Prof. Andris Arnicans, a Latvian bassoon virtuoso, has an extensive career as a soloist and teacher, as well as an orchestra musician.
His career of a soloist started in early 1970s, by winning the second prize at the Prague Spring Competition (1974). This success was followed by winning the 1st Prize both at the Kurpinsky Competition (1976) and the All – Union Competition (1979), as well as being nominated for the 2nd Prize once more at the Prague Spring Competition in 1977. At the same period of time Prof. Arnicans gave series of solo recitals and was actively performing in various chamber music settings with many renowned artists, among them Sviatoslav Richter and Rodion Schedrin.
In 1982 Prof. Arnicans was appointed to the solo – bassoon post at the USSR Ministry of Culture Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Gennady Rozhdestvensky, and in 1988, – following a personal invitation by the chief conductor Evgeny Svetlanov himself – he joined the Russia State Academic Symphony Orchestra in the solo bassoon capacity. In 1995, Prof Arnicans was awarded the title of the Renowned Artist of Russian Federation for his extraordinary musical activities. From 1996 to 2010 Prof. Arnicans has been performing at the post of the solo bassoon with the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra.
His extensive teaching career started in 1978 with a professorship at the Moscow Tschaikovsky Conservatoire. Since 1996, Prof. Arnicans is teaching at the Latvian Academy of Music and several specialist music schools. He has a large number of students, amongst them winners of auditions at internationally renowned orchestras in Europe and overseas as well as laureates of international music competitions.
Prof. Arnicans has recorded numerous LPs for the Russian label Melody and Radio Latvia. Many compositions have been written for and dedicated to him, including those by Latvian composers J. Ķepītis, P. Dambis, E. Straume; as well as R. Kangro and Russian composers Rodion Schedrin, A. Eshpay, T. Kazhayeva, and Sergey Berinsky (bassoon concerto Buffo Infernale). He is also active as a jury member at international music competitions and performs regularly as a soloist and chamber musician on the classical as well as baroque bassoon. In 2002, Latvian National Symphony Orchestra honoured him with the title of the Soloist of the Year acknowledgement for the performance of the concerto by J. Williams for bassoon and orchestra The Five Sacred Trees.