Sparkill Concert Series presents Pavel Nersessian, Piano

PROGRAM: SCHUMANN, SILVESTROV, POULENC, BEETHOVEN

“His performance brought a veritable roar of approval from the audience,” wrote the Irish Times, after Pavel Nersessian received the 1st Prize in the GPA Dublin International Piano Competition in 1991. Being one of the most remarkable pianists of his generation in Russia, he is known for his ability to play equally convincingly in the whole palette of the piano repertoire. He won prizes in the Beethoven Competition in Vienna in 1985, the Paloma O’Shea Competition in Santander, and the Tokyo Competition.

Nersessian was a pupil of the famous Central Music School of the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatoire, where his teacher was Yu. Levin. Later he was a student of the Conservatoire under Prof. S. Dorensky. Upon graduating from the Conservatoire in 1987 with maximum marks he was invited to join the faculty.

Pavel Nersessian has been touring Russia and surrounding states from the age of eight, and has given performances in London, Glasgow, Edinburgh, New York, Los Angeles, Paris, Cannes, Leipzig, Vienna, Budapest, Madrid, Tokyo, Osaka, Seoul, Dublin, Muenchen, Caracas, Rio de Janeiro, Belgrade, Cairo, Kiev, and many other cities.

Mr. Nersessian, by special invitation from the Kirov and the Perm Ballet, performed solo part in Balanchine’s Ballet Imperial based on the music of Tchaikovsky’s 2nd Piano Concerto with performances in the Kirov, Bolshoi, Chatelet and Covent Garden. He also played a solo part in J. Robbins’ ballet “The concert, or The Perils of Everybody” on the music of F. Chopin.

He is known for his collaboration with chamber music groups and other musicians, such as Borodin and Glinka Quartets, National Symphony Orchestra in Russia, Thomas Sanderling, Tugan Sokhiev, Eri Klas, Saulius Sondeckis, Alexander Lazarev, Ken-David Mazur, Pavel Kogan, Alexandre Chernushenko, Mikhail Agrest, Pascal Moragues, Julius Milkis, Evgeny Petrov, Abel Perreira, Benjamin Schmid, Stepan Yakovich, Ani Kavafian, Andrei Gridchuk, Alena Baeva, Philippe Cassard, Yana Ivanilova, Nina Kogan, Mikhail Bereznitsky and many others. He has recorded numerous disks with the compositions of Chopin, Schumann, Schubert, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Beethoven, Shostakovich, and he has given masterclasses in the USA, Russia, Estonia, Kazakhstan, Ireland, Germany, Spain, Italy, Korea, Brazil, and Japan.

Pavel Nersessian has been working as an assistant in a class of a famous professor S. Dorensky since 1987. Many famous students graduated from this studio during these years: N. Lugansky, V. Rudenko, D. Matsuev, O. Kern, A. Shtarkman, P. Kolesnikov, G. Tchaidze, A. Dossin, F. Kopachevsky, T. Tessman and many others.

He is also on the faculty of Boston University.

In 2005 he became a merited artist of the Russian Federation.

Program:

Schumann, Silvestrov, Poulenc, Beethoven

V. Silvestrov 5 Waltzes and a lullaby op. 174

L.v. Beethoven Sonata quasi una fantasia op.27 # 2

F. Poulenc Soirées de Nazelles FP 84 /Evenings in Nazelles

I. Preamble

II. Variations

1. Le comble de la distinction /The utmost Elegance

2. Le cœur sur la main /Prodigality

3. La désinvolture et la discrétion /Casualness and discretion

4. La suite dans les idées /A singleminded person

5. Le charme enjôleur /The coaxer

6. Le contentement de soi /Self-satisfaction

7. Le goût du malheur /A Taste of Misfortune

8. L’alerte vieillesse /Nimble Old Age

III. Cadence

IV. Final

Intermission.

J.-F. Dandrieu Le Caquet

J.Ph. Rameau Le Rappel des Oiseaux

C. Daquin Le Coucou

F. Couperin Les petits Moulins à Vent

C. Daquin L’Hirondelle

F. Couperin Les Papillons

J. Ph. Rameau Les Cyclopes

R. Schumann Carnaval op. 9

1. Préambule in B flat major, Quasi maestoso

2. Pierrot in E flat major, Moderato

3. Arlequin, in B flat major, Vivo

4. Valse noble in B flat major, Un poco maestoso

5. Eusebius in E flat major, Adagio

6. Florestan in G minor, Passionato

7. Coquette in B flat major, Vivo

8. Réplique in G minor, L’intesso tempo

9. Sphinxes

10. Papillons in B flat major, Prestissimo

11. Lettres dansantes (A.S.C.H. – S.C.H.A.) in E flat major, Presto

12. Chiarina in C minor, Passionato

13. Chopin in A flat major, Agitato

14. Estrella in F minor, Con affetto

15. Reconnaissance in A flat major, Animato

16. Pantalon et Colombine in F minor, Presto

17. Valse allemande in A flat major, Molto vivace

18. Paganini in F minor, Intermezzo, Presto

19. Aveu in F minor, Passionato

20. Promenade in D flat major, Con moto

21. Pause, in A flat major, Vivo, precipitandosi

22. Marche des Davidsbundler contre les Philistins in A flat major, Non Allegro