“Sinaisky, whose conducting is precise, sensuous and who has a near perfect technique must have sharpened the senses of the Gewandhaus. This orchestra rarely plays with such boundlessly generosity, with such flexible dynamic range, with such voluptuous use of colour, so rich in detail and with such a grasp of structure. A truly great Shostakovich – moving, truthful and unsettling.” Leipziger Volkszeitung
Vassily Sinaisky’s international career was launched in 1973 when he won the Gold Medal at the prestigious Karajan Competition in Berlin. His early work with Kirill Kondrashin at the Moscow Philharmonic and with Ilya Musin at the Leningrad Conservatoire provided him with an incomparable grounding. Soon after his success at the Karajan Competition, Sinaisky was appointed Chief Conductor of the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra, a post he held from 1976 to 1987. He then became Music Director and Principal Conductor of the Moscow Philharmonic, leading numerous high-profile projects with the Orchestra both in Russia and on tour around the world.
In 1996, Sinaisky was appointed Chief Guest Conductor of the BBC Philharmonic, a post he holds to this day. Memorable projects with the Orchestra have included the Shostakovich and his Heroes festival in 2006, tours to Europe and China, and annual appearances at the BBC Proms. Sinaisky has also held the positions of Principal Guest Conductor of the Netherlands Philharmonic and Music Director of the Russian State Orchestra.
In 2006 Sinaisky was announced as the new Principal Conductor of the Malmö Symphony Orchestra, Sweden, coinciding with an ambitious new development plan for the orchestra. In recent seasons Sinaisky and the Orchestra have toured to the UK and to Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, while this season’s projects include performances of Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius with the Danish Radio Choir in Malmö and Copenhagen.
This season sees Sinaisky take on a further position as Conductor in Residence at the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow, where he will conduct a number of major new operatic productions and symphonic concerts. In December Sinaisky conducts Mahler Symphony No.2 with the Orchestra and Chorus of the Bolshoi Theatre in the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatoire.
As a guest conductor, Sinaisky has worked with such orchestras as the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, NDR Sinfonieorchester Hamburg, Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Philadelphia Orchestra. Highlights of the upcoming seasons include returns to the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Berlin Radio Symphony, London Philharmonic, BBC Symphony, City of Birmingham Symphony, Oslo Philharmonic, Russian National Orchestra and St Petersburg Philharmonic.
Sinaisky has a distinguished pedigree as an operatic conductor. In addition to his projects at the Bolshoi Theatre, Sinaisky recently conducted Boris Godunov at San Francisco Opera with Samuel Ramey. Other projects have included productions of Carmen and Der Rosenkavalier for English National Opera. Sinaisky’s conducting of a new production of Shostakovich’s Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk at the Komische Oper Berlin received unanimous critical acclaim in the international press.
Vassily Sinaisky’s most recent recording project has been a complete set of the symphonies of Franz Schmidt for Naxos with the Malmö Symphony Orchestra. Sinaisky’s other recordings include many with the BBC Philharmonic including works by Shostakovich, Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Shchedrin, Glinka, Liadov, Schreker and Szymanowski. Vassily Sinaisky is a noted and influential teacher, and holds the position of Professor of Conducting at the St Petersburg Conservatoire.
Vassily Sinaisky is represented by Intermusica. October 2009 / 538 words. Not to be altered without permission.
BBC Philharmonic at the BBC Proms / Moeran, Finzi & Elgar
"Conductor Vassily Sinaisky gave a dynamic, energised performance of Elgar's Second Symphony with the BBC Philharmonic, a fitting memorial to Ted Downes, the BBC Phil's principal conductor throughout the 80s, in the British symphony he loved more than any other."
The Guardian, July 2009
"…this was a triumph, not least for Vassily Sinaisky, the BBC Philharmonic’s chief guest conductor, who proved beyond doubt that being Russian needn’t stop you understanding and loving the symphony’s very British and 1930s mix of folk nostalgia and personal sorrow — and the jitters and shellshock of war."
