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Gintaras Rinkevičius
Gintaras Rinkevičius (born in 1960) is the founder of the Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra, its artistic director and chief conductor. From 1996 to 2003 Rinkevičius was the chief conductor of the Latvian National Opera. Currently Rinkevičius is the musical director of the Novosibirsk Academic Symphony Orchestra. A winner at three international competitions, he is invited to conduct world famous orchestras. Rinkevičius left the M.K. Čiurlionis School of Arts, the Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatory in St. Petersburg (1983) and the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow (1986). He is a winner of the Fifth Conductors’ Competition in Moscow (1983), a laureate of the international competition “In memoriam Janos Ferencsik” in Budapest (1986). Rinkevičius teaches at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre.
The beginning of Rinkevičius’ world recognition was a very successful performance at the Herbert von Karajan International Conductors' Competition in 1985. For his continuous creative work he was awarded the Order of Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas, Fourth Class, in 1997. Rinkevičius received the Latvian Grand Music Prize in 1997 and 2000 for his contribution to country’s musical culture. In 1999, he was voted Latvian Conductor of the Year. Rinkevičius’ achievements were crowned by the highest award of the country, the Lithuanian National Prize (1994). In 2009, he was awarded the Grand Cross of the Commandore of the Order for Merits to Lithuania.
Among the European orchestras Rinkevičius has conducted are Berlin Symphoniker, Staatskapelle Weimar, Frankfurt (Oder), St. Petersburg Philharmonic, Russian National and Russian State orchestras, the Odense Symphony etc. Rinkevičius has given concerts all over Europe, in Taiwan and Hong Kong, at the Nyon Festival in Switzerland, the Warsaw Autumn in Poland, the Europamusicale in Munich, and the Chichester Festival in Great Britain, as well as at the most prestigious concert halls: Kolner Philharmonic, Salzburg Festspielhaus, London Royal Albert Hall, Tampere Hall, Paleo della Musica in Barcelona, Zaragoza Hall of Concerts.
Operas and ballets occupy a special place in Rinkevičius activities. Since his first opera produced at the National Theatre of Hungary in 1987 (Mozart’s The Seraglio) he has prepared and conducted over twenty productions in various countries. He has conducted The Sleeping Beauty, The Swan Lake, The Nutcracker; Romeo and Juliet, The Rite of Spring etc. In 1998, he debuted at the Gothenburg Opera with Bizet’s Carmen. He has produced several operas at the Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre. Since 2003 Rinkevičius has been invited to conduct at the Bolshoi Theatre. From 2002 to 2005 Rinkevičius worked as the chief conductor at the Malmo Opera.
