Andres Mustonen (born 1 September 1953) is an

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

n conductor and violinist.

Biography

Mustonen was born in

Tallinn Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...

on 1 September 1953. He graduated from the Tallinn Music High School in 1972 and five years later both he and

Endel Lippus Endel is an Estonian language, Estonian masculine given name and may refer to: *Endel Aruja (1911-2008), Estonian physicist active in Canada *Endel Eero (1930–2006), Estonian politician *Endel Edasi (1929–2002), Estonian swimmer *Endel Kiisa ...

graduated from the

Tallinn State Conservatory The Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre (''Eesti Muusika- ja Teatriakadeemia'') began as a mixed choir of the Estonia Society Musical Department (EMD) on the eve of World War I. The assembly of the Estonia Society created the Tallinn Higher Musi ...

. Later on, he studied in Austria and the Netherlands and then became a music specialist in his native Estonia and overseas. When he became a conductor he played in such orchestras as

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...

's chamber orchestra Sinfonietta Riga and

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

-based

Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra The Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra is a Russian classical music radio orchestra established in 1930. It was founded as the Moscow Radio Symphony Orchestra, and served as the official symphony for the Soviet All-Union Radio network. History Follow ...

Philharmonic Orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, ...

and

Russian National Orchestra The Russian National Orchestra (russian: Российский национальный оркестр) was founded in Moscow in 1990 by pianist and conductor Mikhail Pletnev. It was the first Russian orchestra to perform at the Apostolic Palace, ...

. He also was a conductor for the

Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra The Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra (russian: Симфонический оркестр Санкт-Петербургской филармонии, ''Symphonic Orchestra of the Saint Petersburg Philharmonia'') is a Russian orchestra based ...

and was in cooperation with

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

n and

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

n Philharmonic Orchestras. In Estonia he conducted with the

Estonian National Symphony Orchestra Estonian National Symphony Orchestra ( et, Eesti Riiklik Sümfooniaorkester ''(ERSO)'') is the leading orchestra in Estonia and is based in the capital Tallinn. The orchestra traces it roots to 18 December 1926, the first concert broadcast by Tal ...

and

Tallinn Chamber Orchestra Tallinn Chamber Orchestra (TCO, et, Tallinna Kammerorkester) is a chamber orchestra located in Tallinn, the capital city of Estonia. The orchestra was established in 1993 by the conductor Tõnu Kaljuste. The orchestra's music is mainly distribut ...

along with Vanemuine Symphony Orchestra. Outside of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

he participated in the

Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra The Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra (Finnish: ''Radion sinfoniaorkesteri'', Swedish: ''Radions symfoniorkester'') is a Finnish broadcast orchestra based in Helsinki, and the orchestra of the Finnish Broadcasting Company (Yle). The orchestra prima ...

and many choirs in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. He is well known for performing works of such composers as

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

Anton Bruckner Josef Anton Bruckner (; 4 September 182411 October 1896) was an Austrian composer, organist, and music theorist best known for his symphonies, masses, Te Deum and motets. The first are considered emblematic of the final stage of Austro-Germ ...

, Manuel Cardoso,

Dmitri Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, , group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his Symphony No. 1 (Shostakovich), First Symphony in 1926 and was regarded throug ...

Georg Philipp Telemann Georg Philipp Telemann (; – 25 June 1767) was a German Baroque composer and multi-instrumentalist. Almost completely self-taught in music, he became a composer against his family's wishes. After studying in Magdeburg, Zellerfeld, and Hildesh ...

and

Heinrich Schütz Heinrich Schütz (; 6 November 1672) was a German early Baroque composer and organist, generally regarded as the most important German composer before Johann Sebastian Bach, as well as one of the most important composers of the 17th century. He ...

. Besides playing classical music of foreign composers, he played such Soviet composers as

Gia Kancheli Gia Kancheli ( ka, გია ყანჩელი; 10 August 1935 – 2 October 2019) was a Georgian composer. He was born in Tbilisi, Georgia but resided in Belgium. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, Kancheli lived first in ...

