribution, which Stravinsky later recalled as “the knock-kneed and long-braided Lolitas jumping up and down”.”
John Allison, Telegraph Sep 23rd 2013
“… Vedernikov inspired the musicians to discover their inner savage, propelling the most explosive sections with an elemental thrust. At the same time, in all that heat Vedernikov still balanced and shaped textures and phrases with a manicurist’s precision. The woodwinds’ introduction, wondrously virile, told us that. Through all the rhythmic pandemonium the ensemble sense was terrifyingly exact, making the couple of brass fluffs insignificant, flies on a lion’s back.”
Geoff Brown, TheTimes.co.uk Sep 24th 2013
“The new cast of Eugene Onegin, the season opener at the Met, has weighed in. Turns out — hooray! — they’re a troupe of heavyweights, especially as conducted by debuting Alexander Vedernikov, who appears to have Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky deeply embedded in his DNA.”
David Finkle, The Huffington Post Nov 24th 2013
Total Immersion: John Tavener Remembered, Barbican, London – review
"...But the lion's share of the praise goes to the orchestra and condutor Alexander Vedernikov. Exhilarating from begginning to end, his was an interpretation full of controlled ecstasy and exquisitely blened colors."
Hannah Nepil, Financial Times. Oct 6th 2014
Source.
“… Vedernikov’s approach to the symphony’s frenzied closing bars was resolute and almost mechanistic: the great machine of the state overwhelming the people, be they anti-tsarist or Hungarian protesters. It was powerful, menacing stuff, and there was a sense that the Sunday-afternoon Edinburgh audience was more shellshocked than appreciative.”
Rowena Smith, The Guardian Dec 4th 2017
“… On the strength of this performance, Alexander Vedernikov is not such a musician. Conducting the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, in what was surprisingly the orchestra’s first performances of the work, Vedernikov showed himself to be an economical master of this music. This was a performance full of character but decidedly lacking in histrionics. From the outset, where glacial strings provide a backdrop for the recurring ghostly tattoo on the timpani – surely one of the most atmospheric of symphonic openings – this was a measured, almost cool performance that emphasised the work’s Mahlerian scope and scale.”
Rowena Smith, The Guardian Dec 4th 2017
Source.
Today, Alexander Vedernikov remains one of the key figures in the Russian and world opera and symphony scene. His work at the Bolshoi Theatre, as well as tours with world orchestras, continue to inspire generations of listeners. His legacy is not only a high level of performing skills, but also the ability to create music that penetrates the heart and inspires.Vedernikov proved that a conductor can be not only a technically perfect master, but also an artist capable of conveying complex emotions and the depth of music. His career is an example of how perseverance, talent, and passion for art can transform a person into a symbol of their era.
Viktor Myasnikov, Peoples.ru, May 3, 2005
Source.
London’s Russian Summer, on 2 Fronts: The Bolshoi and the Maryinsky
<...> Meanwhile at Covent Garden, for the Bolshoi Opera’s first appearance in London, the program opened with Francesca Zambello’s 2004 production of Prokofiev’s “Fiery Angel,” which was well received here. This was followed by a revival of Leonid Baratov’s lavish 1948 production of Mussorgsky’s “Boris Godunov.” Both were conducted by the Bolshoi’s new music director, Alexander Vedernikov, who has joined the general director, Anatoly Iksanov, in leading the Bolshoi’s revival.
Alan Riding, The New York Times, July 29, 2006
Source.
'Boris Godunov' in Savonlinna.
A many-faceted musical drama.
...It seems that Russian music obeys a special code which can only be deciphered by a person with Russian roots. Alexander Vedernikov achieved a rich sound from his orchestra, with anxiously pulsating rhythms and a truly Slavic depth.
Jukka Lind, Etelä-Saimaa, November 16, 2007."
"Boris Godunov" of the Bolshoi Theatre — a return to the origins.
...Maestro Vedernikov emphasizes the spontaneous expressiveness of Mussorgsky's text and skillfully brings all the lines together. This was especially felt in the final scene and the "rowdy" scene in the inn.
Rainer Palas, Aamulehti, November 16, 2007.
They know how to do this at the Bolshoi
The choir thunders like a church organ. The orchestra is full-sounding, and each singer possesses exactly the qualities that their part demands. Russians know how to do this!
The Bolshoi's 'Boris Godunov' is one continuous celebration. An undoubted reason for joy can be at least that we did not hear the Rimsky-Korsakov version — the 'lightened' one, which deprives this composition of its elemental power. Of the composer's seven versions, the 1871 version, in a slightly abridged form, was chosen. But the main thing is that the orchestration is original, and this is especially valuable, as maestro Alexander Vedernikov has a perfect command of the material.
Mikko Nortela, Savon Sanomat, November 16, 2007.
«Boris» of the Bolshoi — An Unhurried Epic
Vedernikov is very careful with Orthodox hymns. Such beautiful pianissimo from the choir is a great rarity. These "reverent" moods create a mystical spiritual contrast to worldly suffering, hustle and bustle, and cruelty.
When listening to this opera in its original orchestration performed by the orchestra under the baton of Vedernikov, one can only wonder why it was ever performed in the orchestrations of other composers. Mussorgsky's hand seems simplified and stern, but not crude or clumsy.
