Gilels Pianist biography

Born on October 6 in Odessa in the family of an employee. His parents had nothing to do with music, his father was a clerk in a sugar cleaning plant, his mother was a housewife. Emil began to make music early. Gilels was only 9 years old, when the teacher wrote in his characterization: "In the future, the USSR is enriched with a world -class pianist." In the year, Gilels gave his first solo concert.

The following year, it wins at the All -Ukrainian contest of musicians in Kharkov. In the year, at the First All -Union Competition of Musicians of performers, few people well -known in Moscow, the sixteen -year -old young man unconditionally won and became famous throughout the country. Having finished the conservatory in Odessa in November, Gilels goes to Moscow, to the School of Higher Mastery at the Moscow Conservatory, where the International Contest of Pianists named after Eugen Izai, whose prestige was extremely high, and the program was especially difficult in a special difficulty, was in a year in Brussels.

Gilels won a brilliant victory. Emil Zauer, a student of the Ferenc Liszt and Nikolai Rubinstein, said that he had not heard such talents over the past half a century, in other words, since his great teachers. Gilels could not calmly reap the fruits of success - he works hard, not giving himself a break. In the same year, the school of higher skill remains behind, and Gilels begins to teach at the Moscow Conservatory.

During the Great Patriotic War, Gilels plays in military units, in hospitals, in the rear; In the fall of the year, gives concerts in blockade Leningrad. After the war, he returned to active concert and teaching. The responsible mission falls to him: for the first time to represent Soviet art in many countries, the art of defeating country. In the year, he first made concerts abroad, becoming one of the first Soviet musicians who were allowed to do this, toured in Italy, Switzerland, France and Scandinavia.

In the year, he was the first of the Soviet musicians on tour in the United States, where he made a sensation. He performed the first piano concert of Tchaikovsky with the Philadelphia Orchestra under the direction of Eugene Ormandi, and soon gave a solo concert in Carnegie-Hall, who was held with great success. Over the years, Gilels's concert activity gained global proportions.

In the years, Gilels was one of the most popular Soviet musicians in the world, spending about nine months a year at concerts and foreign tour. Wherever he played, the triumphs everywhere became almost the usual “background”. He performed with the most famous orchestras and conductors, his records entered the houses of millions of people. From the year, Gilels taught at the Moscow Conservatory C - a professor, among his students the most famous are Valery Afanasyev and Felix Gotlib.

Emil Gilels enjoyed the highest authority in the musical world. He was constantly invited to the jury of the largest performing competitions in Paris, Brussels and others. He headed the jury with a degree in piano in the first four international competitions. Tchaikovsky,,, Gilels is one of the largest musicians of the 20th century. An unusually wide pianist repertoire covered piano works from the Baroque era Johann Sebastian Bach, Domenico Scarlatti to the music of the 20th century.

Beethoven's works were of particular importance in his work. Gilels repeatedly performed and recorded all the composer's piano concerts, but did not manage to complete the work by recording all his piano sonata.

His game was distinguished by impeccable technology, brightness and power of performance, and at the same time deep lyricism and delicacy of interpretation, a subtle sense of style. The People's Artist of the USSR was elected an honorary member of the Royal Academy of Music in London, an honorary professor of the Budapest Conservatory, the F. Music Academy died on October 14.

He was buried in Moscow at the Novodevichy cemetery. He was awarded 3 orders of Lenin Laureate of the Stalin and Lenin Prizes. In Moscow, a memorial plaque was installed on the house in which he lived.