Mariss Ivars Georgs Jansons (14 January 1943 – 1 December 2019) was a Latvian conductor best known for his interpretations of Mahler, Strauss and Russian composers such as Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff and Shostakovich. During his lifetime he was often cited as among the world's leading conductors; in a 2015 Bachtrack poll, he was ranked by music critics as the world's third best living conductor. Jansons was long associated with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (BRSO; 2003–2019) and Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (ROC; 2004–2015) as music director.
Born in Riga, Latvia, Jansons moved to Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) in 1956, where he studied conducting, and he received further training in Austria. He first achieved prominence with the Oslo Philharmonic, where he served as music director from 1979 to 2000. Besides the BRSO and ROC, he also directed the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra from 1997 to 2004; he was a frequent guest conductor with the London Philharmonic Orchestra and London Symphony Orchestra. Jansons recorded prolifically, and was the recipient of numerous awards.
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