Simplicity is a component of a stylized Russian primitivism, which at one time was a new direction rooted in folk music and Orthodox hymns. The orchestration does not look grey at all; it is rich and colourful. There is significant lyrical and fragile beauty in the simplicity. The Russian strength has not disappeared either. Mussorgsky masterfully built the climaxes that depict it, as well as the deafening musical "ceremonies," filled with the ringing of bells, that glorify the secular and ecclesiastical union.
Hannu-Ilari Lampila, Helsingin Sanomat
«Boris» of the Bolshoi — a celebration of the orchestra
...The main hero of the performance was still the orchestra. Never before had I heard such a vivid and richly nuanced performance of 'Boris Godunov' as on this evening in the fortress with its magnificent acoustics.
The Bolshoi used Mussorgsky's very latest version, dated 1872, as its basis (the reviewer is mistaken: the Bolshoi Theatre used the 1871 version — ed.). No 'shortcomings' were observed in it, and the orchestra served as a reliable support for the drama's 'elemental' realism and the recitative-like song texture. Sometimes it sounded gloomy and even a bit rough, but it was still more beautiful and full than in the original version presented a few years ago in Helsinki by the St. Petersburg Mariinsky Theatre.
The Bolshoi Theatre's principal conductor, Alexander Vedernikov, 'read' this score with love, enjoying all its nuances. The musical component of the performance was very good overall, and, in particular, the perfectly honed wind solos made a great impression.
Harri Kuusisaari, Etelä-Suomen Sanomat
Source.
John Adams The Chairman Dances
Tippett Piano Concerto
Shostakovich Symphony No.8 in C minor, Op.65
Steven Osborne (piano)
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Barbican Hall, London
It may have been that July 2006 marked Alexander Vedernikov’s London debut, leading a troupe from the Bolshoi Theatre (when he was music director) in Boris Godunov and The Fiery Angel, both impressively staged at Covent Garden. Since then in the capital he has conducted the BBC Symphony and London Philharmonic orchestras several times each and always with excellence. Returning here to the nation’s broadcaster, this may well count as Vedernikov’s finest London concert to date. He worked wonders with John Adams’s ‘foxtrot for orchestra’ (derived from his opera Nixon in China), which chugged away brightly if repetitively, mixing Copland’s The Red Pony and Stravinsky’s Symphony in Three Movements, and benefitting from Vedernikov’s operatic flair, the BBCSO’s precise playing and the composer’s at-last change to something different, now smoochy and edgy before winding down like a 78rpm record having run out of mechanism.
Colin Anderson, ClassicalSource.com, 22 March, 2013
Source.
“The conductor Alexander Vedernikov may have adopted a broad-brush approach to the latter work, but as a former music director of the Bolshoi, he was certainly at home in this music. And the main work itself? Vedernikov’s Rite had powerful individuality. Though not short of virtuosity, which the BBCSO delivered with trademark ease, it stood out for its melancholic tone, with even the big orchestral howls carrying unusual anguish. A characterful conductor, Vedernikov supplied his own wild-man choreography on the podium, very different from Nijinsky’s contribution, which Stravinsky later recalled as “the knock-kneed and long-braided Lolitas jumping up and down”.”
John Allison, Telegraph Sep 23rd 2013
BBC Symphony Orchestra/Vedernikov at the Barbican
“… Vedernikov inspired the musicians to discover their inner savage, propelling the most explosive sections with an elemental thrust. At the same time, in all that heat Vedernikov still balanced and shaped textures and phrases with a manicurist’s precision. The woodwinds’ introduction, wondrously virile, told us that. Through all the rhythmic pandemonium the ensemble sense was terrifyingly exact, making the couple of brass fluffs insignificant, flies on a lion’s back.”
Geoff Brown, The Times, September 24 2013.
Source.
Eugene Onegin. Tchaikovsky opera at the Metropolitan
After a few off-kilter moments in the first act, Alexander Vedernikov made a commendable house debut in the pit, leading a supple and passionate rendition of Tchaikovsky’s gorgeous score.
Vivien Schweitzer, The New York Times, Nov. 27, 2013
Source.
...The combination of Rachmaninov’s Paganini rhapsody and a dapper Stephen Hough dashing off its pyrotechnics with mercurial elan packed the hall to the rafters for Alexander Vedernikov’s all-Russian Prom with the BBCSO. Neither Tchaikovsky’s Hamlet nor Prokofiev’s Third Symphony is abox-office winner, but Vedernikov, former music director of the Bolshoi Theatre, knows them well. Indeed, he is one of the few conductors of rank who has championed Prokofiev’s lurid opera The Fiery Angel, on which the symphony is based. It’s a patchy, gritty work, but Vedernikov produced enough fire and brimstone in the finale to remind us of the opera’s themes of sexual frustration and diabolic possession.
Hugh Canning, The Sunday Times, August 28 2016.
Source.
International Artist Of The Year 2017
P2 The Prize for International Artist of the year goes to the conductor Alexander Vedernikov for being a fantastic driving force in Odense's performance of Wagner's 'The Ring of the Nibelung'.
