Recital Maxim Vengerov, violin and Roustem Saïtkoulov, piano

In 2007 he followed in the footsteps of his mentor, the late Mstislav Rostropovich, and turned his attention to conducting, and has since conducted major orchestras around the world including the Montreal and Toronto symphony orchestras. In 2010 he was appointed the first chief conductor of the Gstaad Festival Orchestra and in June 2014 graduated with a diploma of excellence from the Moscow Institute of Ippolitov-Ivanov with professor Yuri Simonov and has enrolled in a further 2-year program of opera conducting.

In the last few seasons Maxim Vengerov has performed as a soloist and/or conductor with many major orchestras, including the Berlin Philharmonic, London Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra etc., often performing a major violin concerto in the first half and conducting a symphonic work in the second. 2013 saw the launch of the annual Vengerov Festival in Tokyo, and an artist residency at the Barbican Centre London with five different programs showcasing his unique versatility as an artist. That season he also accepted the position as Artist in Residence with the Oxford Philharmonic.

The 2014/15 highlights saw Mr Vengerov opening the concert seasons of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra with Long Yu, the Orchestre de Paris with Paavo Jarvi, and opening Shanghai’s newest Symphony Hall alongside Mr. Yu and Lang Lang. January 2015 saw Maxim Vengerov return to the New York Philharmonic to a “hero’s welcome” (New York Times), and in March he toured Europe and recorded the Tchaikovsky concerto with Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France and Myung-Whun Chung.

As well as many worldwide concerts and recitals the 2015/16 season will see Mr Vengerov in concert with the New York Philharmonic and Munich Philharmonic orchestras, complete five recital tours in Australia, Canada, East Asia, Europe and South America, and in May Mr Vengerov will return to Japan for the fourth year of his annual Vengerov Festival.

As one of Mr Vengerov’s greatest passions is the teaching and encouraging of young talent, he has held various teaching positions around the world and is currently Ambassador and visiting Professor of the International Menuhin Music Academy in Switzerland (IMMA) and Menuhin Professor at the Royal Academy of Music London.

Mr Vengerov has received numerous awards including Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist Performance (with Orchestra) (2003), two Gramophone awards (1994, 1995), a Classical Brit Award (2004), five Edison Classical Music Awards (1995, 1996, 1998, 2003, 2004), two ECHO awards (1997, 2003) and a World Economic Forum Crystal award (2007) - honouring artists who have used their art to improve the state of the world.

In 1997 Mr Vengerov became the first classical musician to be appointed International Goodwill Ambassador by UNICEF.

He plays the ex-Kreutzer Stradivari (1727). 

Roustem Saitkoulov performs regularly as a soloist with many top orchestras: the Royal Philharmonic, the Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, the Prague Symphony Orchestra, the Tonhalle-Orchester Zurich, the Orchestra della RAI in Turin, Sinfonia Varsovia, the Beijing Symphony Orchestra, and the Tokyo New City Symphony Orchestra. He has played as soloist on many tours by the St Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra under Yuri Temirkanov.

Roustem Saitkoulov has given recitals in Russia, China, Japan, Argentina, Chile, the United States, Canada, and South Africa. He performs frequently in major venues, such as Wigmore Hall in London, the Salle Pleyel, the Théâtre du Châtelet, and the Salle Gaveau in Paris, the Accademia Santa Cecilia in Rome, the Tonhalle, Zurich, the Konzerthaus in Berlin, the Moscow International House of Music, the Philharmonic Society of St Petersburg, the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Space, Osaka Symphony Hall, and the Concert Hall of the Forbidden City in Beijing.

He has taken part in numerous music events, such as the International Piano Festival at La Roque d’Anthéron, Septembre Musical in Montreux, the Piano aux Jacobins in Toulouse, the Festival de Radio France-Montpellier, the Printemps des Arts, Monte-Carlo, the Festival de Musique, Menton, the Festival International at Colmar, the Festival Pianistico Internazionale  di Brescia-Bergamo, the Bologna Festival, the Sagra Malatestiana in Rimini, the Merano Festival, and the Piano Festival in Yokohama.

Many of his concerts have been broadcast on the radio by France Musique, Radio Classique, Espace 2, DRS 2, RTSI, and on TV by stations such as France 2 (programme hosted by J.-F. Zygel), France 3 (Alain Duault), France 5, Mezzo, and the international station, 3 Sat.

Roustem Saitkoulov has released a large number of CDs, with EMI Classics and Dinemec Classics, in particular. He has recently recorded the two Chopin concertos with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra for Master Chord Records, as well as Shostakovich’s Concerto no. 1 and a concerto by the contemporary Estonian composer Jaan Raats with the Orchestre des Pays de Savoie for IndéSens.

Roustem Saitkoulov is also frequently involved in chamber music. Regularly partnering Maxim Vengerov, he has also played in the company of Jean-Jacques Kantorow, Pierre Amoyal, Dmitri Sitkovetsky, Olivier Charlier, Xavier Phillips, Laurent Korcia,  Svetlin Roussev, François Salque,  Mayuko Kamio, and Sayaka Shoji.