Mikhail Zatin

Meet the Musicians

Both of my parents are musicians, and they chose the violin for me when I was 6 years old. When I became a teenager, it became more of a choice I made myself—to commit to music. I graduated from the St. Petersburg State Conservatory under Professor Alexander Stang and also studied at the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz in Austria under Professor Tibor Varga.

Before I joined the Norrlandsoperan Symphony Orchestra in May 2013, I had worked with the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra in St. Petersburg and the Palau de les Arts in Valencia, among others. I also performed in concerts with the NHK Symphony Orchestra in Tokyo and the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, among many others. When I saw the opening here, I became curious about Sweden as well! I auditioned and got the job, which also meant moving to Umeå from Finland, where I was living at the time and working with the Kuopio Symphony Orchestra.

I really enjoy it here. Being on stage and sharing my expression with others through my instrument, and trying to convey those feelings to the audience through music—it’s magical. I can’t live without it.

I really enjoy that my job involves traveling. Having the chance to meet different kinds of audiences in different concert halls and see different cities, atmospheres, and architecture… All of that is also enriching, not least emotionally—and after all, we speak to the audience’s emotions through our instruments. When time allows, I still play occasionally in Finland. And in Spain, where I used to work.

I enjoy playing all genres; it’s hard to choose a favorite piece of music or a favorite composer. I love performing operas by Verdi, Puccini, Prokofiev, and Tchaikovsky, as well as symphonic music. Of course, Shostakovich’s symphonies, Rimsky-Korsakov’s fantastic music, and Igor Stravinsky’s brilliant works hold a special place in my heart. The opportunity to perform a mix of opera, symphony orchestra concerts, and chamber music is invaluable to me as a musician. Playing in smaller ensembles as well—and not just in the context of large symphony orchestras—adds variety. It involves different ways of playing and, consequently, different ways of presenting oneself—which fosters growth. That’s important. And it makes it fun, too.

My motivation is that I want to grow, every day. A musician must never lose their curiosity, I think. You always have to try to find new ways to connect with the audience through your instrument—perhaps finding new ways to play the same piece… and sure, it’s a never-ending task, but that’s also what motivates me—the fact that everything can always be even better!

One of my most cherished memories is when I had the good fortune to perform the 1984 opera composed by Lorin Maazel, based on a novel by George Orwell, under the direction of Lorin Maazel. Another is when I performed the entire *Ring Cycle* by Wagner at the Metropolitan Opera in New York with Valery Gergiev. Most people dream of performing there at least once, and I’ve had the chance to do so. It feels like a huge honor to have performed there, as well as in concert halls such as Carnegie Hall, David Geffen Hall, Barbican Hall in London, Suntory Hall in Tokyo, the Musikverein in Vienna, and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam… These are experiences I carry with me and feel proud of.

I’ve had the opportunity to perform with several world-renowned orchestras and conductors, such as Lorin Maazel, Zubin Mehta, Valery Gergiev, Mariss Jansons, Christoph Eschenbach, Paavo Järvi, Gianandrea Noseda, Vladimir Jurowski, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Jaap van Zweden, Tugan Sokhiev, and many others in various countries and concert halls, but I still dream of performing at London’s Albert Hall! Partly because it’s a legendary concert hall, and partly because it holds a huge number of people—and I love the feeling of playing for a packed house. The audience is curious… EVERYONE wants to be there. It’s amazing.

Here at the Norrlands Opera, I’d like to take on more chamber music projects. One of my dreams is to perform Claude Bolling’s *Suite for Violin and Jazz Piano Trio*, and maybe that will happen someday.

I love practicing. Or actually—I love getting better! But the way to get there is to practice! I also want to be a musician to be reckoned with, and so I have no choice. It’s not enough to just be in top form for a specific concert; you have to seize every opportunity and see it as a chance to get a little better—all the time. Growth is everything.

And you’re never done. The quest for the perfect tone is always there.