Most recently in Siegfried, where Alexander Vedernikov demonstrated his exceptional artistic strength, commitment and energy that inspires the Odense Symphony Orchestra and the soloists to perform at the highest international level.
DR P2 Prisen 2017
Source.
"To have the opportunity to see him on stage and see how he makes the music succeed in the way he does was a pleasure. Vedernikov can at once deliver a great precision and safe control and set the orchestra free. There is nothing better than war his left hand, it is not holding the staff, just saying: and so on! fill in yourself! It is large format and provides music that breathes and sharpens the ears."
Camilla Marie Dahlgreen, Information, Februar, 12, 2019
Source.
Nixon in China opera by John Adams, The Royal Danish Theatre.
The Royal Danish Court Orchestra under Alexander Vedernikov performed with absolute perfection. The score, enriched with electronic instruments, demands the highest degree of rhythmic precision, especially in the first act, and repetitive figures from strings and winds, which are more suited to a beat than a melodic instrument. The security with which the choir and orchestra listened to the busy, hectic first act in particular was stunning.
Dr. Martin Knust, Operapoint, May 15, 2019
Source.
Nixon in China opera by John Adams, The Royal Danish Theatre.
Vital and nuanced orchestral playing.
The Opera's music director, Alexander Vedernikov, we associate mostly with the great (late)Romantic repertoire, from Weber to Shostakovich, but here he showed his great breadth by delivering a very convincing interpretation of a music that is immediately very far away from the Classical-Romantic opera language. Minimalist music has a marked, often physically intrusive pulse as its trademark, it feeds on rhythmic-motivic repetition + variation and on a special sound world, not on bulging crescendi, languishing melodies or exciting chords. The orchestra is composed in a different way than the traditional one: about half as many strings as we are used to, and a wind band where trumpets and horns are replaced with saxophones of all sizes, and where flutes and clarinets play a very important role in the sound formation. In addition, two grand pianos and a distinctive percussion section contribute to a sound that is more reminiscent of musical and symphonic jazz than of romantic orchestral music. Vedernikov probably kept the rhythmic pot boiling, but at the same time he created moments of great melodic and tonal beauty as soon as the composer allows it, e.g. in the Wagner-inspired apotheosis of ballet music, and he gave the singers plenty of space to delineate their individual tonal and melodic profiles.
Lars Ole Bonde, May 22, 2019
Source.
Eugene Onegin
A revolutionary production of the most popular Russian opera, featuring Mariusz Kwiecień and Tatiana Monogarova in the leading roles of a story about elusive love.
The premiere of the production took place on September 1, 2006, on the New Stage of the Bolshoi Theatre, amidst rumors of the prolonged reconstruction of the historic stage. It became an event as historic as the reconstruction of the main theater building in the country.
Dmitry Chernyakov opted against a detailed reconstruction of the Pushkin era, and not only that; many canonical details of the classic work underwent changes. It is enough to say that the scene of the duel between Onegin and Lensky significantly differs from the original, which greatly upset Galina Vishnevskaya, who "protested" against the director's arbitrary choices and refused to celebrate her anniversary at the Bolshoi.
The musical director of the production at that time, Alexander Vedernikov, recounted shortly after the premiere: "I recently received a letter: 'Alexander Vedernikov, I wanted to write 'Dear,' but my hand wouldn't allow it.' Somehow, it is believed that the new production of 'Eugene Onegin' is a desecration of national treasures. There is a certain category of people who go to the opera to experience familiar sensations once again, rather than seek new impressions. But the theater is a place that reflects the processes existing in real life. Life changes and the theater changes too. And they just cannot accept that the theater's task is not to preserve certain fixed forms."
Vedernikov aptly responded to all the outraged remarks: Chernyakov's "Eugene Onegin" represents precisely a new form of life for this great opera, fresh, vibrant, and psychologically authentic. No one has ever undertaken such interpretations of Tchaikovsky before. In harmony with the inventive direction, the ensemble of actors – under Chernyakov's guidance – performs on a par with the greatest dramatic artists: Mariusz Kwiecień as Onegin, Tatiana Monogarova as Tatiana, Makvala Kasrashvili as Larina, and Andrei Dunayev as Lensky.
coolconnections.ru
Source.
By staging the Bolshoi's new Onegin in 2008, the Paris Opera introduced French audiences to Dmitri Tcherniakov. Bel Air Classiques is re-releasing this classic from its DVD catalogue on Blu-ray.
<...> The chorus, prominent during breathtaking ensemble scenes, is as captivating to the ear as it is to the eye. Alexander Vedernikov and the Bolshoi Orchestra masterfully navigate the upheavals and tremors of a work punctuated by the fateful timpani of particularly striking passages.
Jean-Luc Clairet, ResMusica, Le 25 novembre 2019
Source.
Eugene Onegin. Recorded live at the Opera National de Paris, September 2008.
Alexander Vedernikov draws excellent playing from his Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra.
It’s certainly worth seeing this staging and, with such excellent vocal performances, it bears repeated listening at the very least.
Mark Pullinger, 2020 Gramophone Magazine — 3 March.
Source.
Riga residents remember Alexander Vedernikov from the triumphant tours of the Bolshoi Theater at the Latvian National Opera in 2003 and 2008.
