Victor Smolski

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Guitarist Victor Smolski in 2016.
Cyrillic ( Belarusian )
Віктар Смольскі
Łacinka : Viktar Smolski
Transl. : Viktar Smol'ski
Transcr. : Wiktar Smolski
Cyrillic ( Russian )
Виктор Смольский
Transl .: Viktor Smol'sky
Transcr .: Viktor Smolski

Victor Smolski ( Belarusian Віктар Смольскі ; Russian Виктор Смольский ; born February 1, 1969 in Minsk ) is a Belarusian musician and racing driver living in Germany . From 1999 to 2015 he was guitarist and keyboard player for the band Rage , for which he also composed. He also volunteers for civil courage by supporting the project School without Racism, School with Courage at the Thomas-More-Gymnasium in Oelde . He acts as a sponsor for this school. Victor Smolski is the son of the composer Dmitri Smolski , with whom he also worked on various projects. a. as solo guitarist in his 9th symphony. Smolski lives in Beckum .

The early years

Victor Smolski began learning the cello and piano at the age of six before devoting himself to the guitar at the age of 11. At the age of 14 he played with the Belarusian rock band Pesniary, which musically was comparable to the Scorpions. Pesniary were among the most popular rock bands in the Soviet Union and sold more than 10 million records. The talented musician graduated in his home country on rock and jazz guitar and in the areas of "classical composition" and "arrangements". In 1988 the guitarist founded the group Inspector, with whom he played concerts all over Europe and released the CD "Russian Prayer" through Aris / Ariola (now Sony). In 1993 the musician moved permanently to Germany, where he still lives today. At first he worked as a studio musician and recorded his first solo CD "Destiny".

From 1995 Victor Smolski was a member of the progressive metal band Mind Odyssey, with whom he was very successful a. a. toured in Europe with the bands Vicious Rumors and Savatage, and was able to achieve regular airplay on Viva and MTV. Most of the songs on the successful Mind Odyssey albums “Nailed to the Shade” and “Signs” came from him and led to a collaboration with the “Belarus Symphonic Orchestra”. In the following years Dmitry and Victor Smolski composed a symphony for electric guitar and orchestra and performed it all over Europe. Victor Smolski has also been a successful racing driver since 1995 and can also look back on many outstanding successes in this area.

Rage and the years from 1999 to 2013

In 1999 Victor Smolski joined the German heavy metal band Rage as a guitarist, with whom he made his live debut at Wacken Open Air. A tour of Europe and Russia followed. At the beginning of 2000 Smolski composed and produced his second solo CD, which was created in cooperation with the Belarussian Orchestra and colleagues from RAGE. “The Heretic” is a mixture of classical and heavy metal. The next solo album, “Majesty & Passion”, was even more elaborate. The conception, the execution of the aProject and a list of guest musicians (including Alexander Beyrodt , Marcus Deml , Frank Itt , Uli Jon Roth , Michael Sagmeister and Mike Terrana ) are internationally unmatched to this day. Musically, the album transports the music of Johann Sebastian Bach into the modern age.

Victor Smolski achieved his greatest success in 2001 with the piece he wrote and "Straight to Hell", which appeared on the RAGE album "Welcome to the Other Side". This song was used for the soundtrack of the most successful German film "Der Schuh des Manitu" and was later used again for "Traumschiff Surprise". In the following years Smolski recorded numerous other albums with RAGE and the Russian band Kipelov and released several DVDs. In the meantime, he worked as a producer for labels such as BMG, GUN Records, Drakkar / Classic, Ariola and Nuclear Blast. For the latter, he produced the CD for the label's 20th birthday in 2007, for which Smolksi also wrote all the songs and recorded keyboards, guitars and bass. In the same year he took part as a driver in the TV show event "Stefan Raab's Stock Car Crash Challenge", which was broadcast on PRO7. Also in 2007 the exceptional musician opened his Unity Music School in Hamm and since then has been conducting more workshops for u. a. Yamaha and Engl through.

Rage performed the most impressive performance in 2007 together with the Lingua Mortis Orchestra - and stretched from Russia and Ukraine to the Masters Of Rock in the Czech Republic and Wacken Open Air, where the concert was recorded in front of 100,000 spectators. This film material was released as a bonus DVD on the 2008 Rage album "Carved in Stone" and was broadcast on Premiere and WDR on television. For the PR for the album, Rage appeared on Stefan Raab's TV Total show in February 2008 and then completed the “Carved in the Road” world tour, which in turn took the band from Europe via Russia to Japan. There the guitarist completed a workshop at the MI (Musicians Institute) in Tokyo, which was filmed and later published on DVD by Japan's most famous guitar magazine Young Guitar. As an endorser, he has meanwhile achieved collaborations with the manufacturers Engl, Yamaha, Siggi Guitars, Thomastik-Infeld and Cordial - including new products such as the “Victor Smolski Signature Cable” from Cordial and the “Victor Smolski Limited Edition” Amp from Engl and the signature guitar from Siggi Braun Guitars.

In 2008 Smolski's former band Mind Odyssey made a comeback and released on Napalm Records a. a. a "Best Of" album and the complete back catalog new. Meanwhile, RAGE celebrated their 25th band anniversary with the EP "Never Give Up" and achieved 3rd place as part of their participation in Stefan Raab's "Bundesvision Song Contest" on PRO7. In 2009 Victor Smolski released his first instructional DVD "School of Metal". With “Strings to a Web”, RAGE achieved a great commercial success in 2010. The CD stayed in the German Media Control Charts for three weeks and reached # 27 there. In the following 18 months the band played around 70 concerts in over 20 countries. The highlight here were the 70,000 Tons of Metal cruise from the USA to Mexico and the headlining show with the Lingua Mortis Orchestra at the Rock Hard Festival in the sold-out Gelsenkirchen amphitheater. The follow-up album "21" was able to build on this with high chart placements before the band was again invited to the 70,000 Tons of Metal festival in 2013. The trip was filmed and shown on several TV stations. From then on, RAGE and the Lingua Mortis Orchestra were two separate bands.

LMO and the years 2013–2014

On August 2, 2013, the Lingua Mortis Orchestra album "LMO" was released parallel to the appearance at Wacken Open Air with Nuclear Blast. Except for two songs, all of the pieces were written by Smolski. With the participation of two orchestras from Spain and Belarus, Victor Smolski LMO produced and mixed together with his long-time co-producer Charlie Bauerfeind in the Twilight Hall studios in Krefeld. The "Suite Lingua Mortis" composed by him, which appeared on the successful Rage album "Speak of the Dead" in 2006, formed the classic basis for the new, diverse and sometimes even playful Lingua Mortis Orchestra sound and that in the end resulting 2013 LMO album. This work was a complete success, caused Rage sales to skyrocket again and catapulted its way up to # 24 in the official German album charts. Compared to Rage, LMO was characterized by even more variable pieces, which mainly came from Smolski's pen. The new musical concept combined heavy metal with classical music in the form of songs specially written for a band and orchestra, as well as for various female and male singers who shared the lead vocals. LMO dealt with the burning of witches in Gelnhausen in 1599. In addition to the three Rage musicians, the band Jeanette Marchewka (vocals), Dana Harnge (soprano) and Henning Basse (vocals) also played an integral part here.

In September 2014, the German version of Victor Smolski's biography, “Straight to Hell or to Paradise” was published - a slightly different book about Victor, which provides fascinating insights into the metal and classic world and his passion for motorsport. In addition, the book contains various interviews, guitar notes and tabs for songs by Rage and over 200 pictures that are well worth reading.

Almanac - from 2015 until today

The first release 'Tsar' is characterized by the combination of traditional metal with classical music, elements from world music and Russian folklore and modernity. In terms of content, historical events relating to Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia are dealt with.

