Gintaras Rinkevičius, David Geringas & the Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra

Gold of Lithuania: LVSO, Rinkevičius, Geringas

On September 11, the Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra will return to Riga after a long absence under the baton of Gintaras Rinkevičius. The soloist will be Lithuania’s greatest cellist of all time, the legendary David Geringas.

The Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra (LSSO) was founded by Gintaras Rinkevičius as the Youth Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble’s very first concert entered history: on January 30, 1989, audiences in Vilnius stormed the hall of the State Opera and Ballet Theatre to hear music by Čiurlionis and Beethoven. Just three years later, the orchestra received its current name while preserving its original energy and fidelity to its artistic ideals.

Today, the LSSO is one of the key cultural institutions of the Baltic region and one of the symbols of independent Lithuania. The orchestra has significantly expanded the country’s musical horizons by presenting such large-scale works as Wagner’s Parsifal, Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius, and Honegger’s Jeanne d’Arc au bûcher, and by becoming the first orchestra in Lithuania to perform and record the complete cycle of Mahler symphonies. The orchestra tours regularly throughout Europe, collaborates with leading conductors and soloists, supports young musicians, and develops special projects for children and youth. Throughout the entire existence of the LSSO, its artistic leadership has remained in the hands of Gintaras Rinkevičius.

Gintaras Rinkevičius (1960) first attracted major international attention in his youth after winning the Herbert von Karajan Competition (1985) and the János Ferencsik Competition (1986). The maestro’s artistic life has always been closely connected with his homeland, while at the same time he held important positions abroad, including Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the Latvian National Opera (1996–2003) and Chief Conductor of Malmö Opera (2002–2005). As a guest conductor, he has appeared with the Berlin Symphony Orchestra, the Weimar Staatskapelle, the Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra, and many other ensembles. He has conducted at the Salzburg Festival Hall, London’s Royal Albert Hall, the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, concert halls in Gothenburg, Copenhagen, Barcelona, and Zaragoza, as well as at festivals in Switzerland, Portugal, Poland, Germany, the United Kingdom, and France. For many years, he also taught at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre, where he was awarded the title of professor.

In Latvia, Gintaras Rinkevičius has twice received the Grand Music Award and was awarded the rank of Officer of the Order of the Three Stars. From 2017 to 2022, he served as Artistic Director of the Liepāja Symphony Orchestra.

David Geringas (1946) is a world-renowned cellist whose repertoire spans an exceptional breadth, from Baroque to contemporary music. A student of Mstislav Rostropovich and winner of the Gold Medal at the International Tchaikovsky Competition (1970), he has reached the highest achievements imaginable in a performing career. His extensive discography, comprising around 100 recordings, has received prestigious distinctions including the Grand Prix du Disque, Diapason d’Or, and Echo Klassik.

Many distinguished composers, among them Pēteris Vasks, Erkki-Sven Tüür, Faustas Latėnas, and Sofia Gubaidulina, have dedicated works to Geringas, while others — including Alfred Schnittke, Edison Denisov, Silvia Colasanti, Anatolijus Šenderovas, and Alvydas Malcys — entrusted him with the premieres of their compositions.

David Geringas has also enjoyed a highly successful conducting career. From 2005 to 2008, he served as Music Director of the Kyushu Philharmonic Orchestra in Japan. An outstanding pedagogue, he has trained several generations of exceptional cellists during decades of teaching in Germany and Lithuania, among them Gustav Rivinius, Jens Peter Maintz, and Sol Gabetta.

For his contribution to the development of Lithuanian and German musical culture, David Geringas has been awarded high state honors by both Lithuania and Germany.

The concert is dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the outstanding cellist David Geringas.

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Programme

Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904)

Part I Symphony No. 7 in D minor, Op. 70

Part II Cello Concerto in B minor, Op. 104