Mischa Maisky
Mischa Maisky (, , ; born 10 January 1948) is a Soviet-born Israeli cellist. 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 a work camp. He emigrated to Israel in 1972, where he holds citizenship. 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, 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. 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. Personal life. Maisky has performed with his children Sascha, a violinist, and Lily Maisky, a classical pianist. Recordings. Maisky's recordings include: 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).