The second studio album entitled Kingslayer was released in 2017 .

Motorsport

In addition to his musical activities, Victor Smolski has been a racing driver in touring car races since 1995. Having started in rallying and automobile slalom, he quickly developed a passion for the circuit. In addition to successful races in the Youngtimer series, Smolski has also competed in the RTTC sprint races for years. His great love, however, is the Nordschleife of the Nürburgring . Here Smolski has achieved numerous successes in the German endurance championship, the international 24-hour race and the 500 km race. He scored his first victory on August 18, 2007 at the RCM Grenzlandrennen in a BMW M3. At the 36th ADAC 24-hour race on the Nürburgring from 22. – 25. May 2008 Victor achieved 3rd place in the V6 class with a BMW M3. In this class, near-series touring cars up to max. 3,500 cm³ displacement at the start. It was already his 5th start in a 24-hour race.

In addition to his assignments in the RCN, Smolski also competed in several races at the BF Goodrich endurance championship Nürburgring and several ADAC Youngtimer races. In 2010 Smolski drove a few races in the RCN with a Porsche 911 and in the VLN with the Dodge Viper.

Discography

Solo albums

  • Destiny (1996)
  • The Heretic (2000)
  • Majesty & Passion (2004)
  • 2 in 1 (re-release) 2006
  • School of Metal (DVD) (2009)
  • Straight to Hell or to Paradise (2014) (Book)

With rage

  • Ghosts (1999)
  • Welcome to the Other Side (2001)
  • Unity (2002)
  • Soundchaser (2003)
  • From the Cradle to the Stage (DVD, 2004)
  • Speak of the Dead (2006)
  • Full Moon in St.Petersburg (DVD, 2007)
  • Carved in Stone (2008)
  • Never Give Up (EP, 2009)
  • Strings to a Web (2010)
  • 21 (2012)
  • The Soundchaser Archives (2014)

With Mind Odyssey

  • Nailed to the Shade (1998)
  • Signs (1999)
  • Best Of (2008)
  • Time to Change It (2009)

With LMO (Lingua Mortis Orchestra)

  • Lingua Mortis Orchestra (2013)

more publishments

  • Inspector - Russian Prayer (1993)
  • Manitou's Shoe - soundtrack (2001)
  • Silent Force - Infatuator (2001)
  • Siggi Braun Fine Young Guitars - Perfect Passion (2004)
  • Traumschiff Surprise - Soundtrack (2004)
  • The messenger - cold! (2005)
  • Lacrimosa - Shining Light (2005)
  • Kipelov - Rivers od Time (2005)
  • Kipelov - Live In Moscow (DVD, 2006)
  • Nuclear Blast Allstars - Into the Light (2007)
  • Subconscious - All Things Are Equal in Death (2008)
  • Leaves Eyes - Njord (2009)
  • Van Canto - "One to Ten" (2010)
  • Leaves Eyes - Meredead (2011)
  • Atrocity - OKKULT (2012)
  • The Messenger - Morning World (2013)
  • Leaves Eyes - Symphonies of the Night (2013)
  • Savn - Savn (2014)
  • Eluveitie - Origins (2014)

With ALMANAC

  • Tsar (2016)
  • Kingslayer (2017)
  • Rush of Death (2020)

Web links

Commons : Victor Smolski  - collection of images, videos and audio files

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Westfälischer Anzeiger: Guitarist Victor Smolski regrets the development of the hammer scene. Retrieved July 2, 2013 .
  2. ↑ Kingslayer at allmusic.com. Retrieved January 8, 2018 .
  • [1] Victor Smolski homepage & official biography
personal data
SURNAME Smolski, Victor
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Смольскі, Віктар (Belarusian); Смольский, Виктор (Russian); Smolski, Wiktor
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Belarusian composer and guitarist of the band Rage
DATE OF BIRTH 1st February 1969
PLACE OF BIRTH Minsk , Belarusian SSR