Rinat Ibragimov (musician)


Rinat Ibragimov is a Russian classical double bass player, best known as the principal bass of the London Symphony Orchestra and for his solo performances and recordings.

Education and Competitions

After studying cello for ten years, Rinat Ibragimov switched to playing the double bass at age 16. He studied at the Ippolitov-Ivanov State Musical Pedagogical Institute in Moscow with Georgy Favorsky and at the Moscow Conservatory with Professor Evgeny Kolosov, where he also studied conducting with Dmitri Kitaenko.
He won first prize in the All-Soviet Union Student Competition in 1984 and in the Giovanni Bottesini International Competition in Parma, Italy in 1989.

Orchestral and Solo Performances and Teaching

He was principal double bass of the Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra, the Moscow Academy of Ancient Music, Moscow Soloists, and the Soloists of the Moscow Philharmonic from 1983 to 1997. Between 1991 and 1997 he was a double bass instructor at the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory and its Central Specialist Music School. From 1995 to 1998 he was artistic director and conductor of the Moscow Instrumental Capella.
From 1995 to 2014 he was principal bass of the London Symphony Orchestra, for whom he is now Principal Emeritus. He has taught at the Guildhall School since 1999 and began teaching at the Royal College of Music in 2007. He provided a video master class for prospective members of the YouTube Symphony Orchestra in 2008.
A noted soloist, he made a number of recordings and videos of solo bass repertoire, including a Bottesini album with Elena Filonova, Bach's Cello Suite No. 3, works by Hindemith, Mozart, Schubert, Schumann, and Richard Strauss, and concertos by Bottesini, Dittersdorf, Koussevitzky, Smirnov, and Vanhal.

Health

Rinat Ibragimov suffered a stroke in 2014, leaving him unable to perform, though he has continued teaching occasionally at the Guildhall School.

Family

Rinat's daughter is violinist Alina Rinatovna Ibragimova.