David Geringas

David Geringas was born in 1946 in a family of musicians in Vilnius and is a Lithuanian-German cellist, teacher and conductor. He studied at the Moscow Conservatory under Mstislav Rostropovich from 1963 to 1968, and won first prize and a gold medal at the international Tchaikovsky Competition in 1970. After that, D. Geringas became a soloist of the Lithuanian Philharmonic from 1970 to 1975. He then emigrated to Germany and began an international solo career after receiving the Herbert von Karajan Scholarship. D. Geringas has performed with the world's most famous orchestras, such as the Berlin, London, Zurich, Vienna, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, Montreal, Tokyo, and Israel Symphony Orchestras. He played at various international festivals and gave recitals with his wife, pianist Tatjana Schäfer-Geringas, at the world's most prestigious concert halls. D. Geringas has a repertoire of works from various epochs and genres. He is renowned not only as a talented interpreter of classical music but also as the first performer of works by both Russian and Lithuanian composers. D. Geringas has recorded more than 40 albums and has won numerous awards for his recordings, such as the Grand Prix du Disque, Diapason d’Or, and Deutsche Schallplattenkritik. Since 1992, he has given annual concerts in Lithuania with a new program. He is also recognized as a chamber music performer. In 1998, D. Geringas organized the first Cello Week in Vilnius, where he played with his students and appeared as a conductor. D. Geringas has played several music roles and is also a conductor. He has conducted chamber orchestras in various countries, such as the Wiener Symphoniker, Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana, and others, as well as the Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra. He was also the guest principal conductor of the Kyushu Symphony Orchestra in Japan from 2005 to 2008 and made his debut in Tokyo, conducting the Tokyo Philharmonic and China Philharmonic Orchestras. He also conducted the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra in 2009 and made his debut as an opera conductor in 2010 at the State Music Theatre in Klaipeda. D. Geringas has received numerous awards, including the Order of the Grand Duke Gediminas of Lithuania, the Lithuanian National Culture and Arts Award, the Honorary Doctorate from the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre, and the Golden Disc 2010 from the Lithuanian Musicians' Union.