Andris Nelsons

Early life

Nelsons was born in Riga. His mother founded the first early music ensemble in Latvia, and his father was a choral conductor, cellist, and teacher. At age five, his mother and stepfather (a choir conductor) took him to a performance of Wagner's Tannhäuser, which Nelsons refers to as a profoundly formative experience: "...it had a hypnotic effect on me. I was overwhelmed by the music. I cried when Tannhäuser died. I still think this was the biggest thing that happened in my childhood."

As a youth, Nelsons studied piano, and took up the trumpet at age 12. He also sang bass-baritone, with a special interest in early music, in his mother's ensemble. He studied for one summer at the Dartington International Summer School with Evelyn Tubb. He served as a trumpeter with the orchestra of the Latvian National Opera.

Conducting career

Nelsons studied conducting with Alexander Titov in Saint Petersburg, Russia and participated in conducting master classes with Neeme Järvi, Roberto Carnevale and Jorma Panula. He came to the attention of Mariss Jansons when he emergency-substituted with the Oslo Philharmonic in their trumpet section during an orchestra tour. Nelsons counted Jansons as a mentor and began conducting studies with him in 2002.

In 2003, Nelsons became principal conductor of the Latvian National Opera. He concluded his tenure there after four years in 2007. In 2006, Nelsons became chief conductor of the Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie of Herford, Germany, a post he held until the end of the 2008/09 season. His first conducting appearance at the Metropolitan Opera was in October 2009, a production of Turandot. In July 2010, Nelsons made his debut at the Bayreuth Festival, conducting a new production of Wagner's Lohengrin at the opening performance of the festival.

City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra

In the UK, Nelsons's early work included studio concerts with the BBC Philharmonic in Manchester, and his first BBC Philharmonic concert at the Bridgewater Hall was in November 2007. In October 2007, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO) named Nelsons as its 12th principal conductor and music director, effective with the 2008/09 season, with an initial contract for three years. The appointment was unusual in that Nelsons had conducted the CBSO only in a private concert and in a recording session, without a public concert engagement, prior to being named to the post. His first public conducting appearance with the CBSO was on 11 November 2007 in a matinee concert, and his first subscription concert appearance with the CBSO was in March 2008. In July 2009, Nelsons extended his CBSO contract for an additional three years, through the 2013/14 season. In August 2012, the CBSO announced the extension of his CBSO contract formally through the 2014/15 season, and then for subsequent seasons on the basis of an annual rolling renewal. In October 2013, the CBSO announced the conclusion of Nelsons's tenure as music director after the end of the 2014/15 season.

Boston Symphony Orchestra

In the US, Nelsons made his first guest-conducting appearance with the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) in March 2011, as an emergency substitute for James Levine at Carnegie Hall. He subsequently guest-conducted the BSO at the Tanglewood Music Festival in July 2012, and made his first appearance with the BSO at Symphony Hall, Boston in January 2013. In May 2013, the BSO named Nelsons as its 15th music director effective the 2014/15 season. His initial contract was for 5 years and stipulated 8 to 10 weeks of scheduled appearances in the first year of the contract and 12 weeks in subsequent years.

Nelsons held the title of Music Director Designate in the 2013/14 season. In August 2015, the BSO announced the extension of Nelsons's contract as music director through the 2021/22 season with a new contract, for eight years, that replaced the initial five-year contract, and also contained an evergreen clause for automatic renewal. In October 2020, the BSO announced a further extension of Nelsons' contract as music director through August 2025, with an evergreen clause for automatic renewal. In January 2024, the BSO announced the conversion of Nelsons' contract as its music director to a rolling evergreen contract.

Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra

Nelsons first guest-conducted the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra in 2011. In September 2015, the orchestra announced the appointment of Nelsons as its next Gewandhauskapellmeister, effective with the 2017–2018 season, with an initial contract of 5 seasons. In October 2020, the orchestra announced a further extension of his contract as Gewandhauskapellmeister through 31 July 2027. In August 2025, the Gewandhausorchester announced the most recent extension of Nelsons' contract as Gewandhauskapellmeister for an additional five years, through 31 July 2032.

Recording history

With the CBSO, Nelsons has recorded music of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Richard Strauss, and Igor Stravinsky for the Orfeo label. Separately from the CBSO, Nelsons has also recorded for the BR-Klassik label and for the label of the Concertgebouw Orchestra. Nelsons has also recorded commercially with the Boston Symphony Orchestra for Deutsche Grammophon, where their recording of the Tenth symphony of Dmitri Shostakovich received a Grammy Award in 2015 for best orchestral performance, and their recordings of Shostakovich's Fifth, Eighth, and Ninth symphonies received a Grammy Award for best orchestral performance in 2016. In 2018, they received another Grammy Award for best orchestral performance, for Shostakovich's Fourth and Eleventh symphonies. In 2019, Deutsche Grammophon released a cycle of the complete Beethoven symphonies recorded by Nelsons with the Vienna Philharmonic.

In December 2019 and January 2020, Nelsons conducted for the first time the Vienna New Year's Concert with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, where he performed the trumpet solo in the Postillon-Galopp of Hans Christian Lumbye, the first conductor to perform a solo in the Vienna New Year's Concert who is not a violinist.

