Musicians

Konstantin Lifschitz, piano

“…Liking or disliking a genius such as Lifschitz is a pointless exercise; he is irrefutably there, like Callas or Glenn Gould, and you just have to deal with it.” (Boston Globe)

Konstantin Lifschitz was born December 10, 1976, in Kharkov, Ukraine. Twenty-six years later, he is already receiving accolades worldwide that would normally be accorded artists much later in their careers. But such prodigiousness is typical of Lifschitz: as a very small child, he was irresistibly attracted to the piano, playing by ear and improvising with total absorption for hours on end. This aptitude for his chosen instrument was so remarkable, that at five, he enrolled in the renowned Gnessin Special Middle School of Music under the sensitive tutelage of Tatiana Zelikman.

At 13, Konstantin presented a landmark recital in the chamber hall of the Russian Academy of Music. The capacity crowd responded with an overwhelming enthusiasm that established him as a major artist, ready to take his place alongside the masters of Russian piano legend. In 1994, he presented his graduation recital from the Gnessin Special Middle School of Music in Moscow – his program commenced with Bach’s Goldberg Variations. Denon Records recorded the 17-year-old in this deeply felt interpretation. This recording, when released in 1996, was nominated for a Grammy Award and moved critic Edward Rothstein (The New York Times) to regard Lifschitz’s performance “the most powerful pianistic interpretation since Gould.”

His appearance in 1998 at the Miami Festival of Discovery was his first in a major American city. In June 1999, he made his Chicago Symphony debut performing Shostakovich’s Piano Concerto No. 1 under the direction of Mstislav Rostropovich. In the 1999-2000 season, Konstantin’s US engagements included debuts with the Minnesota Orchestra, Florida Philharmonic and San Jose Symphony. He was a participant of SummerFest La Jolla 2000, performing with the Borromeo String Quartet and Christopher O’Riley.

In the 2001-2002 season, Lifschitz made important recital debut appearances in Boston, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, St. Paul, and Seattle as well as on the Ravinia Rising Stars Series and the Gilmore Rising Stars Series. He appeared with the San Francisco, New Jersey and New Hampshire Symphonies. In the 2000-2001 season, Konstantin performed with, among others, the Halle Orchestra, the Berlin Symphony under Music Director Eliahu Inbal, the English Chamber Orchestra; and recitals in Germany, France, Italy, China, Russia and the United States. He has also collaborated with conductor Yuri Temirkanov in a European tour with the St. Petersburg Philharmonic and Bernard Haitink in concerts with the European Union Youth Orchestra.

Notable highlights of recent seasons include his New York Philharmonic (03) debut under Maestro Mstislav Rostropovich performing the Prokofieff Piano Concerto No. 3, solo recitals in New York, Wyoming, Oregon and Colorado; a recital tour of Japan and a return engagement with the Berlin Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. Highlights of this season include concerto appearances with the Baden-Baden Philharmonie, the Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra for his mainland China debut and performances of Bach’s Well Tempered Clavier Book 1 and 2 at “Les Nuits Pianistique” in Aix en Provence.

Konstantin is dedicated to performing chamber music with his colleagues and peers. His collaborators have included violinists Maxim Vengerov, Gidon Kremer, Leila Josefowicz; and cellists Mstistlav Rostropovich, Mischa Maisky and Lynn Harrell.

Konstantin Lifschitz can be heard on Palexa and Denon Records.

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