Mstislav Rostropovich

Russian classical cellist and conductor

• Born: March 27, 1927
• Birthplace: Baku, Soviet Union (now in Azerbaijan)
• Died: April 27, 2007
• Place of death: Moscow, Russia

Rostropovich’s mastery of the cello expanded the cello repertoire, which reached new levels of complexity under his influence. His relationships with composers and artists and his staunch support for Russian cultural identity in the face of Soviet opposition had a significant impact on music and Russian culture.

The Life

Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich (MIH-stih-slahv rohs-troh-POH-vihch) developed a passion for music that was ignited early in life at his boyhood home in Baku as he listened to the sounds of his father’s cello and his mother’s piano. In 1931 Rostropovich’s father moved the family to Moscow, where the boy could obtain a complete musical education. Three years later, Rostropovich made his debut. From 1939 to 1941, Rostropovich studied cello with his father at the Central Music School in Moscow. Through the intervention of Mikhail Ivanovich Chulaki and Vissarion Yakovlevich Shebalin, Rostropovich entered the Moscow Conservatory in 1943, where he studied cello with Semyon Mateievich Kozolupov, composition with Shebalin, and orchestration with composer Dmitri Shostakovich. This period marked the beginning of a lifelong friendship between Rostropovich and Shostakovich, resulting in the Cello Concerto No. 1 in E-Flat (1959) as well as several smaller works for cello written toward the end of the composer’s life.

Rostropovich received first prize in cello in the 1945 All-Union Performers’ Competition, one of several awards he would receive. This was followed by success at the International Youth Festival in Prague and at the Budapest Youth Festival International Competition in 1949, where he shared first place with Daniel Shafran. He placed first again in the 1950 Vihan International Cello Competition, a position he shared with Shafran. That same year, and at only twenty-three years of age, Rostropovich was awarded the Stalin Prize, the highest honor available in the arts in Russia.

Rostropovich debuted in the West in 1951 with a performance in Florence, Italy. Amid his hectic schedule, Rostropovich married the first lady of the Bolshoi Theater, Galina (Galya) Pavlovna Vishnevskaya, in 1955. The following year Rostropovich made his American debut at Carnegie Hall.

Throughout these performing years, Rostropovich continued his relationship with the Moscow Conservatory, and as an assistant to Kozolupov, Rostropovich began teaching there in 1948. In 1959 Rostropovich became a full professor, succeeding Svyatoslav Nikolayevich Knushevitsky in 1961 as head of the cello department. He continued to teach at the Moscow Conservatory and in St. Petersburg until 1967.

The 1960’s marked the beginning of Rostropovich’s conducting career. In November, 1962, Rostropovich premiered as a conductor with the first public performance of Shostakovich’s orchestration of Modest Mussorgsky’s Songs and Dances of Death (1877). In 1968 Rostropovich was invited to conduct at the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow.

Rostropovich’s activities led to life long friendships with many Russian composers and literary figures. In 1948 Sergei Prokofiev attended one of Rostropovich’s recitals. Their ensuing friendship and intellectual collaboration led to the composition of many challenging works for cello, including Sonata in C for Cello (1949) and the Cello Concerto in G Minor (1952), which was completed by Rostropovich and Dmitri Kabalevsky.

In 1969 Rostropovich opened his home to Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, who was under government censure at the time. Reacting to continued government persecution of the author, Rostropovich wrote an open letter to Pravda, the leading Soviet newspaper, in 1970. The letter, which received wide notice abroad but was never published in Russia, strongly criticized the Soviet government for bringing Russian cultural development to a halt. A short time later, the Soviet government banned both Rostropovich and Galina from the Bolshoi Theater, canceled performances without notice, and prohibited the couple from traveling abroad, performing, and recording. In 1974 the Rostropovich family was granted a travel visa for the first time in five years. Their travels brought them to Washington, D.C., where, in March, 1975, Rostropovich was invited to guest-conduct the National Symphony Orchestra. Rostropovich was appointed director of the National Symphony Orchestra in 1977, thus beginning a long-term relationship with the orchestra during which Rostropovich brought it to international prominence. The following year and with little warning, the Soviet Union revoked both Rostropovich’s and Galina’s citizenship.