Vedernikov visited Riga first during a tour of the Bolshoi Theatre in June 2003. Then he conducted a production of Puccini's Turandot."This is my first time in Riga, and it's a very solemn moment for me," he said when he arrived from Moscow, sitting in the mezzanine hall of the Latvian Opera. - It was here that such luminaries as Richard Wagner, Leo Blech, Leonid Wigner conducted, and two Jansons, Arvid and Maris, worked. This is a very prestigious circumstance for me."And the second time he came exactly five years later, again to the Riga Opera Festival, organized by Andrejs Jagars. He has conducted two screenings of Pyotr Tchaikovsky's "Eugene Onegin" and two screenings of Leonid Desyatnikov's acclaimed opera "Rosenthal's Children" staged by Aimuntas Nyakrosus. Now it's history, and those who saw those double tours are happy.
Andrey Shavrey, LSM.LV, October 30, 2020
Source.
Alexander Vedernikov will be always in our hearts
Last night the dreadful COVID-19 virus took away a wonderful human being and a great conductor, Alexander Vedernikov. He was a sincere, talented, profound and passionate musician, a devoted friend. He was only 56 years old… We shall remember his marvellous concerts and recordings . He was a warm companion. Musicians from the orchestras or soloists with whom he performed, all are deeply saddened by the news of his death.
Alexander Vedernikov was principal conductor and music director of the Bolshoi Theatre from 2001-2009, he was principal conductor of the Odense Symphony Orchestra in Denmark, and most recently, principal conductor of the Royal Opera House in Denmark . He left a lasting impression on the French musical scene with the premiere of Glinka’s “Life for the Tsar” opera at the Radio France – Montpellier Festival.
He was president of the jury at the last Evgeny Svetlanov International Conducting Competition in 2018.
He gave his last performance of “Cavaleria Rusticana” at the Mikhailovsky Opera in Saint Petersbourg on 4th October where he was appointed music director in 2019.
Our deepest condolences to his wife and family.
www.svetlanov-evgeny.com, October 31, 2020
Source.
The heir to a venerable musical dynasty, the son of the famous bass Alexander Vedernikov Sr., the keeper of the traditions of the Bolshoi Theater of the USSR, in the 2000s Vedernikov Jr. carried out on the main opera stages of the country perhaps the most daring reform in its history. It was he who was the chief conductor and musical director of the State Academic Bolshoi Theatre from 2001 to 2009. And during this time, he managed to create an entire era in the country's main theater, marked by landmark premieres - the performances of Leonid Desyatnikov's "Rosenthal's Children", Dmitry Chernyakov's "Eugene Onegin", Sergei Prokofiev's "War and Peace" and "The Fiery Angel", Rimsky-Korsakov's "The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh" and others. When in 2009 he felt that he had done everything he could for the Bolshoi, he made a gesture unprecedented for the Russian cultural scene - he resigned.
By switching to the foreign music market, Vedernikov again disappointed expectations — instead of resting on the laurels of a patented specialist in the Russian repertoire, he easily got used to the European artistic context: all his key successes in the 2010s are associated with Western music of the twentieth century, which remains terra incognita for the vast majority of Russian conductors.
Press service of the St. Petersburg State Academic Symphony Orchestra, March 3, 2021
Source.
RUSSIAN NATIONAL ORCHESTRA — Alexander Vedernikov, conductor; Hélène Grimaud, pianist. Shostakovich ("Festive Overture"; Symphony No. 5), Bartok (Piano Concerto No. 3). Carnegie Hall, 8
Tuesday's concert was led by Alexander Vedernikov, and especially notable was the Shostakovich Symphony's slow movement, done with deep, straining yet beautifully prepared intensity. Shostakovich's powerful massing of sound occupied a different world than Bartok's.
Bernard Holland, The New York Times, Feb. 9, 2004
Source.
Czech Style.
The Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra Debuts with Jiří Bělohlávek
In recent years, the Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra has increasingly surprised audiences with high-quality symphonic programs, transcending its original "opera and ballet" profile. Audiences, in turn, have welcomed this transformation—according to season ticket sales at the Moscow Philharmonic, the Bolshoi Theatre's season ticket has become the leader. Last year, in addition to concerts with its artistic director, Alexander Vedernikov, the Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra delighted the audience with a superb Mozart concerto with the Austrian conductor and patriarch, Leopold Hager. This year, it promises an equally remarkable evening of music by Dvořák and Janáček, featuring the most prominent Czech musician of our time, conductor Jiří Bělohlávek.
Mikhail Golitsyn, Weekend, February 14, 2007
Source.
“Alexander Vedernikov conducted brilliantly, and the lurid colours and goose-pimple glissandi of the orchestra were exceptionally vivid.”
Anna Picard, The Independent Jul 30th 2006
“The Liszt made for a grand opening to the concert. Vedernikov’s fluid, expressive style of direction elicited a powerful and intense performance by the orchestra. The climax came at full power from the orchestra to produce a majestic lead-in to the Sibelius. “
Andre S. Hughes, South Bend Tribune Review Dec 2nd 2006
“Vedernikov relishes detail and adds an edge to the music he conducts (aided by a lucid and expressive technique), which came into its own in Tchaikovsky 4, the opening brassy ‘fate’ motif grandly stated, Vedernikov keeping the opening movement on the move without forcing the pace, tempo- and dynamic-dovetailing linking the chains persuasively “
ClassicalSource.com Oct 30th 2009
"Praise be … to Glinka and Tchaikovsky for showing what glittering substance is all about, and to Alexander Vedernikov for perfection of style in both. (★★★★)".
David Nice, The Arts Desk
“This last in the series featured the First Symphony, and a rousing performance it was, capturing the young Sibelius’s rumbustiousness as he set off on his epic symphonic odyssey. The Russian conductor Alexander Vedernikov, who had opened the evening with a swaggering account of Shostakovich’s suite from The Bolt, threw himself into the symphony with an enthusiasm that swept up orchestra and audience.”
Andrew Clark, Financial Times May 13th 2012
Source.
“In this utterly compelling (63-minute) performance, Vedernikov brought unequivocal shape and direction to a Symphony that can seem overblown and empty; not a bit of that here as he lived the music, sometimes stood back from it, alternating a mix of ‘proper’ conducting with something off the cuff, and in doing so aligning himself to the charismatic and maverick Rozhdestvensky. Certainly Vedernikov has a formed a close rapport with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, magnificently responsive here, with future appearances from this estimable conductor keenly anticipated. “
Colin Anderson, ClassicalSource.com Mar 22nd 2013
“The conductor Alexander Vedernikov may have adopted a broad-brush approach to the latter work, but as a former music director of the Bolshoi, he was certainly at home in this music. And the main work itself? Vedernikov’s Rite had powerful individuality. Though not short of virtuosity, which the BBCSO delivered with trademark ease, it stood out for its melancholic tone, with even the big orchestral howls carrying unusual anguish. A characterful conductor, Vedernikov supplied his own wild-man choreography on the podium, very different from Nijinsky’s contribution, which Stravinsky later recalled as “the knock-kneed and long-braided Lolitas jumping up and down”.”
John Allison, Telegraph Sep 23rd 2013
“… Vedernikov inspired the musicians to discover their inner savage, propelling the most explosive sections with an elemental thrust. At the same time, in all that heat Vedernikov still balanced and shaped textures and phrases with a manicurist’s precision. The woodwinds’ introduction, wondrously virile, told us that. Through all the rhythmic pandemonium the ensemble sense was terrifyingly exact, making the couple of brass fluffs insignificant, flies on a lion’s back.”
Geoff Brown, TheTimes.co.uk Sep 24th 2013
“The new cast of Eugene Onegin, the season opener at the Met, has weighed in. Turns out — hooray! — they’re a troupe of heavyweights, especially as conducted by debuting Alexander Vedernikov, who appears to have Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky deeply embedded in his DNA.”
David Finkle, The Huffington Post Nov 24th 2013
Total Immersion: John Tavener Remembered, Barbican, London – review
"...But the lion's share of the praise goes to the orchestra and condutor Alexander Vedernikov. Exhilarating from begginning to end, his was an interpretation full of controlled ecstasy and exquisitely blened colors."
Hannah Nepil, Financial Times. Oct 6th 2014
Source.
“… Vedernikov’s approach to the symphony’s frenzied closing bars was resolute and almost mechanistic: the great machine of the state overwhelming the people, be they anti-tsarist or Hungarian protesters. It was powerful, menacing stuff, and there was a sense that the Sunday-afternoon Edinburgh audience was more shellshocked than appreciative.”
Rowena Smith, The Guardian Dec 4th 2017
“… On the strength of this performance, Alexander Vedernikov is not such a musician. Conducting the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, in what was surprisingly the orchestra’s first performances of the work, Vedernikov showed himself to be an economical master of this music. This was a performance full of character but decidedly lacking in histrionics. From the outset, where glacial strings provide a backdrop for the recurring ghostly tattoo on the timpani – surely one of the most atmospheric of symphonic openings – this was a measured, almost cool performance that emphasised the work’s Mahlerian scope and scale.”
Rowena Smith, The Guardian Dec 4th 2017
Source.
Today, Alexander Vedernikov remains one of the key figures in the Russian and world opera and symphony scene. His work at the Bolshoi Theatre, as well as tours with world orchestras, continue to inspire generations of listeners. His legacy is not only a high level of performing skills, but also the ability to create music that penetrates the heart and inspires.Vedernikov proved that a conductor can be not only a technically perfect master, but also an artist capable of conveying complex emotions and the depth of music. His career is an example of how perseverance, talent, and passion for art can transform a person into a symbol of their era.
Viktor Myasnikov, Peoples.ru, May 3, 2005
Source.
London’s Russian Summer, on 2 Fronts: The Bolshoi and the Maryinsky
<...> Meanwhile at Covent Garden, for the Bolshoi Opera’s first appearance in London, the program opened with Francesca Zambello’s 2004 production of Prokofiev’s “Fiery Angel,” which was well received here. This was followed by a revival of Leonid Baratov’s lavish 1948 production of Mussorgsky’s “Boris Godunov.” Both were conducted by the Bolshoi’s new music director, Alexander Vedernikov, who has joined the general director, Anatoly Iksanov, in leading the Bolshoi’s revival.
