Search - Sergey Rachmaninov, Dmitry Shostakovich, Manuel Gonzalez :: Nadiezda (Hope): Sonatas for Viola and Piano by Shostakovich and Rachmaninov

Mikhail Tolpygo is a Russian violist, heir to the tradition of great chamber music players. He performed for Shostakovich, and has a natural command of this repertoire. Born in the Soviet Union in 1941, Tolpygo obtained his degree in viola from the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, studying under Vadim Borisovky, himself a student of a friend of Rachmaninov. He also studied conducting with Igor Markevich and violin with Elizabeth Gilels. Tolpygo is internationally recognized as great interpreter of contemporary compositions, many of which have been written for him, although his repertoire embraces virtually all major works written for his instrument as well as the viola d'amore. He has made more than twenty-five recordings as soloist or as a member of chamber ensembles. From 1967 to 1991 he was principal viola of the USSR State Orchestra under the baton of Evgeny Svetlanov. He now holds the same position in Mexico's National Symphony Orchestra. He is joined by Manuel González, a Mexican pianist trained in the former Soviet Union, who has also devoted his talent to Russian chamber music from the late nineteenth century and the first half of the twentieth. González has performed in Mexico, the U.S., France, Germany, Spain, Cuba, and Russia, both in recital and as soloist. He performs regularly with Mikhail Tolpygo as well as in piano duos with Marta Garcia Renart. The transcription used in the Rachmaninov was made by Vadim Borisovsky and approved by the composer himself.