Artist Biographies
Semyon Bychkov
Semyon Bychkov is Chief Conductor of the WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne, a post he assumed in 1997. In that position, he has maintained a full concert schedule in Cologne, increased the orchestra’s touring commitments, and built an archive of recordings and broadcasts. In addition to frequent tours of Germany, Mr. Bychkov and the orchestra have toured throughout the US, Japan, Europe, and South America. From 1980 to 1985, Mr. Bychkov served as music director of the Grand Rapids Symphony and as principal guest conductor of the Buffalo Philharmonic; he was music director of the Buffalo Philharmonic from 1985 to 1989. From 1989 to 1998 he was music director of the Orchestre de Paris, and during the 1990s he served as principal guest conductor of the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic and of Florence's Maggio Musicale. Mr. Bychkov also served as chief conductor of the Semper Opera in Dresden (1998-2003); during his tenure, he conducted new productions of Shostakovich’s Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District, Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier, and Wagner’s Das Rheingold and Die Walküre. Born in Saint Petersburg in 1952, Mr. Bychkov studied with Ilya Musin at the Conservatory there, winning first prize in the 1973 Rachmaninoff Conducting Competition. He emigrated to the United States in 1975.
Mr. Bychkov made his San Francisco Symphony debut in 1989, and in 2002, he appeared in the San Francisco Symphony’s Great Performers Series leading the WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne. Mr. Bychkov led the Orchestra most recently last week, in performances of Rachmaninoff’s The Bells and Symphony No. 2. As an opera conductor, Mr. Bychkov made his La Scala debut in 1997 with Puccini’s Tosca and returned there in 2005 to conduct Elektra. He made his Metropolitan Opera debut in 2004 with Boris Godunov and later that year debuted at the Salzburg Festival with Der Rosenkavalier. During the 2008-09 season, he conducted Lohengrin in London and Tristan und Isolde in Paris, among other opera and symphonic performances.
Semyon Bychkov’s recording of Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5 with the Berlin Philharmonic won Belgium’s Caecilia Award and was named Stereo Review’s Record of the Year. His recording of Eugene Onegin with the Orchestre de Paris received the Echo Deutscher Schallplattenpreis, the Academie du Disque Français, and the Academie Lyrique Bruno Walter Prize. Mr. Bychkov’s recent recordings include Wagner’s Lohengrin, Verdi’s Requiem, Rachmaninoff’s The Bells and Symphonic Dances, and Shostakovich Symphonies Nos. 4, 10, and 11.
Gautier Capuçon
Born in Chambéry, France, in 1981, Gautier Capuçon began cello studies at the age of five at the École Nationale de Musique de Chambéry. Later, he studied in Paris at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Paris with Philippe Muller, Annie Cochet-Zakine, and Christophe Egiziano, as well as with Heinrich Schiff in Vienna. At the conservatory, Mr. Capuçon won the Cello and Chamber Music Prize in 2000; he also played in the European Community Youth Orchestra and the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester, where he worked under conductors such as Bernard Haitink, Kent Nagano, Pierre Boulez, Daniele Gatti, Seiji Ozawa, and Claudio Abbado. Mr. Capuçon makes his San Francisco Symphony debut as a Shenson Young Artist with these concerts.
In the 2009-10 season, Mr. Capuçon will perform with pianist Gabriela Montero at the Savannah Music Festival and give recitals with pianist Menahem Pressler in New York City, Quebec, and Washington DC. Last season, Mr. Capuçon performed the Dvořák Cello Concerto with the Cincinnati Orchestra, and toured North America with the Capuçon-Angelich Trio, including performances in Washington DC, New York, and Vancouver. Other recent season highlights included performances with the Munich Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre National de France, Dresden Philharmonic, Orchestre de Bordeaux, and tours with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, New Zealand Symphony, and Orchestre de Strasbourg. Mr. Capuçon has given recitals in Berlin, Brussels, Hannover, Dresden, London, Paris, and Vienna; he has also appeared in many festivals, including those of Berlin, Verbier, Davos, Jerusalem, Lockenhaus, Saint-Denis, and Strasbourg. He appears regularly at the Martha Argerich Festival in Lugano.
Gautier Capuçon records for Virgin Classics. His recording of the Dvořák and Herbert cello concertos with the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra was released in 2009, and received Gramophone’s “Editor’s Choice” award. Mr. Capuçon’s latest recording, of Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations and Prokofiev’s Sinfonia concertante with the Mariinsky Orchestra and Valery Gergiev, is slated for release in early 2010. Other recordings include Face à Face, a disc of twentieth-century works for cello and violin with his brother, violinist Renaud Capuçon; and Rhapsody, a disc of Prokofiev and Rachmaninoff sonatas with pianist Gabriela Montero. Mr. Capuçon plays a 1701 Matteo Goffriller cello and a 1746 Joseph Contreras cello on loan from the BSI. Gautier Capuçon appears by arrangement with Columbia Artists Management LLC; 1790 Broadway, New York, NY, 10019; cami.com.
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