Alan Riding, The New York Times, July 29, 2006
Source.
'Boris Godunov' in Savonlinna.
A many-faceted musical drama.
...It seems that Russian music obeys a special code which can only be deciphered by a person with Russian roots. Alexander Vedernikov achieved a rich sound from his orchestra, with anxiously pulsating rhythms and a truly Slavic depth.
Jukka Lind, Etelä-Saimaa, November 16, 2007."
"Boris Godunov" of the Bolshoi Theatre — a return to the origins.
...Maestro Vedernikov emphasizes the spontaneous expressiveness of Mussorgsky's text and skillfully brings all the lines together. This was especially felt in the final scene and the "rowdy" scene in the inn.
Rainer Palas, Aamulehti, November 16, 2007.
They know how to do this at the Bolshoi
The choir thunders like a church organ. The orchestra is full-sounding, and each singer possesses exactly the qualities that their part demands. Russians know how to do this!
The Bolshoi's 'Boris Godunov' is one continuous celebration. An undoubted reason for joy can be at least that we did not hear the Rimsky-Korsakov version — the 'lightened' one, which deprives this composition of its elemental power. Of the composer's seven versions, the 1871 version, in a slightly abridged form, was chosen. But the main thing is that the orchestration is original, and this is especially valuable, as maestro Alexander Vedernikov has a perfect command of the material.
Mikko Nortela, Savon Sanomat, November 16, 2007.
«Boris» of the Bolshoi — An Unhurried Epic
Vedernikov is very careful with Orthodox hymns. Such beautiful pianissimo from the choir is a great rarity. These "reverent" moods create a mystical spiritual contrast to worldly suffering, hustle and bustle, and cruelty.
When listening to this opera in its original orchestration performed by the orchestra under the baton of Vedernikov, one can only wonder why it was ever performed in the orchestrations of other composers. Mussorgsky's hand seems simplified and stern, but not crude or clumsy.
Simplicity is a component of a stylized Russian primitivism, which at one time was a new direction rooted in folk music and Orthodox hymns. The orchestration does not look grey at all; it is rich and colourful. There is significant lyrical and fragile beauty in the simplicity. The Russian strength has not disappeared either. Mussorgsky masterfully built the climaxes that depict it, as well as the deafening musical "ceremonies," filled with the ringing of bells, that glorify the secular and ecclesiastical union.
Hannu-Ilari Lampila, Helsingin Sanomat
«Boris» of the Bolshoi — a celebration of the orchestra
...The main hero of the performance was still the orchestra. Never before had I heard such a vivid and richly nuanced performance of 'Boris Godunov' as on this evening in the fortress with its magnificent acoustics.
The Bolshoi used Mussorgsky's very latest version, dated 1872, as its basis (the reviewer is mistaken: the Bolshoi Theatre used the 1871 version — ed.). No 'shortcomings' were observed in it, and the orchestra served as a reliable support for the drama's 'elemental' realism and the recitative-like song texture. Sometimes it sounded gloomy and even a bit rough, but it was still more beautiful and full than in the original version presented a few years ago in Helsinki by the St. Petersburg Mariinsky Theatre.
The Bolshoi Theatre's principal conductor, Alexander Vedernikov, 'read' this score with love, enjoying all its nuances. The musical component of the performance was very good overall, and, in particular, the perfectly honed wind solos made a great impression.
Harri Kuusisaari, Etelä-Suomen Sanomat
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John Adams The Chairman Dances
Tippett Piano Concerto
Shostakovich Symphony No.8 in C minor, Op.65
Steven Osborne (piano)
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Barbican Hall, London
It may have been that July 2006 marked Alexander Vedernikov’s London debut, leading a troupe from the Bolshoi Theatre (when he was music director) in Boris Godunov and The Fiery Angel, both impressively staged at Covent Garden. Since then in the capital he has conducted the BBC Symphony and London Philharmonic orchestras several times each and always with excellence. Returning here to the nation’s broadcaster, this may well count as Vedernikov’s finest London concert to date. He worked wonders with John Adams’s ‘foxtrot for orchestra’ (derived from his opera Nixon in China), which chugged away brightly if repetitively, mixing Copland’s The Red Pony and Stravinsky’s Symphony in Three Movements, and benefitting from Vedernikov’s operatic flair, the BBCSO’s precise playing and the composer’s at-last change to something different, now smoochy and edgy before winding down like a 78rpm record having run out of mechanism.
Colin Anderson, ClassicalSource.com, 22 March, 2013
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“The conductor Alexander Vedernikov may have adopted a broad-brush approach to the latter work, but as a former music director of the Bolshoi, he was certainly at home in this music. And the main work itself? Vedernikov’s Rite had powerful individuality. Though not short of virtuosity, which the BBCSO delivered with trademark ease, it stood out for its melancholic tone, with even the big orchestral howls carrying unusual anguish. A characterful conductor, Vedernikov supplied his own wild-man choreography on the podium, very different from Nijinsky’s contribution, which Stravinsky later recalled as “the knock-kneed and long-braided Lolitas jumping up and down”.”
