Nelli Shkolnikova
Encyclopedia
Nelli Efimovna Shkolnikova (8 July 19282 February 2010) was a Russian Jewish classical violinist who spent many years teaching in Australia
and the United States
.
She was born in the Ukrainian
village of Zolotonosha
. At the age of three, she moved with her family to Moscow
, and soon displayed aptitude for the violin
. At the age of five she entered the Moscow Conservatory
, where she studied with Lillia Kossodo and Yuri Yankelevich
. She played her first concerto
at age eight. She won the 1953 Marguerite Long-Jacques Thibaud Competition
in Paris when she was 25. She then embarked on an international performing career, as well as teaching. She appeared in concert in the then Soviet Union
, Europe, USA, Canada
, Japan
, Australia and New Zealand
. She became a faculty member at the Gnessin Institute of Music
in Moscow.
Between 1970 to 1982, she was barred from leaving the Soviet Union. When she was finally allowed to leave, she defected to the West in Berlin
on 26 November 1982. She settled in Melbourne
, Australia
, where she taught at the Victorian College of the Arts
, an offer made to her after meeting the conductor John Hopkins
in Germany. She became the Victorian Arts Centre’s first Artist-in-Residence. In 1987, on the recommendation of Isaac Stern
, she was invited to join the faculty of Indiana University
's Jacobs School of Music as professor of violin.
She recorded little, however she attracted praise for her recordings of the Tchaikovsky
and Mendelssohn
violin concertos (1959, 1973; under Kirill Kondrashin and Gennady Rozhdestvensky
respectively), and some shorter pieces by Khachaturian
, Paganini
and Ysaÿe
(recorded 26 June 1953, shortly after winning the Long-Thibaud Competition).
On retirement, Shkolnikova returned to Melbourne, where she died following a long battle with cancer on 2 February 2010, aged 82.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
She was born in the Ukrainian
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
village of Zolotonosha
Zolotonosha
Zolotonosha is a city located in the Cherkasy Oblast in central Ukraine. Located at around , the city serves as the administrative center of the Zolotoniskyi Raion , however the city itself is designated with the status of a separate district within the oblast.Zolotonosha is located on the...
. At the age of three, she moved with her family to Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, and soon displayed aptitude for the violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
. At the age of five she entered the Moscow Conservatory
Moscow Conservatory
The Moscow Conservatory is a higher musical education institution in Moscow, and the second oldest conservatory in Russia after St. Petersburg Conservatory. Along with the St...
, where she studied with Lillia Kossodo and Yuri Yankelevich
Yuri Yankelevich
Yuri Yankelevich was an eminent Soviet violin teacher who nurtured many generations of Russian virtuosos during his tenure at the Moscow Conservatory.-Life and career:...
. She played her first concerto
Concerto
A concerto is a musical work usually composed in three parts or movements, in which one solo instrument is accompanied by an orchestra.The etymology is uncertain, but the word seems to have originated from the conjunction of the two Latin words...
at age eight. She won the 1953 Marguerite Long-Jacques Thibaud Competition
Long-Thibaud-Crespin Competition
The Marguerite Long-Jacques Thibaud Competition is an international classical music competition for pianists and violinists that has operated in France since 1943. It was created by the pianist Marguerite Long and the violinist Jacques Thibaud...
in Paris when she was 25. She then embarked on an international performing career, as well as teaching. She appeared in concert in the then Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, Europe, USA, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Australia and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. She became a faculty member at the Gnessin Institute of Music
Gnessin State Musical College
The Gnessin State Musical College and Gnessin Russian Academy of Music is a prominent music school in Moscow, Russia...
in Moscow.
Between 1970 to 1982, she was barred from leaving the Soviet Union. When she was finally allowed to leave, she defected to the West in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
on 26 November 1982. She settled in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, where she taught at the Victorian College of the Arts
Victorian College of the Arts
The Faculty of the VCA and Music is a faculty of the University of Melbourne, in Victoria . VCAM is located near the Melbourne central business district, on two campuses, one - the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music - on the Parkville campus of the University of Melbourne, and the other - the...
, an offer made to her after meeting the conductor John Hopkins
John Hopkins (conductor)
John Hopkins OBE is a Yorkshire-born, British conductor and administrator. Hopkins moved to New Zealand in 1957 and to Australia in 1963. He conducted the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra in 1987 in one of New Zealand's first Orchestral Composers' Reading Workshops...
in Germany. She became the Victorian Arts Centre’s first Artist-in-Residence. In 1987, on the recommendation of Isaac Stern
Isaac Stern
Isaac Stern was a Ukrainian-born violinist. He was renowned for his recordings and for discovering new musical talent.-Biography:Isaac Stern was born into a Jewish family in Kremenets, Ukraine. He was fourteen months old when his family moved to San Francisco...
, she was invited to join the faculty of Indiana University
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
's Jacobs School of Music as professor of violin.
She recorded little, however she attracted praise for her recordings of the Tchaikovsky
Violin Concerto (Tchaikovsky)
The Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35, written by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1878, is one of the best known of all violin concertos. It is also considered to be among the most technically difficult works for violin.-Instrumentation:...
and Mendelssohn
Violin Concerto (Mendelssohn)
Felix Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64 is his last large orchestral work. It forms an important part of the violin repertoire and is one of the most popular and most frequently performed violin concertos of all time...
violin concertos (1959, 1973; under Kirill Kondrashin and Gennady Rozhdestvensky
Gennady Rozhdestvensky
Gennady Nikolayevich Rozhdestvensky is a Russian conductor.-Biography:Rozhdestvensky was born in Moscow. His parents were the noted conductor and pedagogue Nikolai Anosov and soprano Natalya Rozhdestvenskaya...
respectively), and some shorter pieces by Khachaturian
Aram Khachaturian
Aram Ilyich Khachaturian was a prominent Soviet composer. Khachaturian's works were often influenced by classical Russian music and Armenian folk music...
, Paganini
Niccolò Paganini
Niccolò Paganini was an Italian violinist, violist, guitarist, and composer. He was one of the most celebrated violin virtuosi of his time, and left his mark as one of the pillars of modern violin technique...
and Ysaÿe
Eugène Ysaÿe
Eugène Ysaÿe was a Belgian violinist, composer and conductor born in Liège. He was regarded as "The King of the Violin", or, as Nathan Milstein put it, the "tzar"...
(recorded 26 June 1953, shortly after winning the Long-Thibaud Competition).
On retirement, Shkolnikova returned to Melbourne, where she died following a long battle with cancer on 2 February 2010, aged 82.