By Jessica Duchen
Classic FM magazine - September 2003

Travelling out of Moscow during his first extended visit to Russia since his
childhood, Maxim Vengerov fell asleep in a taxi. He woke up to find he'd been
driven to the wrong airport and missed his flight to St Petersburg. Never mind,
he thought; he'd take an overnight train instead. 'I went to the station and got
the one and only seat available that night on the Nikolayev Express. I loved that
train journey so much -I had the most wonderful time!'
When I tracked him down on his mobile phone, Vengerov was again in the back
of a taxi in Moscow - this time, fortunately, awake. He is a fabulous raconteur;
and that story itself is telling, for Maxim at his maximum has an exceptional gift
for turning the most unlikely situations into positive experiences. He's a man
with a golden touch: probably the world's greatest living violinist, but also one of
music's greatest communicators. On the concert platform his mesmerising
charisma and the extraordinary plasticity of his features help to project his
musical message to every listener. Besides performing, he loves teaching -he
has added to his frazzling schedule a teaching post in Saarbrucken, Germany,
and he frequently gives masterclasses. Nor can it be a coincidence that in 1997
UNICEF asked him to become a 'musical envoy', a role which he feels 100 per
cent passionate about.
The one thing Vengerov has never done before, however, is to make enough
space for his own life. Now he's decided to give himself the luxury of a year-long
sabbatical. 'I decided I owe it to myself to take some time to enjoy life
unconditionally,' he declares. 'I've been a worker for so many years and I've
always said that when I grew up I'd eventually get my childhood back.'
Vengerov has scarcely had a break from the violin for 25 of his 29 years. Like
many great violinists before him, he was a child prodigy, internationally
acclaimed by his mid teens. But being a prodigy can come at a prodigious price,
and Vengerov's childhood in Soviet Russia was more than usually complicated.
He was born in Novosibirsk, Siberia, where his parents were both professional
musicians. 'My mother was a very successful piano teacher and choral
conductor. She was director of a music school and later ran an orphanage. She
has such a great heart -she was being a mother to 500 children! My father was
an orchestral oboist. So although I didn't have so much experience running
around with other kids, because I had to practise, I had a beautiful time with
music, going to all the concerts and my parents' rehearsals, seeing all this
beauty. But at the same time we were struggling with food shortages.' Rationing
coupons were distributed to the Siberian population: 'My parents had to queue
to buy food for three or four hours every day. But people in Siberia are so warmhearted
that they still made life beautiful and fulfilling.'
Aged seven, Maxim moved to Moscow with his grandparents to attend the
Central School of Music. 'My mother couldn't leave her job, so my grandparents
just decided to move to Moscow for three years without knowing what was
going to happen. People from other cities were not permitted to stay in Moscow
for more than three months, except for medical reasons. The police could throw
us out at any time, so we kind of lived on fire.' Moscow and the music school
were exciting nevertheless: 'The education was extraordinary; the atmosphere
was fantastic -very inspiring! 'Eventually his grandfather fell ill and they had to
return to Siberia; it was not long, however, before Vengerov, aged only 10,
entered the Junior Wieniawski Competition in Lublin, Poland, and won it. Two
years later, he left Russia for good and moved to germany where he continued
Studies with the celebrated violin professor Zakhar Bron.
Having lived away from Russia for more than half his life, does Vengerov still
feel Russian? 'When I came back to Moscow I felt completely Russian. I went to
the gym and talked to people - we really connected and it all came back to me.
It's a long time since I moved away; since then, Russia is about the only country
where I never spent any time. Now Russia is becoming part of my heart again.
I'm so proud of my country! It's changed enormously for the better; there are still
negative points but I'm sure its fantastic traditions will come back. Moscow is a
great city - it's big and chaotic, but the energy is very positive, like New York or
London'.
He was staying in an apartment belonging to one of music's most revered
figures, the conductor and cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, whom Vengerov
describes as his 'musical father'. 'He has given me all his knowledge about the
composers he knew personally Shostakovich, Prokofiev, Britten. When I
recorded the Britten Violin Concerto with him, he introduced me to the magic of
Britten's music; without him it would not have been the same. That was a very
special disc for me.'
Vengerov's newest CD for EMI, released in September, features French works
for violin and orchestra: Lalo's Symphonie espagnole and Saint-Saëns's Violin
Concerto No.3, plus Ravel's dizzying Tzigane. 'I last played the Saint-Saëns
concerto when I won the competition in Lublin at the age of 10,' Vengerov says.
'It's great to come back to it, nearly 20 years later. So often tell we appreciate
the greatness of concertos like the Beethoven, Brahms and Mendelssohn, but
forget the greatness of something like the Symphonie espagnole, which was
written for Pablo de Sarasate, the finest violinist of his day.
Composers worshipped his playing and he inspired many of them to write for
him. These concertos are tailor-made for the violin and the music is a
celebration of the instrument. The orchestra takes a supporting role, while the
violin is like a prima donna, attracting all the attention while the poor conductor
has to follow!' On the recording, Antonio Pappano conducts the Philharmonia
Orchestra: 'He's an extraordinary man, one of the greatest accompanists I've
ever worked with. He was the perfect choice, especially because this is rather
operatic music and he has all that operatic feeling with his work at Covent
Garden. I felt like a singer while he followed all my musical ideas.'
Vengerov has tried his own hand at conducting and also the viola - he recorded
the Walton Viola Concerto alongside the Britten Violin Concerto. He has
decided, however, to reserve these skills for fun. 'Sometimes I play with my
students if they need a violist, or conduct for them if they need a conductor. But
you can't catch all the rabbits at the same time even if you want to, so I've
decided to enjoy my one main rabbit! When I played the viola, it was like saying
to my violin, "I'd like to be unfaithful to you just once in 25 years"! But the violin
is my dearest friend and always will be.' His violin is one of Stradivari's most
famous instruments, known as the 'Kreutzer': 'I particularly love its depth of tone
- a vibrant bass is the most important element in the sound for me.'
His 'dearest friend' goes everywhere with him, not least on his UNICEF field
trips. 'I make trips for UNICEF all over the world, then come back and tell
people about it; I also give charity concerts for them, for instance to raise money
towards schooling for girls in Tanzania, which had been banned. This is very
important work. When my mother was director of the orphanage, I could see
with my own eyes how music saved these kids from being on the streets - it
brought for them so much joy. Being an envoy for UNICEF is a natural
continuation of this for me. I love children and I love having time to play music
for them and helping them in the small way I can - and I hope I'll have my own
kids some day.'
His year off, Vengerov says, is 'a time of transition'. So what is he going to do?
'Normal things! I have many interests and I want to learn some languages: I'm
studying French now and I'd like to learn Spanish and Italian. And I want to
learn cooking, and to dance the tango. One of my dreams is to ride a
motorcycle across America -but I'd have to go shopping for two good wheels
and get a licence first.'
His fans will undoubtedly miss him, but there can be few sabbaticals as well
deserved as this one; and when he comes back, there will be unlimited
possibilities for the future. 'There is so much music to play, sighs Vengerov from
his Moscow taxi. 'I haven't touched even a quarter of it yet.' This talented man
clearly has much more to offer.