Mikhail Utkin

Cellist Mikhail Utkin was born 1952 in Vilnius (Lithuania). His father, a violinist, worked actively as a teacher

for many years, in the sixties he was a professor at the H.Eissler High Music School in Berlin. At the age of five

Mikhail began taking his piano lessons, and 1959 he became a pupil of the Central Musical School at the

Moscow State Conservatory. He was admitted to the cello class of professor S.Kalianov, assistant of the

famous musician M.Rostropovich.

The great potentialities of a young musician were already revealed during the early school years. His first

concert took place when he was only 12, then in 1967 he participated in International Competition of the

Prague Radio “Concertino-Praha” and won the First Prize. At the winners’ concert he played Concerto by

E.Lalo with the Orchestra of the Prague Radio. Next year being among the group “The Young Soviet Artists”,

he performed with a great success at the major concert halls of Italy.

His talent was rapidly developing, and in 1970 he was admitted Moscow State Conservatory

“P.I.Tchaikovsky” into the class of professor Mstislav Rostropovich, whose influence had a decisive say in his

shaping as a musician. Years of studying at the Conservatory were devoted to penetrating into the secrets of

cello-playing skill, acquiring broad knowledge of music, gaining repertoire. Mikhail Utkin showed a great

interest in chamber music, which soon found its way to practical and very successful results. As a member of

String quartet of the Moscow Conservatory he won the Second Prize at the International String Quartet

Competition in Liege (1972).

Since 1974 M.Utkin has been a member of a well-known both in Russia and abroad ensemble “The Moscow

Piano Trio”.

At the same time he continues to give solo performances and 1975 makes a tour in Belgium. Also in 1975 he

graduates from Moscow Conservatory (Degree – Diploma with Honors).

By this time his repertoire has become really wide: over one hundred works, numerous concert programs. But

still his main activity is a Piano Trio. Playing in this ensemble, he won the First Prize in Budapest (1975) and

Maurice Ravel Gold Medal at the international festival “Musical May” in Bordeaux (France, 1976).

Numerous concerts given by the Moscow Piano Trio, radio recordings, performances at major European

Festivals brought to Mikhail Utkin a standing reputation of top-class ensemble player.

Nevertheless he keeps on giving recitals, plays with Symphony Orchestras. His execution of the Concerto no.2

by Shostakovich with Gewandhaus-Orchestra under Kurt Masur (1979) received very high appraisal of the

press. His tours in Germany and Czech Republic were a great success.

Together with his colleagues – violinist Vladimir Ivanov and pianist Alexander Bonduriansky – M.Utkin

frequently performed the Triple Concerto by Beethoven with Symphonic orchestras of Italy, Germany, France,

Romania, Yugoslavia.

Very early, during his school years, the young musician was attracted by contemporary music, he was the

first performer of the works by the soviet composers. Later he became friendship with composers Alexander

Tchaikovsky and Karen Khatchaturian, their friendship was inseparable from creative work and playing music

together.

In 1978 the former graduate was invited by the Moscow State Conservatory to lead a cello-class. For ten

years M.Utkin had been a devoted teacher. Among the students of his class one can find a Russian cellists, as

well as cellists from Poland, Hungary, Mexico. His pupils have become members of symphonic and chamber

orchestras and ensembles. Mikhail Utkin never seased to be a teacher, even during his tours with Moscow

Piano Trio he gave master classes in Germany (Leonberg, Schwaebisch Hall, Waiblingen, Kirchheim),

Switzerland (St.Gallen), Finland (Kuopio), USA (Hammond, San Marcos, Baton Rouge).

The love for chamber music does not let M.Utkin confine himself to the repertoire of the piano trio. Great

interest is usually evoked by his performances in ensemble with his brother, oboist Alexej Utkin, Alexander

Maikapar (harpsichord), V.Gorokholinsky (clarinet), A.Chernov and V.Ivanov (violin), V.Saradjian,

S.Sudzilovsky (cello) and others.

Having subtle taste and ear for music combined with great experience of a cellist M.Utkin makes use of them

in his activity of an expert on bow instruments at the Commission of the Ministry of Culture.

Though he play fine Italian instruments made by J.Guarneri and C.Testore from the 18th century M.Utkin

does not his best for the promotion of the contemporary violin makers creative work. M.Utkin was a Jury

member of the two All-Union Competitions and P.Tchaikovsky Competition for violin makers (1990). There is

one more facet of his creative activity: compiling and revising of musical works published by the publishing

houses “The Soviet Composer”, “Classica-XXI” (Moscow) and “Marimba” (Munich).

In 1986 Mikhail Utkin and his colleagues from the Moscow Piano Trio were given honorable titles “Honored

Artist of the Russia”, and 1994 – “People’s Artist of the Russia”.