On Wednesday 5th February, Gennady Rozhdestvensky was honoured with a CBE (Commander of the British Empire) by Princess Anne on behalf of the Queen at the British Embassy in Moscow; a rare event for a Russian national.. As well as being the first Russian in Soviet times to be appointed Chief Conductor to a British or indeed any Western orchestra, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, he has made it his mission over many decades to introduce Russian music to British audiences while playing music by British composers, often for the first time in Russia. He has just completed two of a three-year festival of British music in Moscow “Albion in the mist”.
Professor Rozhdestvensky also holds honours from many other countries including the French Legion of Honour, the Japanese Order of the Rising Sun and Honorary membership of the Stockholm and British Academies. Last year he received an Honorary Doctorate from the Royal Academy of Music in London.