Lidiya Yankovskaya Explained

Lidiya Yankovskaya
Native Name:Лидия Янковская
Birth Date:26 March 1986
Occupation:Conductor
Office:may be used as an alternative when the label is better rendered as "Office" (e.g. public office or appointments) -->

Lidiya Yankovskaya (Russian: Лидия Янковская; Russian pronunciation: [ˈlʲidʲijɐ janˈkofskajɐ]; born 26 March 1986) is a Russian-American opera and symphonic conductor and the Music Director of Chicago Opera Theater.[1]

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Biography

Early life

Born in Saint Petersburg. Yankovskaya studied ballet between the ages of three- and five-years-old.[2] She studied music from the age of five, playing piano and singing in the Saint Petersburg Children’s Choir of Radio and Television. She attended performances with her mother regularly, citing a production of Prokofiev's The Love for Three Oranges at the Mariinsky Theater as one of her first experiences with opera.[3]

Due to the anti-Semitic climate in Russia, Yankovskaya immigrated to the United States with her mother at nine-years-old. They settled in upstate New York, where Yankovskaya attended Hebrew day school.[4]

Educational background

Yankovskaya's mother prioritized her musical development, enrolling her daughter at Guilderland High School in Albany, NY. Yankovskaya also joined the selective private teaching studio of piano duo Vladimir Pleshakov and Elena Winther, and began studying the violin. At 17, she won the school's concerto competition for a performance of Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 12 (K. 414). During rehearsals, conductor Jeff Herchenroder suggested that Yankovskaya try leading from the piano. She later made her conducting debut at Herchenroder's request, leading the orchestra for the third movement of Dvořák's Symphony No.7 in D minor.

After graduation, Yankovskaya attended Vassar College, where she studied piano, voice, and conducting. She switched her focus from piano performance to conducting during her junior year. Yankovskaya led her own ensemble of approximately 55 instrumentalists and 30 singers in regular performances of contemporary works. Yankovskaya holds a master's degree in conducting from Boston University.[5]

Career

Yankovskaya joined the Boston-based Juventas New Music Ensemble as an associate conductor and served as their music director between 2010-2017. Also taking on the role of artistic director in 2014, she sought to present collaborative, interdisciplinary works ranging from opera and ballet to puppetry, aerial dance, and robotic instruments.[6]

Also in the Greater Boston area, she has served as the music director of Commonwealth Lyric Theater, music director of Lowell House Opera at Harvard University (2011-2015), and artistic director of the Boston New Music Festival.[7] [8] Yankovskaya has conducted the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestras Opera Chorus and prepared the Tanglewood Festival Chorus for programs with the Boston Symphony.

As a guest conductor, Yankovskaya has performed with the Washington National Opera, the Spoleto Festival USA, Symphony New Hampshire, Wolf Trap Opera, Stamford Symphony Orchestra, Opera Saratoga, Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra, the Brookline Symphony, Beth Morrison Projects, American Lyric Theater, and the Center for Contemporary Opera in New York City.[9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21]

In 2015, Yankovskaya was one of six conductors selected to join the Dallas Opera's inaugural Hart Institute for Women Conductors and received honorable mention from Marin Alsop's Taki Concordia Conducting Fellowship.

Yankovskaya was appointed the music director of Chicago Opera Theater in June 2017 and began regular conducting duties with the 2018-19 season. She is the first female music director at Chicago Opera Theater.

Social and political involvement

During the Syrian refugee crisis, Yankovskaya started a grassroots performance ensemble that would become known as the Refugee Orchestra Project. The first performance by the ensemble took place on May 10, 2016 in Cambridge, MA. Growing interest on social media led to concerts in Boston, New York City, and Washington, DC. The orchestra joined the National Sawdust artists-in-residence for the 2017-18 season.

