Mischa Maisky
Mischa Maisky (Miša Maiskis; Mikhail Leopoldovich Maysky; born 10 January 1948) is a Soviet-born Israeli cellist.
Mischa Maisky
Victor Dmitriev · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Name
- Mischa Maisky
- Birthplace
- Riga, Latvian SSR, Soviet Union
- Born
- 10 January 1948
- Education
- Moscow Conservatory
- Occupation
- Classical cellist
- Nationality
- Latvia · Soviet Union · Israel
- Fields
- classical music
- Teachers
- Mstislav Rostropovich
- Honours
- Echo Klassik – Instrumentalist of the Year
- Languages
- Latvian
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Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q381759 · wikipedia · Mischa Maisky
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The documentary record
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Institutions cited
Bibliothèque nationale de France · Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
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Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Mischa Maisky • Birthplace — Riga, Latvian SSR, Soviet Union • Born — 10 January 1948 • Education — Moscow Conservatory • Occupation — Classical cellist
Documentary record
Mischa Maisky, recorded as a cellist, musician, arranger and conductor, was born on 10 January 1948 in Riga. The birth is recorded by the Bibliothèque nationale de France and the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek.
Biography
Biography
Mischa Maisky was born in 1948 in Riga and is the younger brother of organist, harpsichordist and musicologist Valery Maisky (1942–1981). He was taught by Mstislav Rostropovich at the Moscow Conservatory from 1966 to 1970. In 1966, he won sixth prize at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow. In 1970, he was arrested and spent 18 months in jail and a work camp and later 2 months in mental hospital for buying a tape recorder at the black market to tape his cello lessons. He emigrated to Israel in 1972, where he holds citizenship. In 1974 he studied with Gregor Piatigorsky in Los Angeles. Maisky currently lives in Belgium. Maisky has worked with artists including the pianists Martha Argerich, Khatia Buniatishvili, Radu Lupu, Nelson Freire, Peter Serkin, Evgeny Kissin, Lang Lang and Sergio Tiempo, the violinists Gidon Kremer, Itzhak Perlman, Vadim Repin, Maxim Vengerov, Joshua Bell, Julian Rachlin and Janine Jansen, and the conductors Leonard Bernstein, Zubin Mehta, David Zinman, Carlo Maria Giulini, Lorin Maazel, Riccardo Muti, Giuseppe Sinopoli, Yuri Temirkanov, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Daniel Barenboim, James Levine, Charles Dutoit, Mariss Jansons, Valery Gergiev, and Gustavo Dudamel among others. Maisky first performed in the United States at Carnegie Hall in 1973. In 1976, he made his first performance in London and performed a recital with Radu Lupu the following year. He returned to Russia in 1995 to perform and record with Russian National Orchestra and Mikhail Pletnev. In 2021 DG released box of 44 CDs with his complete recordings for the "Yellow Label".
Personal life
Personal life
Maisky has 6 children and has performed with the 3 oldest – pianists Lily and Maximilian and violinist Sascha.
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 1 entries
1948
Mischa Maisky born at Riga.
Critical reception
There has been much controversy over Maisky's playing. Part of the public criticizes his extensive and often extreme use of vibrato and his generally loud playing. Another part feels that Maisky thus maintains a romantic quality – even when interpreting baroque music – that cannot be found in many other players. A review by BBC Magazine writer Jan Smaczny stated "Maisky's performance of these works could hardly be bettered. Strauss's Sonata has enormous youthful élan, and the arrangements of the Romance for cello and orchestra and 'Morgen' are exquisite" (Morgen! Opus 27, Number 4. 1894, Richard Strauss).
Mischa Maisky nach der Denkmalenthüllung für Mstislaw Rostropowitsch im „Schulgarten“ in Kronberg i.T.
dontworry · I, Dontworry
Mischa Maisky nach der Denkmalenthüllung für Mstislaw Rostropowitsch im „Schulgarten“ in Kronberg i.T.
dontworry · I, Dontworry
Recordings
Maisky's recordings include: • Johann Sebastian Bach: Six Suites for Solo Cello BWV 1007–1012 [1985 Recording + 2000 Recording] (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • Johann Sebastian Bach – 3 Sonatas for Viola da Gamba, with Martha Argerich (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • Johannes Brahms: Double Concerto w. Gidon Kremer, Leonard Bernstein and Vienna PO (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • Robert Schumann: Cello Concerto with Leonard Bernstein and Vienna PO (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • Antonin Dvorak Concerto + Bloch "Schelomo" – with Leonard Bernstein and Israel PO (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • Joseph Haydn: 3 Cello Concertos with Chamber Orchestra of Europe (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • Vivaldi and Boccherini Concertos with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • Dmitry Shostakovich: Cello Concertos with LSO and Michael Tilson Thomas • Antonin Dvorak Cello Concerto and Richard Strauss Don Quixote with Zubin Mehta and Berlin PO • Ludwig van Beethoven: Complete Cello Sonatas and Variations with Martha Argerich (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • Edward Elgar: Cello Concerto; Tchaikovsky (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • Maisky & Argerich Live in Japan (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • Sergei Rachmaninoff: "Elégie" with Sergio Tiempo (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • Meditation: an album of encore pieces dedicated to his daughter Lily (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • "Adagio" – dedicated to his son Sascha (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • Cellissimo: an album of encore pieces (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • "Vocalise" – Russian Romances » – dedicated to his son Maximilian (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • "España!" with Lily Maisky – dedicated to his son Manuel (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • "Adagietto" – dedicated to his daughter Mila (DG Deutsche Grammophon) • "20th Century Classics" – dedicated to his son Mateo (DG Deutsche Grammophon)
Text attribution
Licensing
Text attribution
Part of the biographical narrative on this page reuses licensed material. Its origin, revision and licence are recorded here.
The biographical narrative on this page is based on the Wikipedia article Mischa Maisky, revision 1365728208 (EN edition), by its contributors. VALÉORINE has edited that text and built its own documentary record around it. The reused material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, and this page's reuse of it is offered under the same licence. Everything else on this page — the chronology, the holdings, the evidence, the plates and the connections — is VALÉORINE's own record. Sources and licences.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Allan Kozinn. A Romantic Cellist With a Subversive Bent. The New York Times. August 13, 1989.
- 2.Interview: Mischa Maisky. The Jewish Chronicle. January 14, 2011.
- 3.Gavin Phillips. The two lives of master cellist Mischa Maisky. Taipei Times. November 9, 2001.
- 4.Margaret Campbell. The Great Cellists. Faber & Faber. 284. May 19, 2011. 978-0-571-27801-5.
- 5.Medici.
- 6.Maxim Reider. A tribute to a sister. The Jerusalem Post. November 11, 2015.
- 7.All Music. Mischa Maisky – Discography.
- 8.Reynolds, Mike. Interview: Mischa Maisky on new music, authentic performances and sound quality. MusicalCriticism.com. March 24, 2009.
- 9."Mischa Maisky, Critical Reception". Deutsch Grammophon. Retrieved June 10, 2012.
References
Citations
References
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The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
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