The Estonian Olympic Committee has appointed Kristjan Järvi as ambassador in a bid to use music to inspire the country to future sporting success, the UK-based Rhinegold Publishing reported.
The Estonian conductor and pianist is the first non-athlete to hold a senior position as a standing member.
“It is an honour to be part of the Olympic movement in some small way. Music is an inspirational force, it helps people fulfil their potential and in sport this is vital. Every sportsman and woman tends to use music in some way to inspire, whether it is in the gym or prior to them starting a race, so it is a natural step to see how this can be expanded upon,” Järvi said, according to the publisher.
Family of musicians
Kristjan Järvi is the younger son of Neeme Järvi, and the brother of conductor Paavo Järvi and flutist Maarika Järvi.
His family emigrated to the United States, when he was seven, and he grew up in New York City, studying piano at the Manhattan School of Music and conducting at the University of Michigan.
In 1993, he and the composer Gene Pritsker co-founded the Absolute Ensemble, with Järvi as its musical director. On top of this, he is the music director of the MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Gstaad Festival Orchestra, and the Baltic Sea Youth Philharmonic.
Järvi’s guest conducting engagements include London Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre National de France, Orchestre de Paris, Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia Rome, National Symphony Orchestra (Washington D.C), the Minnesota Orchestra and NHK Symphony Japan.
As a recording artist, Järvi has more than 60 albums to his credit.
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Cover: Kristjan Järvi (photo by Peter Rigaud). Read also: Kristjan Järvi´s debut with the Berliner Philharmoniker.
