RNO

Russian Wind Quintet

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The Ensemble

The Russian National Orchestra Wind Quintet has been described by the press as "youthful and versatile musicians, acclaimed for their innovation and virtuosity". The ensemble received top honors in the May 2005 Osaka International Chamber Music Competition, one of the most prestigious competitions in the chamber music world, earning the Quintet the distinction of being the first Russian ensemble ever to win the top prize.

The Russian Wind Quintet's extensive repertoire includes works for quintet, for ensembles with additional instruments, and for wind instruments and orchestra. The ensemble is also developing a cycle of works written by its resident composer, Andrey Rubtsov.

The Russian Wind Quintet has toured widely since its 2000 debut, with performances in Russia, Spain, Bermuda, Asia and the United States, where it has toured with trombonist and composer Chris Brubeck and the Brubeck Brothers Quartet. Its concerts have been featured on Russian television and radio. The ensemble has premiered numerous works in Russia, including Hindemith's Concerto for Woodwinds, Harp, and Orchestra, Chris Brubeck's Crescent City Suite and Andrey Rubtsov's Three Moods.

Active in youth outreach, the Russian Wind Quintet has performed its special arrangements of Peter and the Wolf and Wolf Tracks in Russia, Bermuda, the USA, the UK and Singapore for delighted audiences of all ages. Narrators for these performances have included actors Diana Douglas and Sean Dill, Russian model Tatiana Sorokko, Singaporean violinist Min Lee, and BBC anchor Seva Novgorodtsev.

In Summer 2005 the Russian Wind Quintet will tour the East and West Coasts of the United States.

The Musicians

Maxim Rubtsov
Andrey Rubtsov
Andrey Shuty
Alexey Serov
Andrey Snegirev

Biographies

Maxim Rubtsov
Flute

Maxim Rubtsov was appointed Principal Flute of the Russian National Orchestra in 2003. Born in 1977 in Bryansk, Russia, he began his studies in music and choreography there and later transferred to Moscow's Gnesin Institute of Music. He graduated with an advanced degree in music from the Moscow Conservatory. Rubtsov joined the flute section of the RNO in 1999 and was appointed Associate Principal the following year, at the time the youngest ever to hold this position in the history of the orchestra.

Rubtsov's solo performances with the Russian National Orchestra have included the Russian premiere of John Corigliano's Pied Piper Fantasy in 2003. Of the performance the composer said, "Maxim has both the charm and excitement that a great performer must have. His extraordinary musicianship and perfect technique resulted in a magnificent performance." In 2006, he was featured soloist in the RNO's performance at Mondavi Center, Davis, California, which was rebroadcast to a nationwide audience on National Public Radio. In March 2007, in Worcester, MA, he performed Mozart's Flute Concerto as soloist with the RNO. Of that performance, the Worcester Telegram and Gazette wrote, "Rubstov was absolutely impeccable... A dialogue between the flute and orchestra in the lively final movement came across with an exuberance that at the same time was well-measured."

In 2002, Michael Tilson Thomas invited Maxim Rubtsov to perform with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra for its Russian Festival, opening a series of professional exchanges between the RNO and major US orchestras under the RNO's Cultural Allies initiative.

Maxim Rubtsov regularly performs in chamber ensembles and is a member of the Russian Wind Quintet, which took top honors in the Fifth Annual Osaka International Chamber Music Competition. Together with the Wind Quintet, Maxim has explored jazz and classical connections with the Brubeck Brothers in the US, and performed in Washington D.C., Spain, Singapore, Malaysia and Bermuda. He has also performed chamber music with pianists Mikhail Pletnev and Francesco Schlimé, among other soloists, in Moscow, London and Spain, and has led string quartet performances in the US and several Russian cities.

Andrei Rubtsov
Oboe

Andrey Rubtsov was born in Moscow in 1982. He completed studies at the Central Music School in 2000 and entered the Moscow State Conservatory, from which he graduated with honors in 2005. He is a laureate of several Russian and international youth competitions, and has been awarded scholarships by "New Names" and other organizations involved with creative studies.