Sofia Gubaidulina Sofia Asgatovna Gubaidulina (russian: Софи́я Асгáтовна Губaйду́лина, link=no , tt-Cyrl, София Әсгать кызы Гобәйдуллина; born 24 October 1931) is a Soviet-Russian composer and an established ...

and Valentyn Sylvestrov among others. He also worked in collaboration with such violinists as Sergei Stadler,

Viktor Tretiakov Viktor Viktorovich Tretiakov (russian: Ви́ктор Ви́кторович Третьяко́в; born 17 October 1946) is a Russian violinist and conductor. Other spellings of his name are Victor, Tretyakov and Tretjakov. Biography The son of a ...

and Oleg Kagan from Russia, Danish

Michala Petri Michala Petri (born July 7, 1958) is a Danish recorder player. Her debut as a soloist was in 1969. She is the step-granddaughter of Danish actress Ingeborg Brams. Biography Petri, who began playing the recorder at the age of three, is noted for ...

and French

Patrick Gallois Patrick Gallois (born 1956) is a French flutist and conductor. Gallois was born in Linselles near the town of Lille in the north of France. At the age of 17 he began studies at the Conservatoire de Paris with the celebrated flutist Jean-Pierre Ra ...

and

Michel Lethiec Michel Lethiec is a French classical clarinetist. Michel Lethiec has played with the Sinfonia Finlandia, the St. Petersburg Philharmonic, the English Chamber Orchestra, the Orchestre national du Capitole de Toulouse, the Salzburg Mozarteum, the ...

among others. In 1972 he became a founder of

Hortus Musicus Hortus Musicus is an Estonian ensemble that was established in 1972 by Andres Mustonen, a violin student of the Tallinn State Conservatory. Hortus Musicus specialises in performing early music, including 8th–15th-century European forms such ...

and worked with the ensemble as a director and conductor ever since. His ensemble performed in such festivals as the

Bratislava Music Festival The Bratislava Music Festival (''Bratislavské hudobné slávnosti'' in Slovak language, Slovak) is an international Music festival, festival of classical music that takes place annually in the city of Bratislava, Slovakia. It is a major Slovak musi ...

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

i Jaffa Festival and Tallinn-Tel Aviv Festival in

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...

, and Lufthansa Baroque Festival in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

among other well-known festivals. Besides being a founder of Hortus Musicus he is also a founder of Hortus Music Academic Orchestra which recorded many albums for

Warner Classics Warner Classics is the classical music arm of Warner Music Group. The label began issuing new recordings under the Warner Classics banner in 1991. The company also includes the Erato Records, Teldec Records and NVC Arts labels. Based in France, W ...

Melodiya Melodiya ( rus, links=no, Мелодия, t=Melody) is a Russian (formerly Soviet) record label. It was the state-owned major record company of the Soviet Union. History Melodiya was established in 1964 as the "All-Union Gramophone Record Firm ...

and many other labels. Somewhere in 2003 he participated in the

Viljandi Folk Music Festival __NOTOC__ The Viljandi Folk Music Festival is a music festival in Estonia with a central focus on European folk music. It is traditionally held during the last weekend of July, when the otherwise quiet city of Viljandi is completely transformed as ...

and the same year was honoured by the Estonian Music Council with a prize. In 1998 he received the

Order of the White Star The Order of the White Star ( et, Valgetähe teenetemärk; french: Ordre de l'Etoile Blanche) was instituted in 1936. The Order of the White Star is bestowed on Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic ...

. Currently he gives concerts with such musicians as

Tanel Ruben Tanel is a male given name of Estonian language, Estonian origin. It is a cognate of the name Daniel (given name), Daniel. Individuals bearing the name Tanel include: *Tanel Ingi (born 1976), Estonian actor *Tanel Joamets (born 1968), Estonian p ...

, Taavo Remmel, Jaak Sooäär and many others. In 2014 he established the "Mustonenfest Tallinn Tel Aviv Festival" - an annual event, in which classical collectives from Estonia perform in Israel. He is the artistic director of the festival.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mustonen, Andres 1953 births Living people 20th-century conductors (music) Estonian conductors (music) Estonian violinists Tallinn Music High School alumni Recipients of the Order of the White Star, 4th Class Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre alumni Musicians from Tallinn 20th-century Estonian musicians 21st-century Estonian musicians 21st-century conductors (music) 21st-century violinists