VIOLA FANTASIES from virtuoso Misha Galaganov presents the groundbreaking solo works Fantasies for Bass Viol (1735) by Baroque composer Georg Philipp Telemann. Galaganov uses his scholastic research, knowledge, experience, and musical instincts to inform each performance regarding dynamics, tempi, ornamentation, and other aspects of interpretation.
Today, Misha is our featured artist in the “Inside Story,” a blog series exploring the inner workings and personalities of our composers and performers. Read on to learn about his various passions outside of music, including reading, chess, and spending time with family…
What have been your biggest inspirations on your musical journey?
My first and probably biggest ever inspirations were my parents. My father is a violinist — a really wonderful one, with a gorgeous tone on any violin he plays, and my mother is an excellent pianist and a profound musician. My parents practiced in our apartment ever since I was very little, and they also took me to symphony orchestra concerts — my father was the youngest concertmaster in the Soviet Union at the time, and to operas and ballets. My father was also my first and main violin teacher from beginning through high school, though I was officially studying with others.
Later, Mikhail Kugel, a virtuoso violist, played a big role in my technical and musical development when I studied with him in Israel. I learned a lot from him. At the time, Tabea Zimmermann was visiting Israel very often, and my master class with her was a life-changing experience for me. She became my musical idol for several years after that.
In the United States, Barbara Sudweeks, Martha Katz, and Wayne Brooks had different things to offer and were each inspiring in unique ways.
If you weren’t a musician, what would you be doing?
I think that I would have been a librarian or a bookstore owner. I love to read and love books, and I have a big library that I enjoy. I also like to listen to long-playing records (LPs), and my store would have had a music section, too.
What advice would you give to your younger self if given the chance?
I hear this question a lot and see many people answering it in various ways. It is a wonder how people know what suggestions to give to their younger selves! Wouldn’t any suggestion to a younger self completely change one’s timeline? There are many things I did that I really wish I would not have done, and there were also many seriously missed big opportunities in my career. Would I want to avoid these pitfalls? Sure, I would. But, at the end, I am who I am because of my life’s journey, and it is a good life so far (knocking on wood).
What emotions do you hope listeners will experience after hearing your work?
I hope that my performances will evoke some emotions in listeners. It is futile to hope for a specific reaction.
What were your first musical experiences?
My first musical experiences were violin and piano sounds in our apartment and opera and symphony orchestra concerts that my parents took me to hear. I do not remember any specifics before roughly the age of 3, but I am told that I was a very good listener.
What are your passions beyond music?
My family is important to me, and I love spending time with my wife and our children. All of them are very interesting and intelligent people, and we always have fascinating conversations during family meals. By the way, my wife and kids are very musical, though none of them will be a professional musician.
I really like playing chess. There is a chess club in my city — once a week on Wednesday evenings, and it is fun to play with real people. There are a couple of strong players in there that are challenging to defeat. I also like photography, but I have not had much time lately to enjoy it.
Mountains and hiking are some of my favorite things to do, and, as I have mentioned before, I love books and reading.
Dr. Mikhail “Misha” Galaganov is Professor of Viola and Chair of Strings at Texas Christian University (TCU). As a soloist and chamber musician he has premiered more than 30 compositions for viola alone, viola with piano, and viola in chamber music, written for him by composers from Israel, Russia, Mexico, Peru, Belgium, Italy, Uruguay, and the United States. He also premiered his own arrangement of the 12 Fantasies for Bass Viol by Georg Philipp Telemann on viola — the first live performance of all bass viola fantasies on viola in one concert. As Principal Viola of the Dallas Chamber Symphony, Galaganov has premiered several pieces written for a small symphony orchestra and for string chamber ensembles.
