British pianist Ophelia Gordon has recorded an entire Kapustin album for Divine Arts. Remy Franck spoke with her about this project.
Ophelia Gordon
(c) PR
Many pianists playing Kapustin come from the classical music. You are trained as a multi-style pianist. Is your connection with jazz a plus for playing Kapustin?
Without a doubt. I grew up listening to jazz from a very young age and having an awareness of the style is so important. Thanks to my mum who is also a musician, I literally watched jazz musicians perform in my living room most weekends! The jazz idioms that Kapustin uses across his composition all need to be truly felt. I wouldn’t have such a strong connection to his compositions if it wasn’t for the exposure I’ve had to jazz. Read More →
Azure Sky releases The Art of Three, by Corda Piano Trio. This excellent Serbian ensemble’s debut album is positively reviewed by Pizzicato's Remy Franck who made the following interview with the trio.
Corda Piano Trio
Your trio exists since 2022. Where are the origins?
We are all colleagues at the Faculty of Music in Belgrade and have known each other for many years. The idea to form a piano trio came quite naturally – out of mutual respect, artistic curiosity, and a shared desire to create something lasting and meaningful together. Read More →
Between The Lines; Nikolai Kapustin: 8 Konzertetüden für Klavier + Jazz Preludes op. 53 Nr. 4, 5, 11, 16-19, 23 + Big Band Sounds op. 46 + Contemplation op. 47 + Aquarela do Brasil op. 118; Paraphrase on Dizzy Gillespie's Manteca ; Ophelia Gordon, Klavier; # Divine Art DDX21130; Aufnahme 12.2024 & 04.2025, Veröffentlichung 14.11.2025 63'44) - Rezension von Remy Franck ** (For English please scroll down)
Nikolai Kapustins Klaviermusik ist sicherlich unterhaltsam, aber eben nicht nur. Zum einen ist sie technisch extrem herausfordernd, und nur ihren Jazzcharakter zu betonen wäre sicherlich falsch. Die Strukturen sind oft sehr klassisch und seine gesamte Musik ist sorgfältig und detailliert ausgearbeitet. Read More →
Juliusz Zarębski: Klavierquintett g-Moll op. 34; Tobias Koch, Klavier, & Equilibrium String Quartet; # All'improvviso 005; Aufnahme 10.2024, Veröffentlichung 14.11.2025 (38'17) - Rezension von Remy Franck ** (For English please scroll down)
Das 2017 gegründete Equilibrium Quartett und der Pianist Tobias Koch vereinen ihre Talente, um Zarebskis prächtiges, Liszt gewidmetes Quintett zu spielen. Tobias Koch benutzt ein historisches Klavier von Kerntopf aus dem Jahre 1894. Read More →
The Art of Three; Dmitri Shostakovich: Klaviertrio Nr. 1 - Gabriel Fauré: Klaviertrio, op. 120 - Serge Rachmaninov: Trio élégiaque Nr. 1; Corda Piano Trio (Una Stanić, Violine, Nemanja Stanković, Cello, Vladimir Milošević, Klavier); # Azure Sky AZ1023; Aufnahme 2025, Veröffentlichung 14.11.2025 (44'03) - Rezension von Remy Franck ** (For English please scroll down)
Das Programm des serbischen Corda Piano Trio beginnt mit Shostakovichs Erstem Klaviertrio, das der Komponist im Alter von 17 Jahren komponierte. Es wurde oft als unbeschwert charakterisiert, doch das Corda Trio zeigt, dass mehr in der Musik steckt, die sie spannungsvoll und leidenschaftlich wiedergeben. Read More →
The Kennedy Center In Washington is to host the FIFA’s World Cup draw at Trump’s order. FIFA will occupy much of the house and displace planned performances, according to the Washington Post. The outlet also revealed that the football organization will not have to pay any rental fee. Read More →
The stage in La Roque d'Anthéron
(c) Xavier Antoinet
The La Roque d’Anthéron International Piano Festival has announced that a new artistic director will soon be appointed to replace René Martin, who was dismissed following his resignation from the Créa association he headed. Read More →
The International Classical Music Awards ICMA today announced the nominations for their Awards 2026, celebrating the best musicians and recordings. The nominations include many renowned soloists, ensembles, conductors and orchestras as well as a lot of young musicians, many of them being first-nominees. Read More →
Der Erste Preis des 79. Concours de Genève, der gestern in der Victoria Hall in Genf stattfand, wurde an Sarah Strohm und Brian Isaacs verliehen. Den Zweiten Preis erhielt Ayaka Taniguchi. Darüber hinaus wurden Sarah Strohm mehrere Sonderpreise zugesprochen, darunter der Publikumspreis, der Preis des jungen Publikums, der Studierendenpreis, der Arts Society Prize, der OSR Musician’s Prize sowie der Concerts de Jussy Prize. Read More →
In 2021, Filarmonica Mihail Jora in Bacău, Romania, premiered In Memoriam, a piece for string orchestra composed by Italian composer Livio Bollani in memory of the victims of war and terrorist attacks and particularly those of the terrorist attacks in Paris in 2015. Read More →