Rostropovich continued to champion Russian culture and democracy while he was in exile. When the news of the imminent collapse of the Soviet Union broke in 1989, Rostropovich traveled to Berlin to perform Johann Sebastian Bach’s Six Suites for Unaccompanied Cello (1717-1723) as the Berlin Wall fell. Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev reinstated Rostropovich’s citizenship in 1990, and in 1991 Rostropovich went to the aid of President Boris Yeltsin and Russian democracy during an attempted military coup.

Rostropovich’s humanitarian services are numerous. In 1988, he and Galina held a benefit concert for Armenian earthquake survivors. In 1991 he founded the Vishnevskaya-Rostropovich Foundation (VRF), and in April, 2006, Rostropovich was appointed UNAIDS Special Representative, to raise awareness on AIDS. He died on April 27, 2007, of intestinal cancer.

The Music

Rostropovich’s performing career was long and varied. Often divided between the Russian and post-Russian years, his recordings reflect an ongoing relationship with his homeland. Recordings during Rostropovich’s self-identified “Russian years” often include new works by young Russian composers as well as numerous transcriptions of French works. His move to Eastern Europe allowed him the freedom to revitalize the works of the great Russian composers Mussorgsky, Prokofiev, and Shostakovich. Not content with the politically acceptable versions of many works, Rostropovich was a pioneer in recording Russian operas with their original scoring and librettos. Among his numerous recordings of Russian operas and new commissions, listeners will also find Rostropovich’s complete recordings of Prokofiev’s symphonies.

The Russian Years, 1950-1974. This thirteen-album compilation edition consists of more than forty works most representative of Rostropovich’s career as a cellist in Russia. Hand-selected by the performer, recordings presented here include Rostropovich’s own transcriptions for cello of smaller works, various works dedicated to the cellist, and world premiere performances. A small sampling of works included in the collection are Rostropovich’s transcriptions of Igor Stravinsky’s “Russian Song” from Marva (1922), the world premiere recording of Benjamin Britten’s Symphony for Cello and Orchestra, Op. 68 (1963), and Shostakovich’s Cello Concerto No. 2, Op. 126 (1966). The accompanying booklet provides Rostropovich’s commentary and recollections regarding selected performances.

Eugene Onegin. Captured in Paris with the Bolshoi Theater Opera, Eugene Onegin (1879) represents Rostropovich’s first Western appearance as a conductor. Performing the opera in the evenings and recording in the mornings, Rostropovich and Russian opera rose to prominence on the Western European stage with Eugene Onegin. Singing lead under Rostropovich’s baton were Galina Vishnevskaya (Tatiana), Yuri Mazurok (Onegin), Vladimir Atlantov (Lensy), Tatiana Tugarinova (Larina), Tamara Sinyavskaya (Olga), Larissa Avdeyeva (Filievna), and Alexander Ognivtsev (Gremin).

Lady Macbeth of Mtensk. This recording bears historical significance for Shostakovich’s Lady Macbeth of Mtesnk (1932). Following a 1936 newspaper blitz and Stalin’s repression of the opera, Shostakovich heavily edited the music and libretto, presenting the work again in 1958 under the new title Katerina Ismailova. Much of the original musical concept and political import of the libretto were compromised, however, and Rostropovich took it upon himself to return the piece to its original form. Owing to his great friendship with the composer, Rostropovich was able to resurrect the original score and give the opera its first Western European performance in 1979, captured in this recording.

The Symphonies. Shortly after being granted a travel visa in 1974, Rostropovich began conducting a full season of Prokofiev’s work. This “Prokofiev cycle” remained a recurring theme in Rostropovich’s conducting career, and it certainly enhanced the Prokofiev Festival, which Rostropovich helped organize in 1991. A four-compact-disc set, this recording is a testament to Rostropovich’s dedicated efforts to vindicate Prokofiev’s music in the light of the crushing reaction against the composer by the Soviet Culture Bureau. Informing these performances is Rostropovich’s long friendship with the composer.

Boris Gudounov. With the definitive version completed in 1872, Mussorgsky had to wait two more years for the first full performance of his opera, subjected as it was to cuts. Successive editing and rewriting of the opera follow the evolution of Russian and Soviet politics, producing no less than five different versions, including one by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov. This 1972 version, edited by Rimsky-Korsakov, is commonly accepted as the definitive version, although it enjoyed only a few performances in Russia. Recorded with the National Symphony Orchestra, Rostropovich resurrects Mussorgsky’s 1972 version for the first time for Western audiences.

