Flutes

Stanislav Mikhailovski

In the orchestra since 2023

Stanislav Mikhailovsky graduated from the Secondary Special Music School-Lyceum at the St Petersburg State Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatory, studying under Alexandra Vavilina-Mravinskaya. In 2006 he graduated Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory specializing as a flute player under Yuri Dolzhikov and Alexander Golyshev, and in 2009 he completed postgraduate studies at the Department of Contemporary Music at the Moscow Conservatory.

He is the winner of the II International Mravinsky Competition for Youth in the class of woodwind Instruments Alexandre (St Petersburg, 1998; II prize), the III International Mravinsky Festival-Competition Alexandre for Youth (St Petersburg, 2001; performed as part of a wind quintet) and the I All-Russian Wind Ensemble Competition (Kazan, 2004; II prize).

He is also a diploma winner of the II St Petersburg Competition for Young performers of Ludwig van Beethoven’s compositions ’17 December. A musical tribute on Beethoven’s birthday’ (2001; awarded both ‘for artistry’ and as part of a wind quintet).

From 2001 to 2002 he worked as a soloist of the Symphony Orchestra of St Petersburg State Academic Capella. Since 2002, he has been a soloist of the Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra. At the same time, he has been a soloist of the musicAeterna Orchestra since 2023.

Stanislav regularly participates in Russian and international festivals Flute Virtuosi & Northern Lyre, Flute Piccolo (St Petersburg), Piccolo Masters (Moscow), etc. As a soloist, he has repeatedly collaborated with the Studio for New Music Ensemble, as well as with the Mariinsky Theatre Symphony Orchestra and Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra among others. He performs at the Mariinsky Theatre, the St Petersburg Philharmonic and other venues.

HOW DID YOU COME TO BE A MUSICIAN?

I was a very active child. One day, when I was four years old, my parents wondered what would happen if such a fidget ended up in a place where music sounded. And they brought me to a music school for a lesson. I remember the piano, a small bust of Tchaikovsky, and the Old French Song played by the teacher. I was very impressed at the time, I was given a piccolo flute, and that's how my career as a musician began.

WHAT DO YOU DO BESIDES MUSIC?

Sport is my second big passion. I practice tennis, swimming, snowboarding. But I'm really obsessed with soccer. I not only play it myself, but I have been holding tournaments among orchestras in Moscow for 19 years. Music and sports are very similar to each other and complement each other. On the one hand, sports discipline helps in music lessons. On the other hand, those who think creatively and musically have an advantage over other athletes.

WHAT DOES MUSIC GIVE YOU?

For me, the most important thing in music is energy. If I have the energy, and the people around me have it, too, and if I can exchange it with the audience, I've succeeded. It seems to me that if we focus on this, then the technical difficulties of performing are solved. Instantly you find yourself at an ease, and there is an opportunity to let go of the situation. I don't have stage fright, but a musician must have creative excitement and trepidation. Music is an emotion, it's impossible to play if you don't experience anything yourself. Then there will simply be nothing to convey to those who listen to it.

PLEASE TELL US ABOUT YOUR INSTRUMENT

The piccolo flute is a small cog in the orchestra, but it greatly embellishes the music. If you want to listen to this instrument more, you can pay attention to the music of Rossini and Shostakovich. I also recommend listening to Lowell Liebermann's Piccolo Flute Concerto (1996). It's easy to imagine this piece as the soundtrack to some Hollywood movie.

WHAT MAKES MUSICAETERNA DIFFER FROM OTHER ENSEMBLES?

I was lucky enough to meet Teodor Currentzis more than 20 years ago. When I was 19, I worked in the Tchaikovsky Big Symphony Orchestra, and Teodor prepared a programme with us. Of course, I've never seen or experienced anything like this before. After a long time, I finally joined musicAeterna and now I work in an orchestra where everyone loves music and gives themselves 200% to the process. And now I'm very glad that my parents took me to a music school: now I have the best job in the world.

DO YOU HAVE A LIFE CREDO?

Do you remember Herman's aria from the opera The Queen of Spades? 'What is our life? A game!' I think it's great to treat life that way. But Herman really wanted to win and was afraid to lose, he was full of fear. It seems to me that if he had just set his mind to enjoy the game, he would have gotten the right card. Fortune favours the bold. This method probably doesn't work for everyone, but it's definitely close to me.

It is also sometimes useful for a musician to get into 'bandit' mode. Of course, one should do this constructively and not destroy the overall balance. Yet this trait helps you take risks and break through to a new level. This is precisely in my character. At the same time, I have no desire to always win in everything, to achieve success at any cost. Winning, success is a bonus, and I focus on the process. And I know that if I enjoyed it, then the listener would like it too.