John Allison, Telegraph Sep 23rd 2013
BBC Symphony Orchestra/Vedernikov at the Barbican
“… Vedernikov inspired the musicians to discover their inner savage, propelling the most explosive sections with an elemental thrust. At the same time, in all that heat Vedernikov still balanced and shaped textures and phrases with a manicurist’s precision. The woodwinds’ introduction, wondrously virile, told us that. Through all the rhythmic pandemonium the ensemble sense was terrifyingly exact, making the couple of brass fluffs insignificant, flies on a lion’s back.”
Geoff Brown, The Times, September 24 2013.
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Eugene Onegin. Tchaikovsky opera at the Metropolitan
After a few off-kilter moments in the first act, Alexander Vedernikov made a commendable house debut in the pit, leading a supple and passionate rendition of Tchaikovsky’s gorgeous score.
Vivien Schweitzer, The New York Times, Nov. 27, 2013
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...The combination of Rachmaninov’s Paganini rhapsody and a dapper Stephen Hough dashing off its pyrotechnics with mercurial elan packed the hall to the rafters for Alexander Vedernikov’s all-Russian Prom with the BBCSO. Neither Tchaikovsky’s Hamlet nor Prokofiev’s Third Symphony is abox-office winner, but Vedernikov, former music director of the Bolshoi Theatre, knows them well. Indeed, he is one of the few conductors of rank who has championed Prokofiev’s lurid opera The Fiery Angel, on which the symphony is based. It’s a patchy, gritty work, but Vedernikov produced enough fire and brimstone in the finale to remind us of the opera’s themes of sexual frustration and diabolic possession.
Hugh Canning, The Sunday Times, August 28 2016.
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International Artist Of The Year 2017
P2 The Prize for International Artist of the year goes to the conductor Alexander Vedernikov for being a fantastic driving force in Odense's performance of Wagner's 'The Ring of the Nibelung'.
Most recently in Siegfried, where Alexander Vedernikov demonstrated his exceptional artistic strength, commitment and energy that inspires the Odense Symphony Orchestra and the soloists to perform at the highest international level.
DR P2 Prisen 2017
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"To have the opportunity to see him on stage and see how he makes the music succeed in the way he does was a pleasure. Vedernikov can at once deliver a great precision and safe control and set the orchestra free. There is nothing better than war his left hand, it is not holding the staff, just saying: and so on! fill in yourself! It is large format and provides music that breathes and sharpens the ears."
Camilla Marie Dahlgreen, Information, Februar, 12, 2019
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Nixon in China opera by John Adams, The Royal Danish Theatre.
The Royal Danish Court Orchestra under Alexander Vedernikov performed with absolute perfection. The score, enriched with electronic instruments, demands the highest degree of rhythmic precision, especially in the first act, and repetitive figures from strings and winds, which are more suited to a beat than a melodic instrument. The security with which the choir and orchestra listened to the busy, hectic first act in particular was stunning.
Dr. Martin Knust, Operapoint, May 15, 2019
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Nixon in China opera by John Adams, The Royal Danish Theatre.
Vital and nuanced orchestral playing.
The Opera's music director, Alexander Vedernikov, we associate mostly with the great (late)Romantic repertoire, from Weber to Shostakovich, but here he showed his great breadth by delivering a very convincing interpretation of a music that is immediately very far away from the Classical-Romantic opera language. Minimalist music has a marked, often physically intrusive pulse as its trademark, it feeds on rhythmic-motivic repetition + variation and on a special sound world, not on bulging crescendi, languishing melodies or exciting chords. The orchestra is composed in a different way than the traditional one: about half as many strings as we are used to, and a wind band where trumpets and horns are replaced with saxophones of all sizes, and where flutes and clarinets play a very important role in the sound formation. In addition, two grand pianos and a distinctive percussion section contribute to a sound that is more reminiscent of musical and symphonic jazz than of romantic orchestral music. Vedernikov probably kept the rhythmic pot boiling, but at the same time he created moments of great melodic and tonal beauty as soon as the composer allows it, e.g. in the Wagner-inspired apotheosis of ballet music, and he gave the singers plenty of space to delineate their individual tonal and melodic profiles.
Lars Ole Bonde, May 22, 2019
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Eugene Onegin
A revolutionary production of the most popular Russian opera, featuring Mariusz Kwiecień and Tatiana Monogarova in the leading roles of a story about elusive love.
The premiere of the production took place on September 1, 2006, on the New Stage of the Bolshoi Theatre, amidst rumors of the prolonged reconstruction of the historic stage. It became an event as historic as the reconstruction of the main theater building in the country.
Dmitry Chernyakov opted against a detailed reconstruction of the Pushkin era, and not only that; many canonical details of the classic work underwent changes. It is enough to say that the scene of the duel between Onegin and Lensky significantly differs from the original, which greatly upset Galina Vishnevskaya, who "protested" against the director's arbitrary choices and refused to celebrate her anniversary at the Bolshoi.