Awards and honors

Recordings

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Chicago Opera Theater names new music director. Rhein. John von. 2017-06-20. The Chicago Tribune. 2018-04-15. en-US.
  2. Web site: Q&A: Chicago Opera Theater Music Director Lidiya Yankovskaya on Future Goals, Conducting and the Future of Opera. operawire.com. 3 October 2017 . en-US. 2018-05-10.
  3. News: Out of Russia: A Conversation with Lidiya Yankovskaya. Scorca. Marc A.. Opera America Magazine. 2017. Fall 2017. 14–16.
  4. News: Meet the NS Artist-in-Residence: Lidiya Yankovskaya, Activist Conductor. The Log Journal. 2018-05-10. en-US.
  5. News: Refugee Orchestra Project spreads a musical message of inclusion - The Boston Globe. BostonGlobe.com. 2018-05-10.
  6. Web site: The Exquisite Corpse. Juventas New Music Ensemble. 2010-09-19. The Boston Conservatory. en. CD. 670428656. 2018-05-17.
  7. Web site: Portrait of an Artist: Lidiya V. Yankovskaya Arts The Harvard Crimson. Drummond II. Jay A.. 2012-03-27. www.thecrimson.com. en. 2018-05-12.
  8. News: Пиковая дама aka Piqued Lady - The Boston Musical Intelligencer. 2015-03-07. The Boston Musical Intelligencer. 2018-05-12. en-US.
  9. Web site: Kevin Puts, Latonia Moore & Venera Gimadieva Headline Washington National Opera's 2018-19 Season. Salazar. Francisco. 2018-01-30. operawire.com. en-US. 2018-05-12.
  10. Web site: Pia de' Tolomei Spoleto Festival USA 2018. spoletousa.org. en-US. 2018-05-12.
  11. News: Introducing our 2017-18 Season Guest Conductors. Symphony NH. 2018-05-12. en-US.
  12. News: Review: 'Bastianello' and 'The Juniper Tree' at The Barns at Wolf Trap - DCMetroTheaterArts. Morgenstern. Ana. 2017-08-12. DC Metro Theater Arts. 2018-05-12. en-US.
  13. Web site: Wolf Trap Opera Season Concludes with a Double-Bill Featuring John Musto's Bastianello and Philip Glass and Robert Moran's The Juniper Tree The Barns at Wolf Trap, Four Performances, August 11, 13, 16, and 19. www.wolftrap.org. 2018-05-12.
  14. News: Music Interview: Lidiya Yankovskaya's Debut With Stamford Symphony. Remington. Kate. 2017-10-09. WSHU Public Radio. 2018-05-12. en.
  15. News: Crossing the operatic divide: Opera Saratoga preps for 55th Summer Festival Season. Phalen-Tomaselli. Kathleen. 2017-07-02. The Post-Star. 2018-05-12. en.
  16. News: Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra prepares for an all classics season.. Muller. Seth. 2016-09-25. Arizona Daily Sun. 2018-05-12. en.
  17. Web site: Music Director Search Finalists - Brookline Symphony Orchestra. brooklinesymphony.org. 2018-05-12.
  18. Web site: Beth Morrison Projects Announces 'BMP: Next Generation' Finalists For March 2018 Concert. Salazar. David. 2018-02-16. operawire.com. en-US. 2018-05-12.
  19. Web site: The Life and Death(s) of Alan Turing (in development). American Lyric Theater. en-US. 2018-05-12.
  20. News: American Lyric Theater and MasterVoices to Present 'InsightALT: The Life and Death(s) of Alan Turing'. Opera News Desk. 2016-12-01. BroadwayWorld.com. 2018-05-12. en.
  21. Web site: Boston Conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya Juggles Many Roles — And, Now, A Circus Piece. Powers. Keith. 2017-03-22. www.wbur.org. en. 2018-05-12.
  22. Web site: World Opera Forum. Teatro Real de Madrid. en. 2018-05-12.
  23. Web site: 2018 Bruno Walter National Conductor Preview. The League of American Orchestras. 2018-05-12.
  24. Web site: National Opera Association - 2016-2017 Production Competition Winners. www.noa.org. en. 2018-05-12.
  25. News: Creating Collaborative Change: Opera Conference 2017 Program. 2017-05-04. OperaAmerica.org. 2018-05-12.
  26. News: Dallas Opera announces Women Conductors Institute participants. Cantrell. Scott. 2015-06-05. Dallas News. 2018-04-15. en.
  27. News: Marin Alsop and Taki Concordia announce 2015-17 Conducting Fellows. 2015-05-29. Taki Concordia Conducting Fellowship. 2018-04-15. en-us.
  28. Web site: OPERA COMPANIES: professional division. Katz. David. 2014-10-08. The American Prize Blog. 2018-04-15.
  29. Web site: OPERA COMPANIES: community division. Katz. David. 2014-10-08. The American Prize Blog. 2018-04-15.
  30. Web site: CONDUCTOR WINNER, RUNNERS-UP: opera division. Katz. David. 2014-10-25. The American Prize Blog. 2018-04-15.
  31. Web site: National Opera Association - 2012-2013 Production Competition Winners. www.noa.org. en. 2018-05-12.
  32. Web site: Oliver Caplan: Illuminations - Oliver Caplan Music: 18719383 Buy from ArkivMusic. www.arkivmusic.com. en. 2018-06-13.
  33. Web site: Hackpolitik Innova Recordings. www.innova.mu. en. 2018-05-10.

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