The Times, July 2009
Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester Berlin / Liebermann, Elgar and Tchaikovsky
“It was clear from the vivacious first bars of Liebermann’s “Furioso” that a musician of the highest order stood on the podium. The 61 year old Vassily Sinaisky comes unmistakably from the Russian tradition of Rozhdestvensky, Kondrashin, Svetlanov and Mravinsky, who combined clarity of structure with energy, and treated the music with absolute reverence, unlike so many conductors of the younger generation. In the Elgar, Sinaisky clearly held the soloist in high esteem, as did the visibly moved orchestra... Against this background, Tchaikovsky’s 6th Symphony, the Pathétique, came across as a concentrated anticipation of the horrors of the 20th century; from the darkness of the opening movement, through the march of the 3rd movement that gradually burned itself out, sinking back into the darkness of the closing movement. It goes without saying with this conductor that his interpretation developed from an intimate knowledge of the score, bringing out both the subtleties and the moments of unrestrained outcry with equal success. A great evening.”
Berliner Zeitung, December 2008
Malmö Symphony Orchestra
"The Malmö Symphony Orchestra is entering a new era with Vassily Sinaisky as its principal conductor. It was undoubtedly a good Swedish regional orchestra previously, and it has provided me with many good musical experiences in the fifteen years that I have followed it. But something else is happening now; it now deserves a place on the European music scene as an orchestra of distinction.”
Skånska Dagbladet, December 2008
BBC Philharmonic at the BBC Proms / Elgar, Vaughan-Williams and Rimsky-Korsakov
“To witness Sheherazade in concert is to be reminded just how astonishingly resourceful an orchestrator Rimsky-Korsakov was. He needed only a modest-sized orchestra, with few exotic accessories, to evoke dazzling colours and sounds... Vassily Sinaisky moulded his players into eloquent storytellers, unfolding the final festival of Baghdad, sea and shipwreck in thrilling style.”
Evening Standard, August 2008
"Sinaisky was on home ground after the interval, cajoling and exhorting the BBC Philharmonic into as scintillating and virtuosic an account of Rimsky-Korsakov's Sheherazade as you could wish to hear."
The Guardian, August 2008
"It was always going to be interesting to see what a Russian conductor would make of such music [Elgar's In the South], but to his credit Sinaisky treated it as the core European late-Romantic masterpiece it is. The orchestra, from the sumptuous body of its strings to the brass's rich colouring, responded magnificently to Elgar's ripe evocation of his Italian holiday, but there was also a captivating restraint to the central, viola-led interlude."
The Telegraph, August 2008
"Sinaisky moulded a firmly contoured Ligurian landscape [in Elgar's In the South], graced by Steven Burnard’s beautifully poised viola solo. Rimsky-Korsakov’s Sheherazade, which ended the programme, also provided plenty of fine solo spots, with Yuri Torchinsky’s violin an irresistibly seductive narrator."
The Times, August 2008
BBC Philharmonic / Glazunov
"The BBC Philharmonic is on scintillating form under Vassily Sinaisky."
BBC Music Magazine, November 2007
LA Philharmonic / Berlioz, Rachmaninov
"Sinaisky distinguished himself from the outset... The conductor never compromised on virtuosity, but he larded these strains with a touching humanity that made the music all the more compelling. Thus the lush string sound of the first movement also contained a touching valedictory quality, the heady swirls from the woodwinds in the second movement sounded slightly haunted, and real tenderness softened the edge of the ferocious playing in the finale.
I spied architect Frank Gehry in the house and couldn't help but think how right pleased he must be with his Disney Hall after a performance like this. He certainly should be."
David Mermelstein, Los Angeles Daily News , February 2007
BBC Scottish Symphony / Mahler Symphony No.5
"Here was a conductor who, with the presence of a rejuvenated Klemperer, possessed an almost infallible grasp of the symphony's structure. Nothing straggled. No effect was exaggerated. The great Tannhauser theme simply grew out of the texture of the second movement and receded into it again. The woodwind and pizzicato strings in the scherzo mingled to perfection.
Fine detail was everywhere, never impeding the music's progress but enhancing it. The contours of the adagietto were lovingly gauged, sliding into the finale like a dream awakening."
The Herald, March 2006
BBC Philharmonic / Shostakovich
"This towering performance, with Vassily Sinaisky conducting the BBC Philharmonic, was a forceful reminder of its musical validity as well as its inherently subversive politics... Without losing sight of the score's architectural coherence, Sinaisky pulled all the threads together to create a terrifying portrait of a world in which both positivism and emotion are brutalised. The BBCPO played as if their lives depended on it, and the orchestral sound, with screaming woodwind and savage brass, was pulverising and blindingly clear."
