As part of the «Baltic Music Seasons» festival in Jurmala, one of the world’s leading cellists, Riga native Misha Maisky, gave a concert entitled «Maestro’s Anniversary». «It was my dream to bring my children to my homeland and perform with them», the outstanding musician told Rus.lsm.lv.
Officially, Misha was celebrating his seventieth birthday on 10 January this year. He is only two weeks older than another great Misha – Baryshnikov, with whom he sat at the same desk at the Emil Darzin music school.

«I remember that during the breaks the ballet boys competed over who would raise their leg higher, and marked the result with a line on the wall, Baryshnikov was always the best!»

In the sixties, Misha Maisky studied with the great Mstislav Rostropovich, in the seventies he emigrated from the USSR and now lives in Belgium. The musician visits his homeland regularly – recently at least once every three years. Now the performance of Maysky was accompanied by the world-famous chamber orchestra «Moscow Virtuosi» (without conductor: the first violin of the famous orchestra, Alexei Lundin, set the tone), at the beginning of the concert performed Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s «Divertissement in F Major».

After which his 29-year-old son Sascha (violin) and his 31-year-old daughter Lilia, who masterfully performed Ludwig van Beethoven’s Violin, Cello and Piano Concerto, came on stage with Mischa Maisky.

«My kids are great, and this is the best thing that ever happened in my life.», — said Maisky Sr. already after the concert.

In the second department, Moscow Virtuosi performed three fragments of Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s Seasons, arranged by Alexey Strelnikov – Snowflake (April), Autumn Song (October) and Carnival (February). After that Misha Maisky played with Tchaikovsky’s Nocturne Orchestra and one of the crown numbers of his repertoire – Tchaikovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme. As always – bright, passionate, temperamental, yet gentle and soulful.. […]

Author: Andrei Shavrey