Mariss Jansons

Mariss Ivars Georgs Jansons (14 January 1943 – 30 November/1 December 2019[lower-alpha 1][1][2]) was a Latvian conductor. During his lifetime, Jansons was often cited as one of the world's top living conductors.[3][4][5][6] He was best known for his interpretations of Mahler, Strauss and Russian composers such as Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff and Shostakovich.[3]

Mariss Jansons
Mariss Jansons in 2015
Born
Mariss Ivars Georgs Jansons

(1943-01-14)14 January 1943
Riga, Reichskommissariat Ostland
(now Riga, Latvia)
Died30 November 2019(2019-11-30) (aged 76)[lower-alpha 1]
Saint Petersburg, Russia
OccupationConductor
Organization
Awards

Born in Riga, Latvia, Jansons moved to Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) in 1956, where he studied conducting, and he received further training in Austria. He achieved prominence with the Oslo Philharmonic, where he served as music director from 1979 to 2000. He also directed the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra from 1997 to 2004, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra from 2003 until his death, and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra from 2004 to 2015.

Early life

Jansons was born in Riga, Latvia—then under German occupation during the Second World War—to Iraida Jansons, the diva of the Riga Opera, and Arvīds Jansons, conductor of the opera orchestra.[7] Iraida, who was Jewish, gave birth to her son in hiding after being smuggled out of the Riga Ghetto, where her father and brother were murdered by the Nazis. As a child, Jansons first studied violin with his father.[8]

In 1956, Arvīds was appointed assistant conductor to Yevgeny Mravinsky at the Leningrad Philharmonic. Jansons joined his father in Leningrad, where he began to study conducting, and soon entered the Leningrad Conservatory.[7] In 1968, Herbert von Karajan visited the Soviet Union, and he singled out Jansons and Dmitri Kitayenko from a group of young conductors. Karajan offered Jansons the opportunity to study with him in Berlin, but the Soviet authorities blocked the offer.[7] In 1969, Jansons continued his training with Hans Swarowsky in Vienna, and then in Salzburg with Karajan.[7] In 1971, Jansons won the second prize at the "Herbert von Karajan" International Conducting Competition.[3][9] Karajan invited Jansons to be his assistant with the Berlin Philharmonic, but the Soviet authorities blocked Jansons from ever hearing about the offer.[7]

Career

In 1973, Jansons was appointed Associate Conductor of the Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra (now the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra). In 1979, he was appointed Music Director of the Oslo Philharmonic, with which he performed, recorded and toured extensively. Jansons resigned his Oslo position in 2000 after disputes with the city over the acoustics of the Oslo Concert Hall.[10]

In 1992, Jansons was named Principal Guest Conductor of the London Philharmonic Orchestra. He worked as a guest conductor with the London Symphony Orchestra and recorded Mahler's Symphony No. 6 with them for the LSO Live label.[11][12]

In 1997, Jansons became the Music Director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. His initial contract was for three years, but his subsequent contract renewals were evergreen contracts that required yearly renewal. In June 2002, he announced his departure from the orchestra in 2004.[13]

In April 1996, Jansons nearly died from a severe heart attack while conducting the final pages of La bohème in Oslo.[14] He recuperated in Switzerland. Later, surgeons in Pittsburgh fitted an implanted defibrillator in his chest to give his heart an electric jolt if it failed.[15] (Jansons's father had died at a 1984 concert, conducting the Hallé Orchestra.[16]) Jansons stated that he suffered from jet lag, and this was one reason that he left his American position.[17]

At the start of the 2003-2004 season, Jansons began his tenure as Chief Conductor of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (BRSO),[18] for an initial contract of three years.[19] His commitment with the BRSO was for ten weeks per season.[20] In September 2006, Jansons extended his initial BRSO contract to August 2009.[21] In July 2007, he further extended his contract with the BRSO to August 2012.[22] In April 2011, he extended his BRSO contract to August 2015 in Munich.[23] In June 2013, the BRSO further extended Jansons's contract through August 2018.[24] In May 2015, the BRSO announced another extension of Jansons's contract through 2021.[25] In July 2018, the orchestra announced a further extension of the maestro's contract through 2024.[26] He regularly campaigned for the construction of a new concert hall for the orchestra.[6] On 8 November 2019, he conducted his final orchestral concert, at Carnegie Hall with the BRSO and Diana Damrau.[27]

In October 2002, Jansons was named the sixth Chief Conductor of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (RCO) of Amsterdam, effective 1 September 2004, succeeding Riccardo Chailly.[9][28] His initial Amsterdam contract was for three years,[29] and his commitment in Amsterdam was for twelve weeks per season. In April 2014, the orchestra announced the scheduled conclusion of Jansons's tenure as Chief Conductor after the 2014–2015 season.[30][31] He conducted his final concert as chief conductor of the RCO on 20 March 2015, in the presence of King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima.[32]

In 2006, Jansons conducted the Vienna Philharmonic New Year's Concert for the first time. Also in January 2006, he was awarded MIDEM's Artist of the Year Award in Cannes. In October 2007, Jansons (who was Lutheran[33]) conducted Beethoven's Ninth Symphony with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra for Pope Benedict XVI and 7,000 other listeners in the papal audience hall (Auditorio Paul VI). Jansons conducted the Vienna New Year's Concert for the second time in 2012, and for the third and final time in 2016.

