Living Legend’ Gidon Kremer Don’t be a perfectionist… “Only the original survive”

“Forcing perfection is an act that kills creativity. Instead of encouraging young people to compete with others, encourage them to focus on what is most personal. Avoid imitation and do not chase success. In the end, only those who are original will remain true artists.”

Latvian violinist Gidon Kremer (77), known as a ‘living legend,’ said in an exclusive interview with Arte on the 20th, “I just devoted my life to making music that was the best for me, and I didn’t try to be the best or pretend to be the best.” .

Gidon Kremer is a world-renowned virtuoso who has recorded more than 120 albums while repeatedly performing with top orchestras such as the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. He is also famous for the anecdote in which the ‘Emperor of Classics’ Herbert von Karajan (1908-1989) praised him as “the best violinist alive.” Kremer was ranked 6th, the highest ranking for a living person, in the list of ’20 Greatest Violinists of All Time’ published by BBC Music Magazine in 2016.

Kremer is also serving as the artistic director of Kremerata Baltica, a musical band founded in 1997 to train young musicians from the Baltic countries, including Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia. Arte met him when he visited Korea to perform Cremerata Baltica at the Yeosu Music Festival (hosted by KBS Symphony Orchestra) on the 23rd.

▷It has already been 27 years since Cremerata Baltica was founded.
“In fact, when I started, I never thought I would be leading a long-term project spanning 30 years. With this orchestra, we gave world premieres of works by contemporary music composers such as Arvo Pärt and Peteris Basques, and it was a great pleasure to break away from the standardized program and present fresh performances to the audience. Cremerata Baltica is something special that always keeps me young.”

▷What do you most often emphasize to members?
“They say to be ‘curious’ about everything. “This is because the power to pursue newness is the most important source of continued growth as an artist.”

▷Why are you taking the lead in discovering unfamiliar works by contemporary music composers of the 20th and 21st centuries?
“To me, modern music is as important as the works of Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven. Although it is meaningful to reinterpret the great legacy left behind by past composers, I believe it is also a performer’s duty to breathe life into modern music that contains the sounds of the era in which we were born and the emotions and inspiration of the composers of this era. no see. “I just don’t want to be biased towards one side or the other.”

▷You have continued to sharply criticize Vladimir Putin’s Russian regime. Do you think artists should actively speak out on political and social issues?
“I am not a politician and I do not want to become a politician. However, I believe that musicians are also members of society and should not close their eyes to the numerous tragedies that occur in the world. “For me, it is as important to pay attention to injustice in reality and call for change as it is to make beautiful sounds.”

▷Did living in Latvia, under former Soviet rule, have an influence?
“yes. Having personally experienced a closed totalitarian system, I know very well how desperately humans desire freedom. “I believe that we must permanently fight against social ideologies and regimes that run counter to individual freedom, and we will not condone inhuman evil acts such as war and human rights oppression in the future.”

▷What do you think music can do?
“Music cannot change the world, but I believe it can soothe the wounds of those who have suffered. Music is not just entertainment. “It has the ability to penetrate deeply into the human spirit and purify the soul.”

▷Do you remember Karajan praising you as ‘the best violinist alive’?
“sure. It was an amazing and generous expression from the great maestro. When I was young, I felt pressured because I felt like I had to show him that what he said was valid, but not now. “Because I know very well that there is no ‘best’ in music.”

▷Why do you think there can be no ‘best’ in music?
“Good music is not achieved by winning in competition with others. Therefore, rather than being greedy to be better than anyone else, you should focus on surpassing yourself at every moment and delivering the best music possible. “I appreciated Karajan’s words, but I didn’t waste time trying to live up to his words.”

▷What is the secret to being able to be active on the world stage even at the age of over 70?
“Getting older means becoming stronger on the inside. Playing in your 20s, 30s, 40s, and 50s should definitely be different. To avoid repeating the same performance, I look to various creative works such as paintings, novels, and movies for inspiration, and study new works and new ideas to improve as a performer. Playing is my daily life and everything.”

▷Do you agree with the assessment that you are a ‘born genius violinist’?
“I cannot deny that my destiny was predetermined before I was born, as my family were all excellent violinists, but I never considered myself a genius. “I am just a ‘lucky’ violinist who has been surrounded by many great teachers and colleagues.”

▷Are there any young Korean musicians you would like to play with?
“I have played with pianist Cho Seong-jin and violinist Clara Jumi Kang, and I remember being surprised by their incredible skills. Unfortunately, I have not yet met pianist Lim Yun-chan, but if I get the chance, I would like to make a good performance with Cremerata Baltica.”

▷Do you have any advice for younger musicians?
“The culture and arts world is not a market that requires perfectionists. To achieve quick success, avoid copying others’ work and stick to finding your own voice, even if it takes time. “What remains for a performer is not what level he has reached, but only his unique sound.”

▷Do you have a creed or motto that you have engraved throughout your life?
“’Don’t use music for your own fame, but always be humble before music.’ “This is what my lifelong teacher, David Oistrakh (1908-1974), always said.”

▷He said he wanted to engrave the simple phrase ‘Born, played, and died Gidon Kremer’ as his tombstone.
“yes. I just want to remain a ‘true artist’. There is no need for fancy or long modifiers. As a performer who has shared emotions and sounds with people throughout his life, I would like to be remembered not as a ‘person’ but as ‘Kremer’s music’ itself. “That will be the only signature that distinguishes me from others.”

Who is Gidon Kremer?

Gidon Kremer is a violinist who rose to world-class status by winning successively at the Paganini International Competition in 1969 and the Tchaikovsky International Competition in 1970. Born in Riga, Latvia, in 1947, he began playing the violin at the age of four under the influence of his grandfather and father, who were famous violinists. In 1965, he entered the Moscow Conservatory and studied with David Oistrakh, the ‘violin master’, and left the Soviet Union in 1980 to settle in Germany.

Kremer is also well-known as a master who took the lead in actively discovering and publicizing the works of unfamiliar 20th and 21st century contemporary music composers such as Alfred Schnittke, Arbo Paert, Astor Piazzolla, and Sofia Gubaidulina. He received the Ernst von Siemens Music Award, known as the ‘Nobel Prize of classical music,’ in 1982, and the Grammy Award and Eco Classic Award in 2002. In addition, it swept the UNESCO Award (2001) and the Premium Imperial Award (2016). His books include “Letter to a Young Pianist,” “In Search of Ludwig,” and “Fragments of Childhood.”

Kremer is also famous as an artist who has actively spoken out on sensitive political and social issues. He dedicated his album ‘From the Abyss’ to Mikhail Khodorkovsky, a political opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin, in 2010. In 2013, the concert ‘Love with Russia’ was held to protest Russia’s human rights abuses. He publicly criticized President Putin during Russia’s forcible annexation of Crimea in 2014 and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Reporter Kim Soo-hyun [email protected]