Personal life

Nelsons has been married twice. His first marriage was to the Latvian soprano Kristīne Opolais. They met during Nelsons's tenure at Latvian National Opera, when she was a member of the Latvian National Opera chorus, and later became a solo singer with the company. The couple married in 2011. Their daughter, Adriana Anna, was born on 28 December 2011. The couple announced their divorce on 27 March 2018. Nelsons remarried in April 2019, to Alice Heidler.

Nelsons is a longtime practitioner of Taekwondo, and earned his black belt in November 2022.

References

References

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2. Richard Morrison. (18 December 2009). "Andris Nelsons's rapid rise to the top". The Times.
3. Geoffrey Norris. (13 September 2008). "Andris Nelsons: 'I've wanted to conduct since I was five'". [[The Daily Telegraph]].
4. Terry Grimley. (8 October 2007). "Andris takes the CBSO helm". [[Birmingham Post]].
5. Charlotte Higgins. (9 October 2007). "Young Latvian steps up to lead City of Birmingham orchestra". The Guardian.
6. Geoffrey Norris. (26 November 2007). "The young ones seize the baton". Telegraph.
7. Anthony Tommasini. (29 October 2009). "He's Come to Melt the Heart of an Ice Princess". [[The New York Times]].
8. George Loomis. (21 April 2010). "Young Conductor at the Forefront of His Field". The New York Times.
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11. Andrew Clements. (7 March 2008). "CBSO/Nelsons, Symphony Hall, Birmingham". The Guardian.
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13. (January 2018). "Andris Nelsons renews contract with City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra". City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.
14. Ben Hurst. (24 August 2012). "Andris Nelsons extends contract with CBSO". Birmingham Post.
15. (2 October 2013). "The search begins for the new Music Director of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra". City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.
16. Graeme Brown. (2 October 2013). "CBSO music director Andris Nelsons to stand down at end of contract". Birmingham Post.
17. James R. Oestreich. (19 March 2011). "A Fresh Face Confronts a Seasoned Mahler". [[The New York Times]].
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19. (16 May 2013). "Boston Symphony Orchestra Appoints Andris Nelsons As Its 15th Music Director Since Its Founding in 1881". Boston Symphony Orchestra.
20. Geoff Edgers. (16 May 2013). "Andris Nelsons named new music director of BSO". The Boston Globe.
21. (February 2022). "Boston Symphony Orchestra And Andris Nelsons Announce Extension of Mr. Nelsons' Contract As BSO Music Director Through 2022!". Boston Symphony Orchestra.
22. (5 October 2020). "Boston Symphony Orchestra And Andris Nelsons Announce Three-Year Extension of Mr. Nelsons' Contract As BSO Music Director Through August 2025, With An Evergreen Clause In Place Reflecting A Mutual Intent For A Long-Term Commitment Well Beyond The Years Of The New Contract Extension". Boston Symphony Orchestra.
23. (25 January 2024). "BSO Announces Andris Nelsons Contract Extension, Carlos Simon as Composer Chair, and Establishment of Humanities Institute". Boston Symphony Orchestra.
24. (September 2019). "Andris Nelsons soll 21. Gewandhauskapellmeister werden". Stadt Leipzig & Gewandhausorchester Leipzig.
25. Michael Cooper. (9 September 2015). "Andris Nelsons Named Music Director of Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra". The New York Times.
26. (5 September 2025). "Andris Nelsons verlängert als Gewandhauskapellmeister bis 2032". Gewandhaus Orchestra Leipzig.
27. Christopher Morley. (24 June 2009). "First love rekindled for Andris Nelsons and CBSO". Birmingham Post.
28. Tim Ashley. (9 February 2012). "Tchaikovsky: Francesca da Rimini; Symphony No 4". The Guardian.
29. Andrew Clements. (5 February 2010). "Strauss: Ein Heldenleben; Rosenkavalier Suite, City of Birmingham SO, Nelsons". The Guardian.
30. Tim Ashley. (13 May 2010). "Stravinsky: The Firebird; Symphony of Psalms". The Guardian.
31. Andrew Clements. (4 April 2013). "Antonín Dvořák: Symphony No 9; A Hero's Song – review". The Guardian.
32. Erica Jeal. (20 August 2015). "Nelsons: Shostakovich Symphony No 10 CD review – genuinely catacylsmic". The Guardian.
33. Steve Smith. (15 February 2016). "Andris Nelsons, BSO, Seiji Ozawa win Grammy Awards". The Boston Globe.
34. (2 May 2016). "Shostakovich Under Stalin's Shadow: Symphonies 5, 8, and 9". Boston Symphony Orchestra.
35. Ender, Stefan. (1 January 2019). "Andris Nelsons: Ein jovialer Genießer für die Philharmoniker". [[Der Standard]].
36. Ljubisa Tosic. (1 January 2020). "Neujahrskonzert: Mit Nelsons klatschend ins neue Jahr". Der Standard.
37. Christopher Morley. (23 October 2008). "Kristine Opolais takes double role in ''La bohème''". Birmingham Post.
38. Christopher Morley. (17 June 2011). "Orchestral manoeuvres for Andris Nelsons". Birmingham Post.
39. (27 March 2018). "BSO music director Andris Nelsons and Kristine Opolais have divorced".
40. "Zugabe – Namen, Nachrichten, Nettigkeiten: Neues von der Hinterbühne".
41. "Congratulations, Andris!".