Kremer began studying music at the age of four with his father and grandfather, who were both distinguished, professional violinists. At the age of seven, he entered the Riga Music School. At sixteen he was awarded the First Prize of the Latvian Republic and two years later he began his studies with David Oistrakh at the Moscow Conservatory. He went on to win prestigious awards including the 1976 Queen Elizabeth Competition and the First Prize in both the Paganini and Tchaikovsky International Competitions.
Gidon Kremer has appeared on virtually every major concert stage with the most celebrated orchestras of Europe and America. He has collaborated with the foremost conductors, including Leonard Bernstein, Herbert von Karajan, Christoph Eschenbach, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Lorin Maazel, Riccardo Muti, Zubin Mehta, James Levine, Valery Gergiev, Claudio Abbado and Sir Neville Marriner, among others.
Gidon Kremer's repertoire is unusually extensive, encompassing all of the standard classical and romantic violin works, as well as music by 20th century masters such as Henze, Berg and Stockhausen. He also championed the works of living Russian and Eastern European composers and has performed many important new compositions, several of them dedicated to him. He has become associated with such diverse composers as Alfred Schnittke, Arvo Pärt, Giya Kancheli, Sofia Gubaidulina, Valentin Silvestrov, Luigi Nono, Aribert Reimann, Peteris Vasks, John Adams and Astor Piazzolla, bringing their music to audiences in a way that respects tradition yet remains contemporary. It would be fair to say that no other soloist of his international stature has done as much for contemporary composers in the past 30 years.
An exceptionally prolific recording artist, Gidon Kremer has made more than 100 albums, many of which brought him prestigious international awards and prizes in recognition of his exceptional interpretative powers. These include the "Grand prix du Disque," "Deutscher Schallplattenpreis," the "Ernst-von-Siemens Musikpreis," the "Bundesverdienstkreuz," the "Premio dell' Accademia Musicale Chigiana," the "Triumph Prize 2000" (Moscow) and in 2001 the "Unesco Prize." In February 2002 he and Kremerata Baltica were awarded with the Grammy for their latest Nonesuch recording "After Mozart" in the category "Best Small Ensemble Performance."
In 1981 Gidon Kremer founded Lockenhaus, an intimate chamber music festival that continues to take place every summer in Austria. For two years from 1997 to 1998, Gidon Kremer took over the artistic leadership of the Gstaad Festival from its founder, Sir Yehudi Menuhin. In 1997, he founded Kremerata Baltica chamber orchestra to foster the talent of outstanding young musicians from the three Baltic States. Since then, Mr. Kremer has been touring extensively with the orchestra, appearing at the world's most prestigious festivals and concert halls. He has also recorded a number of CDs with the orchestra for Teldec and Nonesuch, the first releases featuring music by Peteris Vasks and Astor Piazzolla, the latest recording released on Nonesuch being a collection of works under the theme "Happy Birthday." In 2002 Gidon Kremer became the artist director of a new festival in Basel, Switzerland, called "les muséiques."
Gidon Kremer is also a writer. He is the author of three books in German that reflect his artistic philosophy: Kindheitssplitter, Oase Lockenhaus. 15 Jahre Kammermusikfest KREMERATA MUSICA 1981 - 1996, and Obertöne. Kindheitssplitter has been translated in Russian, Latvian, French and Japanese.
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Gidon Kremer Lyrics
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Voy perdido en la vida
Y comprendí que todo lo que decías
Sólo eran mentiras
Porque en la esquina de un bar
Yo te vi que te estaban besando
Junto a la pared
No me digas yo no te engañé
No pretendas salvarte esta vez
Si fuiste tú la que me hiciste perder
Sos un ave depresa
Que rompió mi cabeza
Hiciste que yo te entregara
Todo lo que querías de mi
Y no pensaste que estas cosas te lastiman y dejan heridas
Que te hacen sufrir
Por eso no me digas
Por eso no me pidas que vuelva si sé
Que hoy lo nuestro ya no es como ayer
Ya no tengo nada que perder
Si no estás conmigo esta vez
Y me pregunto si el dolor que siento
Tendré que soportarlo mucho más
Y si perder es parte de este juego
Todo vuelve a empezar
Desde otro lugar
No me digas
No me pidas
The lyrics to Gidon Kremer's song Chiquilin de Bachin describe a narrator's feelings of betrayal and heartbreak after discovering their partner cheating on them. The first stanza sets the scene of a bad day and feeling lost, only to realize that everything their partner had said to them was a lie. The second stanza speaks directly to the partner, calling them out for their infidelity and pleading with them not to deny it or ask for forgiveness. The singer likens their partner to a depressed bird that has broken their head, as if their love has caused them nothing but pain. However, the singer also acknowledges that they themselves have nothing left to lose if their partner is not with them.
The lyrics are filled with raw emotion and speak to the pain of being betrayed by a loved one. The imagery of a broken bird and the idea of having nothing left to lose convey a sense of hopelessness and resignation. The use of the informal "vos" instead of the more formal "usted" in the Spanish lyrics adds a sense of intimacy and familiarity, as if the singer is speaking directly to their partner in a personal and raw manner.
Line by Line Meaning
Hoy no tuve un buen día
Today was not a good day for me
Voy perdido en la vida
I am lost in life
Y comprendí que todo lo que decías
And I realized that everything you said
Sólo eran mentiras
Were just lies
Porque en la esquina de un bar
Because in the corner of a bar
Yo te vi que te estaban besando
I saw you being kissed
Junto a la pared
Against the wall
No me digas que yo lo soné
Don't tell me I imagined it
No me digas yo no te engañé
Don't tell me I didn't cheat on you
No pretendas salvarte esta vez
Don't pretend to save yourself this time
Si fuiste tú la que me hiciste perder
If you were the one who made me lose
Sos un ave depresa
You are a depressed bird
Que rompió mi cabeza
Who broke my head
Hiciste que yo te entregara
You made me give you
Todo lo que querías de mi
Everything you wanted from me
Y no pensaste que estas cosas te lastiman y dejan heridas
And you didn't think that these things hurt you and leave scars
Que te hacen sufrir
That make you suffer
Por eso no me digas
So don't tell me
Por eso no me pidas que vuelva si sé
So don't ask me to come back if I know
Que hoy lo nuestro ya no es como ayer
That today our love is not like yesterday
Ya no tengo nada que perder
I have nothing left to lose
Si no estás conmigo esta vez
If you're not with me this time
Y me pregunto si el dolor que siento
And I wonder if the pain I feel
Tendré que soportarlo mucho más
Will have to be endured much longer
Y si perder es parte de este juego
And if losing is part of this game
Todo vuelve a empezar
Everything starts over
Desde otro lugar
From another place
No me digas
Don't tell me
No me pidas
Don't ask me
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: DIEGO ANTONIO CACCIA TORRES, CARLOS DANIEL TOMAS, MARCELO BERNARDO WENGROVSKI
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind