Latvian violinist Gidon Kremer is arguably the most celebrated musician taking part in the Sixth Beijing Music Festival.

The 56-year-old violinist will first play a chamber concert tonight with pianist Andrius Zlabys at the Poly Theater and perform with China Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Russian conductor Woldemar Nelsson tomorrow at the same venue.

The chamber pieces include Bach's "Chaconne: from partita for violin solo No 2 in D minor" and "Organ Prelude and Fugue in D minor" and Cesar Franck's "Symphony in D minor (the violin/piano version arranged by Ernest Alder)."

Tomorrow evening will feature Bach's "Keyboard Concerto No 1 in D minor," Mendelssohn's "Violin Concerto in D minor" and Shostakovich's "Violin Concerto No 2 in C Sharp minor.

Yesterday afternoon, Kremer was invited to teach a class at the Central Conservatory of Music, China's top music institute, which has named him the guest professor.

"I feel honored to receive the title and to have taught young Chinese musicians," Kremer said at Tuesday's press conference. "It's a pity, I have never found enough time to teach the students seriously in the places I tour to perform."

The violinist added: "I appreciate many Chinese musicians from a distance. Among others, I know Yo-Yo Ma best, because we performed together in several tours around the world."

Born in Riga, Latvia, Kremer began studying at the age of four with his father and grandfather, both distinguished string players. He entered the Riga Music school when he was seven and at 18 he began his studies with David Oistrakh at the Moscow Conservatory.

He went on to win prestigious awards including the 1967 Queen Elizabeth Competition and the first prize in both the Paganini and Tchaikovsky International Competitions.

This success launched Kremer's distinguished career as one of the most original and compelling artists of his generation.

However, Kremer understands "an artist's life could not last through winning competitions."

"But when you are young, you might have no other choice but to take part in competitions to attract people's attention," said Kremer.

He also said that the general quality of some competitions today is declining, but this is not the fault of the competition itself.

He explained that this is "because people's attitude toward music has changed. Musicians of my generation played music because we enjoyed it and expressed our emotions by playing, but today's musician focuses on improving their techniques more than other aspects," he said.

Kremer's repertoire is unusually extensive, encompassing all of the standard classical and romantic violin works.

In addition, his musical and intellectual curiosity have led him to enlarge his repertoire, arguably beyond that of his contemporary colleagues, to encompass lesser-known works by major 19th and 20th century masters as well as works by less-well-known Russian and Eastern European composers.

Gidon Kremer's interests extend even further - to the work of Astor Piazzolla and to film music.

Kremer's unrelenting curiosity and his resistance to routine can be noted in his uncompromising selection of works to play in concert.

He challenges his audiences with disquieting programs that no less readily include contemporary music than neglected or forgotten works from the backwaters of music history.

An exceptionally prolific recording artist, Kremer has made more than 100 albums, many of which brought him prestigious international awards in recognition of his exceptional interpretative powers.

But he said he would play every piece in every concert as if he was playing it for the first time, "because you could not show the CDs on stage, saying this is my playing."

In 1997, Kremer founded the Kremerata Baltica chamber orchestra to foster outstanding young musicians from the three Baltic States.

"I would spend at least four or five months with them, touring extensively, for my past is their future," he said.

(China Daily October 23, 2003)