The Guardian, 16 January 2006
"The Shostakovich centenary year will be very remarkable indeed if it produces another performance of the Fourth Symphony to match Saturday night's viscerally penetrating one by the BBC Philharmonic under Vassily Sinaisky. Taut, tense and terrifying..."
The Telegraph, 16 January 2006
"There was no question of muting its barrage of dynamic assault, diluting its dazzling colour or softening the inevitability of its desperate ending. Sparks flew in the lacerating fugue, the strings fervent and secure, while the effect of demons at torturous play was projected by bleating woodwind, brutal brass and thunderous percussion..."
The Independent, 18 January 2006
London Philharmonic / Glinka, Dvorak, Tchaikovsky
With smart, direct playing from the trumpets, a suave sound from the trombones and horns, and some exceptionally tight and cultured work from the LPO's excellent strings, this was a very impressive performance; beautifully shaped and galvanised by Sinaisky.
The Independent, 30 October 2005
Welsh National Opera / Iolanta
“Vassily Sinaisky conducted with huge affection and attention to detail. Under such treatment, the obvious sentimentality of the concept quickly gave way to something infinitely more touching and, if WNO do ever stage this piece in a sensible double-bill, they’ll surely have a success on their hands.”
The Independent, 7 June 2005
“…he conducted with all the requisite Slavic swagger, as well as delicately shading Tchaikovsky’s marvellously inventive orchestration.”
The Daily Telegraph, 6 June 2005
Komische Oper Berlin / Shostakovich Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk
“Anyone who has ever experienced Lady Macbeth of Mzensk, knows that the most incredible aspect is the music. The young Shostakovich mixed together kitsch and cacophony, sweet waltzes, brutal marches and natural, programmatic music … The orchestra and choir of the Komische Oper under Vassily Sinaisky were faultless; with brass instruments used to great effect. For once, the Komische Oper’s tradition of performing works in German actually reinforces the effect of the music. The work is transitory by nature, frequently switching between character study and narrative distance; Shostakovich's music could easily border on disintegration. Here, however Sinaisky achieved an astonishing balance between the power of the moment and the subtleties of the broader drama.”
Berliner Zeitung, November 2004
“The orchestra, under the knowledgeable direction of Russian conductor Vassily Sinaisky, gave an outstanding performance.”
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, November 2004
“Conductor Vassily Sinaisky drew from the consistently magnificent orchestra all the ingredients of Shostakovich’s writing… letting it crash forth, as if he wanted to portray the shock of Stalinism all at once. No wonder that the work was forbidden.”
Süddeutsche Zeitung, November 2004
“This is Shostakovich’s original score of 1932 in all its vulgar glory. Sinaisky lets it rip, wallowing in the graphic crudity of the score. Seldom has this orchestra sounded so full-blooded and raw.”
Financial Times, November 2004
“…if required to allot grades to the new production's components, I would unhesitatingly give the predominant musical part an A, parts of it even an A+. Rarely does one hear a musical apparatus as large as the one required here realize a printed score with the rare and vigorous combination of precision and expressivity that dominated this memorable premiere. Its hero was the imported Russian conductor Vassily Sinaisky, who had the first-rate musicians in the pit (overflowing into the stage-side loges) exerting themselves in a way one encounters here only infrequently…. But top honors must go to Sinaisky and the house orchestra, which under his sometimes febrile baton played as if truly inspired… If his triumphant realization of this harrowing Shostakovich score exemplifies his abilities, other orchestras would do well to sit up and take notice.”
Musical America, November 2004
London Philharmonic Orchestra / Rimsky-Korsakov, Borodin, Prokofiev
“This concert marked Sinaisky’s debut with the LPO. It was auspicious. The eloquent flow of his conducting opened up a wealth of instrumental detail and colour that emerged as though for the first time. Achieving that in a work as familiar as Rimsky-Korsakov’s Sheherezade is a considerable feat, and the drama and precision of the rhythmic figuration was brilliantly executed…”
The Guardian, 2 November 2004
BBC Philharmonic at BBC Proms / Szymanowski, Britten, Ravel and Dvorák
As for the Britten, it seemed if anything a more serious, intense piece that it had on the South Bank, partly thanks to Vassily Sinaisky’s careful, responsive conducting… Szymanowski’s Concert Overture had given the evening an exuberant … The Orchestra hit its best form in the first two movements of Dvorák’s Sixth Symphony, its playing finely balanced yet red-blooded…”
The Guardian, 5 August 2004
“…[Sinaisky] and the BBC Philharmonic had begun the concert in fine style with a performance of Szymanowski’s Straussian Concert Overture that exemplified this orchestra and conductor’s proven mastery in late-Romantic opulence. Finally, came Dvorak’s Sixth Symphony and a gloriously ripe reading of this, the sunniest of the composer’s Bohemian creations.
