Imaginary Pictures:
- Kirill Gerstein performs.
Both Robert Schumann and Modest Mussorgsky were highly imaginative composers who found methods of expression that went beyond what was conventional at the time their music was composed.
On this recording, pianist Kirill Gerstein performs the original piano version of Mussorgsky’s ‘Pictures at an Exhibition’ and also Schumann’s ‘Carnaval’. Both of these piano pieces allow the listener to visualize the subtler aspects of the music.
The selections we hear are as follows:
Mussorgsky:
- Pictures at an Exhibition (piano version)
Schumann:
- Carnaval, Op. 9
Performed by Kirill Gerstein (piano)
Mr. Gerstein has collaborated with violist Tabea Zimmerman on two wonderful volumes of Sonatas for viola and piano by Johannes Brahms, and also by Rebecca Clarke, Henri Vieuxtemps, Franz Schubert and Cesar Franck.
Born in 1979 in southwestern Russia, Gerstein moved to the United States at age 14 to study jazz piano as the youngest student ever to attend Boston’s Berklee College of Music. After completing his studies he turned his focus back to classical music.
Here is Kirill Gerstein performing Schumann’s ‘Carnaval’, Op. 9:
And next, here he is in Shostakovich’s Piano Concerto No. 2, 1st Movement:
And finally, here is a video of Mr. Gerstein, getting ready to record the Schubert “Arpeggione” sonata the Brahms viola sonatas with Tabea Zimmermann. This is amazing and highly emotional music!!
Tags: Kirill Gerstein, Schumann, Mussorgsky, Brahms, Schubert Tabea Zimmermann