Personal life

Jansons was married twice. He and his first wife, Ira, had a daughter, Ilona, who became a pianist at the Mariinsky Theatre. The marriage ended during his tenure in Oslo. Jansons and his second wife Irina (née Outchitel),[3] a former speech therapist, had a home in Saint Petersburg, where Jansons kept his collection of scores.[34] He held both Latvian and Russian citizenship.[15]

Jansons died during the night of 30 November 2019 / 1 December 2019 at his home in the Tolstoy House, Saint Petersburg, as a result of a longstanding heart condition, aged 76.[1][2][35][36]

Awards and recognition

Jansons was awarded various international honours for his achievements, including Commander of the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit from King Harald of Norway and memberships in the Royal Academy of Music in London and the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde (Society of Music Friends) in Vienna. He was awarded the St. Hallvard Medal in 1986.[37] In May 2006, he was awarded the Order of the Three Stars (2nd class or Grand Commander), Latvia's highest state honour. He was awarded the Bavarian Order of Merit in 2007 and in 2010, the Bavarian Maximilian Order for Science and Art. In 2008, Jansons received the Austrian Cross of Honour for Science and Art.[38]

Jansons' recording of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 13 with Sergey Aleksashkin (bass) and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chorus won the Grammy Award for Best Orchestral Performance at the 2006 Grammy Awards.[39]

In January 2006 he was awarded a Midem, a Cannes Classical Award as Artist of the Year. In 2007 he was honoured by the German Phono Academy with the Echo Klassik as Conductor of the Year. In 2011, he was awarded the same title by the German journal Opernwelt.[40]

Jansons won the Ernst von Siemens Music Prize in 2013.[41] On 31 March 2013 Jansons was awarded a medal of honour "For the Merits before St. Petersburg". On 4 October 2013, Jansons received the Grand Merit Cross with Star of the Federal Republic of Germany.[42]

On 1 November 2013, Jansons was awarded Knight of the Order of the Netherlands Lion and received it from Dutch Minister of Education, Culture and Science Jet Bussemaker.[43]

In November 2017,[44] the Royal Philharmonic Society awarded Jansons the RPS Gold Medal, with Mitsuko Uchida presenting the medal to Jansons during a concert with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks) on 24 November 2017 at the Barbican Hall.[45] Jansons was the 104th recipient of the RPS Gold Medal.

In 2018, he was awarded an Honorary Membership of the Berliner Philharmoniker,[46] and in June 2018 of the Vienna Philharmonic.[47]

On 14 April 2019, he received the Herbert von Karajan Prize at the Salzburg Easter Festival.[48] In 2019, he received the Opus Klassik award in the category "Lifetime Achievement”.[49]

In 2020, the BRSO posthumously awarded its Karl Amadeus Hartmann Medal to Jansons.[50]

Selected Recordings

Jansons is credited on over 190 orchestral recordings.[51]

Notes
  1. Some sources state 1 December. The time of death was not reported and may not be known. It could have been in the early hours of 1 December.

