Rather than wait, I felt compelled to write sooner regarding my sojourn to Moscow at the beginning of the month. It is important to have some background in several areas. First, my family origins are in Russia with my mother’s family coming from Belarus and my dad’s from Odessa. Those of you who have read “Conducting Business” will know the story. My great-uncle, Modeste Altschuler, founded the Russian Symphony Orchestra of New York in 1903. He conducted many U.S premieres of important scores from his homeland, including the 2nd Symphony by Rachmaninov. ...

A l’occasion des 140 ans de la naissance de Rachmaninov, la philharmonie de Moscou, l’orchestre symphonique d’Etat de Moscou et la salle Tchaïkovski offraient au public, deux soirées de prestige : Denis Matsuev, la grande star russe du piano, était dirigé par Leonard Slatkin dans des programmes évidement consacrés au grand compositeur. C’était également l’occasion pour Matsuev de présenter son dernier disque, naturellement consacré à Rachmaninov et à son Concerto n°2. ...

Rehearsal of the concert with Leonard Slatkin. 30.03.2013 ...

Internationally acclaimed for his performances of numerous works of Sergei Rachmaninoff, pianist Denis Matsuev presents his new recording of the Piano Concerto No. 2 with the New York Philharmonic (dir. Alan Gilbert) during a Rachmaninoff Anniversary Gala in Moscow, celebrating the composer’s 140th birthday."I am delighted that we have been able to produce this recording now." says Denis Matsuev, "Although the two pieces, Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2, and George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue have held a place of honor in my repertoire for many years, I have never released them on CD. ...

1 April 2013 world music community is celebrating the 140 anniversary of the birth of the great Russian composer Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff. The Moscow Philharmonic society celebrates that date by concerts on 1st and 2nd of April. Two nights at the stage of the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall famous works of the composer will be played : Symphony #2, the Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini, «Vocalise» - the favorite work of the composer, Piano concertos # 2 and 3 in the brilliant performance of Denis Matsuev and the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia with Leonard Slatkin. ...

The central event of the season. Rachmaninov Gala. Denis Matsuev and Leonard Slatkin. State Academic Symphony Orchestra. ...

Once Langeland had finished playing, the concert proper began. On the programme was Rachmaninoff’s third piano concerto and Nielsen’s fourth symphony. The soloist for the Rachmaninov concerto was the Russian pianist Denis Matsuev. This performance also marked his debut with the orchestra. His account of Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto no. 3 was truly ravishing. His playing was crystal clear, even during Rachmaninov’s most virtuosic writing, his phrasing natural, and he never slid into the kind of sentimental, overly romantic interpretation that can easily almost ruin a piece like this concerto. Matsuev also played the longer, more difficult, original first-movement cadenza. His use of pedal, however, was a tad too liberal and often managed to blur out some of the virtuosic passages.  ...

At Heinz Hall recently, we saw the PSO's "A Night on Bald Mountain," Rachmaninoff's 2nd Piano Concerto and Beethoven's Symphony No. 7. Stunning. Explosive. Brilliant. Never heard the PSO play better or as one instrument. It was as if I was listening to "A Night On Bald Mountain" for the first time. ...

MONTREAL - My Moscow relatives were jealous when I told them I would hear Denis Matsuev play Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto at the Maison symphonique Thursday, and these are not easy people to impress. I had one cousin train an elephant to walk a tightrope between two balconies at a party — a three-ton beast, bejazzled in every way, who loped across with a triumphant teenager on top — and nobody noticed. ...

He personified a whole epoch of piano art, winning the Tchaikovsky competition in 1958. The victory was a truly landmark event – an American pianist won the first contest of P. I. Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Soviet Moscow. It really was a breakthrough in all respects, including politics, but politics in this case were relegated to second place because his playing was just so brilliant. ...

Pittsburgh Symphony music director Manfred Honeck returned Friday night to a packed house at Heinz Hall, where he conducted a blockbuster program of great and popular music.  ...

The first half of the 20th century must surely be one of the most richly creative periods in history. This was a time of great social and political change, spearheaded by two most devastating wars that saw death and destruction on a new level of cold efficiency. Rising from the ashes of this massive upheaval, the arts produced a glorious outpouring of works and ideas not seen since the renaissance and never on this scale. In the world of music, the flowering of talented composers born in the last quarter of the 19th century, produced an embarrassment of riches, to such an extent that it was possible to consign a composer as talented as Szymanowski to the second rank. ...

Except for regretting Kurt Masur’s unfortunate accident that prevented him from conducting the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra’s concert last week, there was no reason for disappointment with Doron Salomon as substitute. ...