From 1995 to 1999, Andrey was first oboe and concertmaster of the wind section in the Youth Symphonic Orchestra of Russia. He has performed with the Orchestra of the Bolshoi Theatre, the Moscow Symphonic Orchestra, the Moscow Philharmonic and Musica Viva. In 2001 he joined the oboe section of the Russian National Orchestra, as associate principal. At the time he was the youngest artist ever to join the RNO. The following year, he was a founding member of the Russian Wind Quintet. The ensemble has performed around the world to much acclaim, and in 2005 took top honors in the Fifth Annual Osaka International Chamber Music Competition.

Andrey was a member of the 2002 and 2003 UBS Verbier Festival Orchestra under the artistic direction of James Levine. In 2005, he performed as soloist with the Verbier Festival Orchestra. He also participated in the 2001 Pacific Music Festival in Sapporo, Japan.

As a composer, Andrey Rubtsov's works include Three Moods for woodwind quintet, published by TrevCo Music, Valse for piano and string quartet, Divertimento for flute and string quartet, Quartet for horns, Octet for cellos, Quintet for double basses, several romances and other pieces. His compositions have been performed in Russia, China, the US, Switzerland, Spain, Lithuania, France, Poland, Hungary, England, Bulgaria, Singapore, Venezuela, Morocco, Brazil, Malaysia and Bermuda. His Concerto for Oboe had its debut with the Russian National Orchestra in 2003. Andrey's 20-minute ballet piece Wind Kiss, commissioned by the Bolshoi Theatre, was premiered there in 2005.

Andrey’s conducting debut with the RNO was in 2004. He conducted two piano concertos by J.S. Bach, with Mikhail Pletnev as a soloist. This was followed by concerts in Malaysia (2005), the US (2006) and Russia with RNO chamber ensembles. In 2006 he recorded a world premiere of works by Gustav Mahler in orchestrations by the renowned Russian composer Boris Tishchenko, along with several musical poems by contemporary composer Alexander Lokshin, with Marina Karpechenko, Alexei Martynov and Nikolai Dorozhkin as a soloists.

Visit Andrey's web page

Reviews of Andrey's compositions

Andrey Shuty
Clarinet
 A founding member of the Russian National Orchestra Wind Quintet, Andrey Shuty was born in Moscow in 1974. In 1997, he graduated from the Moscow State Conservatory and in 1999 he completed the Conservatory’s postgraduate degree program.

In 1995, he joined the clarinet section of the State Symphony Capella of Russia. Since 2001, he has also held the position of soloist of the Studio for New Music Ensemble. In 2003, he was appointed Associate Principal Clarinet of the Russian State Symphony Orchestra of Cinematography. He also cooperates with the Moscow Contemporary Music Ensemble, with which he has recorded a CD released by TRITON (Japan).

Andrey has appeared as a soloist with the Moscow Symphony Orchestra, the Symphony Orchestra of the Moscow State Conservatory and several chamber orchestras, and at international music festivals in Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, United Kingdom and the U.S. In Moscow chamber concerts he has performed with such outstanding musicians as Anton Ginsburg, Alexander Rudin and Alexey Lyubimov.

Alexey Serov
Horn
Alexey Serov was born in 1983. He completed studies at the Central Music School and entered the Moscow State Conservatory in 2000. The same year he also joined the Orchestra of the Bolshoi Theatre.

Winning two international competitions for wind musicians in 2001 (Moscow and in Togliatti), he has since been a featured soloist with the Russian State Symphony Orchestra, with the Moscow Philharmonic, Musica Viva chamber orchestra and others. In 2002 Serov was invited to participate in the RNO's ongoing "Magic of Music" youth outreach program and to join the Russian Wind Quintet. He joined the RNO in 2003 and is presently Associate Principal French Horn in the orchestra.



Andrey Snegirev
Bassoon
Andrey Snegirev was born in Moscow in 1972. In 1996, he graduated from the Moscow State Conservatory and in 2000 he completed the Conservatory’s postgraduate degree program.

In 1991, Andrey joined the bassoon section of the State Symphony Capella of Russia. Since 2000, he has also held the position of soloist of the chamber orchestra, The Hermitage. In 2003, he joined the bassoon section of the Moscow Philharmonic.

Andrey has performed as a soloist with the Moscow Symphony Orchestra and with the chamber orchestras, The Seasons, The Hermitage and Moscow Camerata. Since 2002, Snegirev has participates in the Russian National Orchestra's Magic of Music youth outreach program.