Yuri Temirkanov has been Music Director and Principal Conductor of the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra since 1988 and, with this orchestra, he regularly undertakes major international tours and recordings. Their performances in the concert hall and on record have created a legendary reputation throughout the world, leading The Guardian to write in March 2003 that it is “probably the world's greatest orchestra”. The orchestra celebrated its 200th Anniversary in 2002 and to mark this notable landmark in their history, performed at a star-studded Gala concert at the Royal Festival Hall in London which included soloists Evgeny Kissin and Dmitri Hvorostovsky. For ten days over the Christmas and New Year holiday, Maestro Temirkanov hosts the annual International Winter Festival Arts Square in St Petersburg. Over the past five years, he has invited many of the world’s leading soloists to appear with his orchestra or to give recitals in programmes which he has devised.
Yuri Temirkanov has appeared as guest conductor with all of the leading European orchestras including Berlin Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic, Dresden Staatskapelle, London Philharmonic, London Symphony, Royal Concertgebouw, UBS Verbier Festival Orchestra and Santa Cecilia Rome (and his renown in Italy led to him being awarded the Abbiati Prize for Best Conductor in 2002).
He made his London debut with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London 1977, since which time he has held the positions of Principal Guest Conductor, Principal Conductor and Conductor Laureate.
He is a regular visitor to the United States where most seasons he conducts the orchestras of New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles. At the beginning of the 1999/2000 season he assumed the position of Music Director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.
Mr. Temirkanov’s numerous recordings for BMG include the complete Stravinsky ballets and the Tchaikovsky symphonic cycle with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. He has recorded many symphonies by Shostakovich – as well as other repertoire by Khachaturian, Mussorgsky, Prokofiev, Rachmaninov and Sibelius - with St Petersburg Philharmonic. His most recent recordings include Prokofiev's Alexander Nevsky as the soundtrack to Eisenstein's film of the same name and also Peter and the Wolf, both with St Petersburg Philharmonic.
Yuri Temirkanov has been Principal Guest Conductor of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra / DR since the 1998/99 season.