The musical director of the production at that time, Alexander Vedernikov, recounted shortly after the premiere: "I recently received a letter: 'Alexander Vedernikov, I wanted to write 'Dear,' but my hand wouldn't allow it.' Somehow, it is believed that the new production of 'Eugene Onegin' is a desecration of national treasures. There is a certain category of people who go to the opera to experience familiar sensations once again, rather than seek new impressions. But the theater is a place that reflects the processes existing in real life. Life changes and the theater changes too. And they just cannot accept that the theater's task is not to preserve certain fixed forms."
Vedernikov aptly responded to all the outraged remarks: Chernyakov's "Eugene Onegin" represents precisely a new form of life for this great opera, fresh, vibrant, and psychologically authentic. No one has ever undertaken such interpretations of Tchaikovsky before. In harmony with the inventive direction, the ensemble of actors – under Chernyakov's guidance – performs on a par with the greatest dramatic artists: Mariusz Kwiecień as Onegin, Tatiana Monogarova as Tatiana, Makvala Kasrashvili as Larina, and Andrei Dunayev as Lensky.
coolconnections.ru
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By staging the Bolshoi's new Onegin in 2008, the Paris Opera introduced French audiences to Dmitri Tcherniakov. Bel Air Classiques is re-releasing this classic from its DVD catalogue on Blu-ray.
<...> The chorus, prominent during breathtaking ensemble scenes, is as captivating to the ear as it is to the eye. Alexander Vedernikov and the Bolshoi Orchestra masterfully navigate the upheavals and tremors of a work punctuated by the fateful timpani of particularly striking passages.
Jean-Luc Clairet, ResMusica, Le 25 novembre 2019
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Eugene Onegin. Recorded live at the Opera National de Paris, September 2008.
Alexander Vedernikov draws excellent playing from his Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra.
It’s certainly worth seeing this staging and, with such excellent vocal performances, it bears repeated listening at the very least.
Mark Pullinger, 2020 Gramophone Magazine — 3 March.
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Riga residents remember Alexander Vedernikov from the triumphant tours of the Bolshoi Theater at the Latvian National Opera in 2003 and 2008.
Vedernikov visited Riga first during a tour of the Bolshoi Theatre in June 2003. Then he conducted a production of Puccini's Turandot."This is my first time in Riga, and it's a very solemn moment for me," he said when he arrived from Moscow, sitting in the mezzanine hall of the Latvian Opera. - It was here that such luminaries as Richard Wagner, Leo Blech, Leonid Wigner conducted, and two Jansons, Arvid and Maris, worked. This is a very prestigious circumstance for me."And the second time he came exactly five years later, again to the Riga Opera Festival, organized by Andrejs Jagars. He has conducted two screenings of Pyotr Tchaikovsky's "Eugene Onegin" and two screenings of Leonid Desyatnikov's acclaimed opera "Rosenthal's Children" staged by Aimuntas Nyakrosus. Now it's history, and those who saw those double tours are happy.
Andrey Shavrey, LSM.LV, October 30, 2020
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Alexander Vedernikov will be always in our hearts
Last night the dreadful COVID-19 virus took away a wonderful human being and a great conductor, Alexander Vedernikov. He was a sincere, talented, profound and passionate musician, a devoted friend. He was only 56 years old… We shall remember his marvellous concerts and recordings . He was a warm companion. Musicians from the orchestras or soloists with whom he performed, all are deeply saddened by the news of his death.
Alexander Vedernikov was principal conductor and music director of the Bolshoi Theatre from 2001-2009, he was principal conductor of the Odense Symphony Orchestra in Denmark, and most recently, principal conductor of the Royal Opera House in Denmark . He left a lasting impression on the French musical scene with the premiere of Glinka’s “Life for the Tsar” opera at the Radio France – Montpellier Festival.
He was president of the jury at the last Evgeny Svetlanov International Conducting Competition in 2018.
He gave his last performance of “Cavaleria Rusticana” at the Mikhailovsky Opera in Saint Petersbourg on 4th October where he was appointed music director in 2019.
Our deepest condolences to his wife and family.
www.svetlanov-evgeny.com, October 31, 2020
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The heir to a venerable musical dynasty, the son of the famous bass Alexander Vedernikov Sr., the keeper of the traditions of the Bolshoi Theater of the USSR, in the 2000s Vedernikov Jr. carried out on the main opera stages of the country perhaps the most daring reform in its history. It was he who was the chief conductor and musical director of the State Academic Bolshoi Theatre from 2001 to 2009. And during this time, he managed to create an entire era in the country's main theater, marked by landmark premieres - the performances of Leonid Desyatnikov's "Rosenthal's Children", Dmitry Chernyakov's "Eugene Onegin", Sergei Prokofiev's "War and Peace" and "The Fiery Angel", Rimsky-Korsakov's "The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh" and others. When in 2009 he felt that he had done everything he could for the Bolshoi, he made a gesture unprecedented for the Russian cultural scene - he resigned.
By switching to the foreign music market, Vedernikov again disappointed expectations — instead of resting on the laurels of a patented specialist in the Russian repertoire, he easily got used to the European artistic context: all his key successes in the 2010s are associated with Western music of the twentieth century, which remains terra incognita for the vast majority of Russian conductors.
Press service of the St. Petersburg State Academic Symphony Orchestra, March 3, 2021
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Press review