The Daily Telegraph, 4 August 2004
Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra / Shostakovich Symphony No.10
“Sinaisky, who’s conducting is precise, sensuous and who has a near perfect technique must have sharpened the senses of the Gewandhaus. This orchestra rarely plays with such boundlessly generosity, with such flexible dynamic range, with such voluptuous use of colour, so rich in detail and with such a grasp of structure. A truly great Shostakovich – moving, truthful and unsettling.”
Leipziger Volkszeitung May 2004
Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra / Shostakovich Symphony No.7
“He built the notorious “invasion” theme from a distant whisper – heard impeccably in the Disney Hall acoustics – into a terrifying, sickening war machine… He oversaw all the big orchestral sections with masterly control. The orchestra played splendidly.”
Los Angeles Times, 22 March 2004
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in residence at Luzern Festival / Stravinsky
“…Sinaisky set his interpretation with nimble tempi and pointed tone, which provided a refreshing counterpoint to Stravinsky’s neo-classical writing – and the orchestra took up this approach brilliantly…”
Neue Zürcher Zeitung, 7 September 2003
“The balance in sound was evenly spread, the brass fitting perfectly with the string sound, but not masking it … Vassily Sinaisky brought out lyrical, soft sounds, as well as clean-cut corners and strong lines from the orchestra, so that there were always moments of dynamic tension…”
Neue Luzerner Zeitung, 5 September 2003
BBC Philharmonic / Prokofiev and Tchaikovsky
“…Surging movement was a feature of Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No.5 in a performance that characterised its themes strongly and played the slow movement like a furtive operatic love scene…”
The Independent, 6 August 2003
“…Sinaisky … rendered the Tchaikovsky Fifth with luminous, expressive clarity…”
The Financial Times, 6 August 2003
English National Opera / Strauss Der Rosenkavalier
“…Sinaisky lingers over the score with great fondness, as if trying to capture its beauty before it, too, is dissolved by time. This is everything a Rosenkavalier should be…”
The Guardian, 3 March 2003
“…Vassily Sinaisky … made Strauss’ demanding score blaze, tease and melt…
The Evening Standard, 3 March 2003
“…Vassily Sinaisky is a born Straussian … the beauty of Sinaisky’s interpretation is its seamlessness … ENO needs conductors of his experience…”
The Financial Times, 4tMarch 2003
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra / BBC Proms / Respighi and Stravinsky
“…As an exercise in sonority, The Pines of Rome has few equals and it can – and on this occasion did – hold an audience spellbound by the sheerly seductive power of the sounds and colours it creates. Played to perfection by Amsterdam’s Royal Concertgebouw, this performance was conducted with furious energy by Vassily Sinaisky … La Boutique Fantasque … was pure joy.”
The Guardian, 28 August 2002
“…the orchestration is brilliant, and Sinaisky, and a now vast orchestra, revelled in it. So did we.”
The Guardian, 28 August 2002
“…Sinaisky … revelled in the music’s textural transparency and instrumental deftness of touch…”
The Daily Telegraph, 28 August 2002
BBC Philharmonic / Shostakovich and Rachmaninov
“…Sinaisky began soaked in gloom and took the introduction to a pitch of emotion that would be hard to follow … much of the rest was quick, light and flexible. Its urbane vitality and spontaneity recalled Rachmaninov’s piano playing rather than the usual orchestral tradition … it brought together excitement and affection in an absorbing whole…”
The Independent, 8 August 2002
BBC Philharmonic / Lyapunov / Chandos 9808
“…Vassily Sinaisky and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra allow the long sinuous lines of the Andante sostenuto to unfold with an unfaltering tact and commitment, and in the balletic Scherzo, with its memories of Tchaikovsky, he realises all of the music’s grace and charm…”
Gramophone, August 2002
“…Vassily Sinaisky, as usual, offers rich performances that coax out the music’s colour and melodic appeal…”
International Record Review, August 2002