An evening of the trumpet

Veniamin Savelievich Margolin (1922–2009) was a patriarch of the Leningrad-St Petersburg school of trumpet playing. A student of the Leningrad Conservatoire, where his teachers were Alexander Schmidt and Mikhail Vetrov, from 1944 to 1947 Margolin performed in the Kirov Orchestra, and subsequently for almost thirty years (1947–1974) he was a soloist with the Leningrad Philharmonic, Honoured Ensemble of Russia, under Yevgeny Mravinsky. In 1963 the musician was awarded the title of Honoured Artist of the RSFSR.

Margolin's repertoire featured almost the entire works for classical solo and chamber trumpet music. His performance of the trumpet part in Stravinsky's Octet received a favourable review from the composer himself, who was then in Leningrad in 1962, and a recording of Saint-Saëns' Septet with his participation was released on vinyl. But the main part of Margolin's legacy is linked to his work with Mravinsky's orchestra. Of particular note are his recordings of solos in symphonies by Tchaikovsky, Mahler, Strauss and Shostakovich, ballets by Stravinsky and instrumental highlights from Wagner's operas. One of the greatest pieces in his repertoire was Scriabin's Le Poème de l'extase. Margolin's playing was highly praised by Dmitry Shostakovich, Herbert von Karajan and Mstislav Rostropovich. Yevgeny Mravinsky commented on the "power and clarity of the sound, the dazzle and precision of the phrasing, the pathos and the ecstasy" in his performances.

From 1974–1986 Margolin taught at the Leningrad Institute of Culture, and from 1986 he taught at the Leningrad-St Petersburg Conservatoire (professor from 1991). His pupils included musicians in Russian and international orchestras and prize-winners at international competitions. Margolin produced a series of arrangements of the classical repertoire for trumpet and brass instruments.

In 2005 Veniamin Margolin was presented with the most prestigious award from the International Guild of Trumpeters – the Award of Merit, presented for his significant contribution to trumpet-playing.