Alexander Stepanov

Alexander Stepanov started his career as professional clarinetist-soloist during his studies at The N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov St. Petersburg State Conservatory in the former Leningrad Chamber Orchestra and Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra. Later he continued in The Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra in St. Petersburg, where he was a soloist for more than 20 years (1971 – 1994).

In addition to symphonic programs, the repertoire of the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra consisted of more than 120 operas and ballets. With this orchestra he played worldwide as a soloist under the conducting of Yevgeny Mravinsky, Yuri Temirkanov, Mstislav Rostropovich, Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Maxim Shostakovich, Valery Gergiev, Plácido Domingo and others.

In addition to orchestral playing he has actively performed as a soloist and chamber player in many concerts and has premiered works of Russian composers (many of which were dedicated to him). In the Glazunov Concert Hall in St. Petersburg he performed in 1969, 1971 and 1973 on regular solo recitals, in which he played concertos for clarinet by E. Bozza, K. Nielsen and I. Gotkovsky.

In 1992 he implemented a project Musical Manuscripts of St. Petersburg in the form of magnetic tape in which he was an author and a soloist of the project. This project presents unknown works by great European composers and for the first time ever premiered Divertimento for two clarinets and two French horns from 1761 by J. Haydn.

Alexander Stepanov's artistic activities in Slovakia started upon meeting the composer Prof. Egon Krák who asked him, right after his moving to Bratislava, to premiere his piece Hommage à Giacometti at Melos-Ethos Festival in 1994. Their cooperation continued in the ensemble Chorus Angelorum. In 2006 they made a CD called Mémoires I. (Music Fund Slovakia) where A. Stepanov recorded three solo compositions of E. Krák.

Within the international symposium Music at the French Royal Courts (Banská Bystrica) in 2005 he performed Sonate by A. Zimmermann, later also recorded for Slovak Radio. He cooperated in the following projects of Egon Krák: Incitatus (2008, concert of electroacoustic music, live broadcasting and recording for Slovak Radio), Dante (2009, performer and co-author of part Peklo (Hell) for clarinet, trombone, trumpet and magnetic tape, live concert and recording for Slovak Radio).

In addition to these activities he repeatedly performed at Melos-Ethos Festival in Bratislava, where among others he premiered pieces by Boško Milaković.

He has published a series of professional articles and studies, and he has attended several scientific conferences in Slovakia and abroad.