Nikolai Petrov Piano   

Moscow-born Nikolai Petrov was one of the world's great classical pianists. Nearly four decades since he made his international debut with a silver medal-winning performance at the Van Cliburn International Competition and a second place finish at the Queen Elizabeth International Competition, Petrov continued to make his presence felt as an instrumentalist, piano teacher, and musical activist. Besides playing an annual average of 100 concerts, he taught at the Moscow Conservatory and served as President of the Academy of Russian Arts and the All-Russia Society. According to The Christian Science Monitor, he possessed "all the technique, heart, and mind to make him a giant among pianists," and someone at the Canadian magazine L'Action wrote, "this Russian pianist has no weaknesses. He has only youth and dash and the deepest respect for the music, as if it were a living being."

Petrov was born to a family of musicians and dancers. His grandfather played bass for the Bolshoi Theater beginning in the 1970s. After studying with Tatiana Kestner at the Central Music School, he graduated to study with Jakov Zak at the Moscow Conservatory. In 1986, Petrov received a gold medal from the Balsac French Academy for his interpretations of Beethoven, Berlioz, and Liszt. A decade later, the academy named him Musician of the Year.

© Craig Harris, Rovi

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Born in 1943 in Moscow into a prominent family of musicians and dancers, Honored Artist of the Russian Federation, Nikolai Petrov, graduated from the Central Music School and the Moscow Conservatory, where he studied with professor Jakov Zak. In 1962, Petrov made his international debut when he won the Silver Medals at the Van Cliburn International Competition (USA) and the Queen Elizabeth International Competition in Belgium in 1964.

Petrov presently performs some 100 concerts annually, and his appearances through the years have taken him throughout the former Soviet Union, Eastern and Western Europe, Asia, the UK, and the Americas. Annual performances include recitals and solo appearances with orchestra at the Large Hall of the Moscow Conservatory. In both concert and on CD, he has worked with his country's most prominent conductors, including Rozhdestvensky, Svetlanov, Temirkanov, Kogan, Jansons, and their orchestras.

In the US, Petrov has performed with the New York Philharmonic, the National Symphony, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic at Carnegie Hall, the John F. Kennedy Center, and Lincoln Center. In Europe, he has performed at the Concertgebuow in Amsterdam; at the Barbican, Royal Festival, Albert, Queen Elizabeth, and Wigmore Halls in England; at the Salle Pleyel in Paris, and many others. In 1986, the Balzac French Academy awarded a gold medal to Petrov for his performances of Beethoven, Berlioz, and Liszt.

Mr. Petrov's repertoire includes some 50 recital programs and more than 60 concertos for piano and orchestra. He has given the first performances in Russia of works he discovered by Bach, Schumann, Haydn, Mozart, Dukas, and Saint-Saëns. His performance in 1996 with Ludmila Golub of works for piano and organ that he found in various archives was named the best program of the year by a panel of Russian music critics, who named Petrov Musician of the Year. In the last ten years, he has released 20 CDs for the Olympia and Melodia labels.

A professor at the Moscow Conservatory, Petrov is also a public figure. He holds the posts of President of the Academy of Russian Arts, Member of the Council for Culture under the President of the Russian Federation (Head of the Music Section), and Member of the Committee for State Awards. In 1998, Petrov established the Nikolai Petrov International Foundation to support talented young musicians. He is also Artistic Director of the Musical Kremlin International Festival.

Nikolai Petrov
Ostozhenka str. 22 Moscow 119034 Russia