KIRILL GERSTEIN PERFORMS MUSSORGSKY AND SCHUMANN
ON IMAGINARY PICTURES, A NEW ALBUM TO BE RELEASED
BY MYRIOS CLASSICS ON TUESDAY, JUNE 10
NEW YORK, NY (June 5, 2014)—On Tuesday, June 10, Myrios Classics releases Kirill Gerstein’s latest recording, Imaginary Pictures, which is comprised of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition and Schumann’s Carnaval. The album, Mr. Gerstein’s second solo release on Myrios, is currently available for pre-order on iTunes and Amazon.
Exploring the theme of images and narrative in music, the album begins with Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, a cycle composed in 1874 following the sudden death of the composer’s friend, the painter-architect Viktor Hartmann. The work is inspired by a posthumous exhibition of Hartmann’s paintings (most of which are now lost), with each movement depicting a particular piece in the gallery. This work is followed on the album by Schumann’s Carnaval, a musical representation of a masked ball. Some of the movements depict characters from commedia dell’arte, while others are figures in Schumann’s own life, such as his future wife Clara Wieck (nicknamed ‘Chiarina’ in the score), or his colleague Frédéric Chopin.
Using paintings or people as their starting points, both composers “deepened and rethought their subjects, aligning them with other aspects of their worldview,” says Mr. Gerstein. In each work, the composers “not only create an imaginary world, but place themselves within it.” Their pairing affords the listener an opportunity to observe what Mr. Gerstein calls the composers’ “unbridled imagination.” He comments, “When heard in close proximity, the compositions may start to crosstalk in the listener’s mind.”
The album was recorded in November 2013 at the Funkhaus Berlin Nalepastrasse, and liner notes are written by Mr. Gerstein.
Mr. Gerstein’s first recording of recital works by Schumann, Liszt and Oliver Knussen was released in October 2010 by Myrios Classics and named one of the 10 best classical recordings of 2010 by The New York Times. His discography also includes two duo recital discs with violist Tabea Zimmermann.
Mr. Gerstein, recognized by The New York Times as “one of the most respected pianists of his generation,” is the recipient of the prestigious 2010 Gilmore Artist Award. He won First Prize at the 2001 Arthur Rubinstein Piano Competition in Tel Aviv, a 2002 Gilmore Young Artist Award, and a 2010 Avery Fisher Grant. Highlights of his 2014-15 season include performances with the Alabama Symphony Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Nashville Symphony, New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, San Antonio Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, St. Louis Symphony, and Vancouver Symphony; and recitals at Carnegie’s Zankel Hall and the 92nd Street Y. Internationally, he plays with London’s Philharmonia and BBC Symphony Orchestras, the Gewandhaus Leipzig Orchestra, Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, São Paulo Symphony Orchestra, and makes chamber appearances at the Lockenhaus Festival, Salzburger Festspiele, and Schubertiade in Austria, Schloss Elmau in Germany, and the Verbier Festival in Switzerland.
To find out more about Mr. Gerstein, please visit his website (kirillgerstein.com), his Facebook page, or his Twitter (@kirillgerstein).
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Imaginary Pictures
Myrios Classics MYR013
Kirill Gerstein, piano
Modest Mussorgsky (1839–1881)
Pictures at an Exhibition
1 Promenade [1’39]
2 Gnomus [2’20]
3 [Promenade] [0’52]
4 Il vecchio castello [3’59]
5 [Promenade] [0’30]
6 Tuileries (Dispute d’enfants après jeux) [1’03]
7 Bydło [2’37]
8 [Promenade] [0’48]
9 Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks [1’18]
10 Samuel Goldenberg und Schmuÿle [1’57]
11 Promenade [1’37]
12 Limoges. Le marché (La grande nouvelle) [1’20]
13 Catacombæ (Sepulcrum Romanum) [1’45]
14 Con mortuis in lingua mortua [2’06]
15 The Hut on Hen’s Legs (Baba Yaga) [3’23]
16 The Bogatyr Gate (at Kiev, the Ancient Capital) [4’53]
Robert Schumann (1810–1856)
Carnaval, Op. 9
17 Préambule [2’27]
18 Pierrot [1’55]
19 Arlequin [1’16]
20 Valse noble [2’01]
21 Eusebius [1’41]
22 Florestan [1’07]
23 Coquette [1’36]
24 Réplique [0’56]
25 Sphinxes [0’26]
26 Papillons [0’46]
27 A.S.C.H.-S.C.H.A. (Lettres dansantes) [0’58]
28 Chiarina [1’25]
29 Chopin [1’02]
30 Estrella [0’28]
31 Reconnaissance [1’46]
32 Pantalone et Colombine [1’01]
33 Valse allemande [0’50]
34 Paganini [1’15]
35 Aveu [0’58]
36 Promenade [2’31]
37 Pause [0’18]
38 Marche des “Davidsbündler” contre les Philistins [3’44]