References
  1. "Mūžībā devies diriģents Mariss Jansons". LTV Panorāma. 1 December 2019. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
  2. "Conductor Mariss Jansons dies aged 76". Public broadcasting of Latvia. 1 December 2019. Archived from the original on 22 December 2019.
  3. Barry Millington (1 December 2019). "Mariss Jansons obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  4. Geoffrey Norris (21 January 2015). "The art of the conductor". Gramophone. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  5. "Obituary / Mariss Jansons led the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and other top ensembles". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 1 December 2019. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  6. David Lister (8 April 2009). "Mariss Jansons: Maestro with a mission". The Independent. Retrieved 26 March 2011.
  7. Colin Hughes (1 May 1999). "Straight from the heart". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 August 2007.
  8. Heinrich, Ludwig (20 August 2011). "Viele Werte sind verloren gegangen" [Many values have been lost]. Oberösterreichische Nachrichten. Retrieved 21 August 2011.
  9. "Trauer um Stardirigenten Mariss Jansons". BR. 1 December 2019. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  10. Hugh Canning (15 January 2006). "On the upbeat". The Times. Retrieved 19 August 2007.
  11. Richard Morrison (6 December 2003). "A hundred to one". The Times. Retrieved 19 August 2007.
  12. Hugh Canning (27 July 2003). "Classical CD of the Week: Mahler: Symphony No 6". The Times. Retrieved 20 April 2008.
  13. Mark Kanny (7 June 2002). "Jansons to bid city adieu in '04". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Archived from the original on 8 February 2009. Retrieved 17 March 2007.
  14. Geoff Brown (12 April 2003). "Brave heart". The Times. Archived from the original on 17 May 2011. Retrieved 22 February 2007.
  15. "Mariss Jansons, Conductor Who Led Top Orchestras, Dies at 76". The Hollywood Reporter. 1 December 2019. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  16. Tom Service (9 February 2007). "It's good to have dreams". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 February 2007.
  17. Geoffrey Norris (12 September 2002). "Musician, magician". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 24 February 2007.
  18. Martin Kettle (30 January 2004). "Prime Timer". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 February 2007.
  19. Hilary Finch (26 August 2003). "Every performance is a brave new world". The Times. Retrieved 22 February 2007.
  20. Geoffrey Norris (6 May 2004). "'I've decided to cut myself in two'". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 19 April 2007.
  21. Vivien Schweitzer (22 September 2006). "Mariss Jansons and Bavarian Radio Symphony to Make First US Tour Together in November". Playbill Arts. Retrieved 19 April 2007.
  22. "Mariss Jansons bleibt Chef". Der Tagesspiegel. 11 July 2007. Retrieved 10 September 2007.
  23. "BR verlängert Vertrag mit Mariss Jansons" (press release). Bayerischer Rundfunk, 15 April 2011.
  24. "Mariss Jansons – Vertragsverlängerung bis 2018" (Press release). Bayerischer Rundfunk. 3 June 2013. Retrieved 16 June 2013.
  25. "Mariss Jansons bleibt bis 2021 Chefdirigent" (Press release). Bayerischer Rundfunk. 8 May 2015. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
  26. "Mariss Jansons Extends his Contract with Bayerischer Rundfunk" (Press release). Bayerischer Rundfunk. 18 July 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  27. Eric C. Simpson (9 November 2019). "Brahms provides a highlight in mixed outing from Jansons, Bavarian Radio Symphony". New York Classical Review. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
  28. Martin Cullingford, "Jansons confirmed as Royal Concertgebouw head". Gramophone, 17 October 2002.
  29. Guido van Oorschot, "Mariss Jansons to Succeed Riccardo Chailly at the Concertgebouw Orchestra". andante.com (overall website now defunct), 16 October 2002.
  30. "Mariss Jansons Bids Farewell" (Press release). Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. 22 April 2014. Archived from the original on 24 April 2014. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  31. Imogen Tilden (22 April 2014). "Mariss Jansons announces Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra departure". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  32. "Koning en koningin bij afscheidsconcert Mariss Jansons". Nederlandse Omroep Stichting. 20 March 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  33. Markus Thiel (26 October 2007). "Götterfunken im Vatikan". Müncher Merkur. Retrieved 10 November 2007.
  34. Richard Morrison (31 March 2006). "My other band's the Concertgebouw". The Times. Retrieved 3 February 2007.
  35. Fridemann Leipold (1 December 2019). "Mariss Jansons gestorben - Eine Ära geht zu ende". BR Klassik. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  36. Leyrer, Georg (1 December 2019). "Stardirigent Mariss Jansons laut lettischem Rundfunk gestorben". Kurier (in German). Vienna. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  37. "Seks ble hedret med St.Hallvard-medaljen" (in Norwegian). Norwegian News Agency. 15 May 1986.
  38. "Reply to a parliamentary question" (PDF) (in German). p. 1877. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  39. "Mariss Jansons". Grammy Awards. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  40. "Die Ergebnisse der jährlichen Kritikerumfrage von Opernwelt". Opernwelt (in German). 4 October 2011. Retrieved 22 October 2011.
  41. "Preisverleihung 2013" (Press release). Ernst von Siemens Musikpreis. 4 June 2013. Archived from the original on 27 December 2013. Retrieved 16 June 2013.
  42. "Ordensverleihung zum Tag der Deutschen Einheit". bundespraesident.de (in German). 4 October 2013. Retrieved 3 October 2013.
  43. "Mariss Jansons Made A Knight of The Order of The Lion of The Netherlands". concertgebouworkest.nl. 5 November 2013. Archived from the original on 5 November 2013. Retrieved 5 November 2013.
  44. "Mariss Jansons awarded with the RPS Gold Medal". Royal Philharmonic Society. 23 November 2017. Retrieved 23 November 2017.
  45. "Goldmedaille der Royal Philharmonic Society London für Mariss Jansons" (Press release) (in German). München: Bayerischer Rundfunk. 23 November 2017. Retrieved 23 November 2017.
  46. "Honorary Membership for Mariss Jansons". Berliner Philharmoniker. 2018. Retrieved 2 January 2019.
  47. "Vienna Philharmonic Honorary Membership for Mariss Jansons". wienerphilharmoniker.at. Vienna: Wiener Philharmoniker. 5 June 2018. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  48. Mayer, Helmut Christian (16 April 2019). "Die Kritiken von den Osterfestspielen: Meisterliches abseits von Wagner". Kurier. Vienna. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  49. "Opus Klassik für den Dirigenten Mariss Jansons". Badische Zeitung. Freiburg. dpa. 2 October 2019. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  50. "BR-Symphonieorchester verleiht posthum Medaille an Mariss Jansons". NMZ. 13 January 2020. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
  51. https://www.allmusic.com/artist/mariss-jansons-mn0000132061/discography
  52. Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra / Mariss Jansons / Bruckner: Symphonie No. 7 AllMusic
  53. Denise Maurer (5 November 2020). "Mariss Jansons — CD "His Last Concert": Sein letztes Konzert". Br-Klassik. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
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