Do Je-hae edits news stories as part of the AI team.
Colossus of Russian pianism
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Russian pianist Evgeny Kissin will perform at Seoul Arts Center on March 30. Courtesy of Credia
By Do Je-hae
Evgeny Kissin returns to Seoul with Schubert-Scriabin program
By Do Je-hae
The biggest classical music event in Seoul this year is the upcoming recital of the Russian piano virtuoso Evgeny Kissin.
At 42, Kissin is the reigning superstar in a long line of Russia's piano legends. His recital is generating a lot of anticipation among local fans who have not heard him live here since his sensational recital in 2009. At the time, he had brought a program of Prokofiev and Chopin, finishing off with what seemed like an endless array of 10 encores and signing autographs past midnight.
His upcoming Seoul recital next month will feature a rare program that combines the lyricism of Franz Schubert and the passion of Alexander Scriabin. Both composers have been central to his repertoire since the early years of Kissin’s career.
There is a tendency among Korean audiences to associate Kissin with mainly Chopin's ballades, preludes and sonatas. With a boundless repertoire, Kissin is among the most versatile of pianists on the stage today.
It will be interesting to hear how Kissin interprets some masterpiece of Scriabin, a 19th-century Russian pianist and composer whose works are rarely performed live in Korea.
A Moscow native, Kissin began to play by ear and improvise on the piano at the age of two. At six years old, he entered a special school for gifted children, the Moscow Gnessin School of Music, where he studied with Anna Pavlovna Kantor.
He made his concerto debut playing Mozart’s Piano Concerto K. 466 at age 10 and gave his first solo recital in Moscow one year later. He rose to international fame in March 1984 when, at age 12, he performed Chopin’s Piano Concertos 1 and 2 in the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory with the Moscow State Philharmonic under Dmitri Kitaenko.
For local fans, this year will be an unforgettable year for admirers of Russian pianism. In addition to Kissin's recital, the great virtuoso Mikhail Pletnev will also return to Seoul for a rare recital in June. This is the first time he comes to Korea as a pianist since 2004, after which he re-directed his focus to conducting.
Program
F. Schubert
Sonata No. 17 in D Major, Op. 53, D. 850
Allegro vivace
Con moto
Scherzo: Allegro vivace
Rondo: Allegro moderato
Intermission
A. Scriabin
Sonata No. 2 in G-sharp minor, Op. 19
Andante
Presto
Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes
No. 2 in F-sharp minor
No. 4 in B major
No. 5 in E major
No. 8 in A-flat major
No. 9 in G-sharp minor
No. 11 in B-flat minor
No. 12 in D-sharp minor
Recording recommendations
Carnegie Hall debut
Kissin was just 20 when BMG recorded his triumphant Carnegie Hall debut. He had been invited, along with violinist Midori and other young virtuoso soloists, to headline the iconic hall's centennial season. At such a young age, Kissin is already a master technician and artist. His interpretation of Liszt's "Rhapsody Espagnole" and Schumann's "Abegg Variations" are some of the best ever recorded. The final encore piece is Schumann's "Widmung," which has since become a signature encore piece for him.
Schubert selections
Kissin seems to have a very personal relationship with Schubert. His affection for his works is obvious in his early as well as latest recordings. The impassioned readings of the "Wanderer Fantasy" and the lied transcriptions contain enormous energy and a beautiful range of sounds and colors. The D. 960 sonata, the last of Schubert's piano sonata which Kissin recorded for BMG, is the latest Schubert recording Kissin has made. It's wonderful to hear him perform the gorgeous sonata with such lovely singing tone, and then tackle the pyrotechnics of the Mephisto Waltz.