Bach: Cello Suites Nos. 1-6. Although he had a long relationship with Bach’s cello suites, this marks Rostropovich’s first recording of all six suites. Rostropovich began studying the work at the age of fifteen, and he never abandoned it. Attesting to his long relationship with these suites, Rostropovich hurriedly flew to Berlin and performed the works in the open air as the Berlin Wall was being torn down. The cellist had played Bach’s cello suites for fifty-three years, and this recording captures a lifetime of study and development.

Musical Legacy

Rostropovich’s wide-ranging influence is felt in cello technique, cello and orchestral repertoire, and humanitarian aid. His capacity for learning new works and easily conquering technical challenges is credited with opening the realm of compositional possibilities for the cello and for vastly expanding the repertoire. Inspired by Rostropovich’s mastery of the cello and his understanding of complex musical ideas, many composers wrote new and increasingly difficult works for the cello, among them Prokofiev (Sinfonia Concertante, 1952) and Benjamin Britten (Symphony for Cello and Orchestra, 1964).

As a conductor, Rostropovich played a significant role in restoring many Russian operas to their original scoring and librettos. Subjected to the censure of the Soviet Culture Bureau, many of the major operatic works of Prokofiev, Shostakovich, and Mussorgsky underwent dramatic editing. Such severe rewriting often undermined the stylistic development of many composers and subverted the intended cultural representation. Rostropovich made it his mission to restore these works to their original scoring in defense of Russian cultural identity. Among these works are Prokofiev’s War and Peace (1945), Mussorgsky’s Boris Gudounov, Shostakovich’s Lady Macbeth of Mtensk, and Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin.

Rostropovich’s defense of Russian democracy and human rights continued offstage as well. Through the Vishnevskaya-Rostropovich Foundation, created in 1991 by the cellist and his wife, Rostropovich made significant contributions to the Russian health-care infrastructure. Among the major accomplishments of the organization were the donation of millions of hepatitis B vaccinations for Russian children and health-care workers as well as dozens of state-of-the-art maternity wards built in remote rural regions.

Principal Recordings

albums (as cellist): Britten: Cello Suites Nos. 1 and 2, 1989; Brahms: The Cello Sonatas, 1990; Dinner Classics: The Viennese Album, 1990; Haydn Concertos, 1991; Bach: Cello Suites Nos 1-6, 1995; Slava 75: The Official 75th Birthday Edition, 2002; Artist Portrait: Mstislav Rostropovich, 2005; TheGlory of Rostropovich: 80th Birthday Tribute, 2007; Mstislav Rostropovich: Cello Concertos, 2007; Mstislav Rostropovich Plays Cello Works, 2008.

albums (as conductor): Eugene Onegin, 1970; Tchaikovsky Ballet Suites, 1979; Shostakovich: Lady Macbeth of Mtensk, 1990; Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5, 1990; Boris Gudounov, 1991; Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 1; Rococo Variations, 1991; Shostakovich: Symphony No. 8, 1992; Shostakovich: Symphony No. 11, 1993; Prokofiev: Symphonies, 2002; Rostropovich Conducts Shostakovich, 2004; Prokofiev: Violin Concertos Nos. 1 and 2; Glazunov: Violin Concerto, 2006.

Bibliography

Barnes, Bart. “Cellist-Conductor Mstislav Rostropovich Dies at 80.” The Washington Post, April 27, 2007. Commemorating the musician, this article provides a brief synopsis of the major events in Rostropovich’s life.

Ivashkin, Alexander, and Josef Oehrlein. On the Life and Achievement of Msistlav Rostropovich. Schweinfurth, Germany: Reimund Maier Verlag, 1997. This German-English biography explores the life and works of Rostropovich, and it is supplemented with numerous illustrations and with commentary by various friends.

Samuel, Claude. Mstislav Rostropovich and Galina Vishnevskaya: Russia, Music, and Liberty, Conversations with Claude Samuel. Translated by E. Thomas Glasow. Portland, Oreg.: Amadeus Press, 1995. Wide-ranging conversations offer insights into Rostropovich’s views on life, politics, art, music, and teaching.

Vishnevskaya, Galina. Galina: A Russian Story. Translated by Guy Daniels. San Diego, Calif.: Harcourt Brace, 1984. Rostropovich’s wife describes her life with the cellist. She relates the challenges they faced living in the repressive Soviet Union.