Of numerous photos of Scriabin some will be familiar, some not. The exhibition ends with a series of extravagant caricatures from the Russian press of the time.
The sudden and tragic death from COVID of Aleksandr Serafimovich Scriabin robbed Russia of a valuable worker in the field of music and of Scriabin research. Those of us who knew him still mourn him. But we turn with delight to the news that Dmitri Alexeev has agreed to take up the post. Our Honorary President lends the glamour of his name to the Association. His undoubted deep knowledge of Scriabin is evidenced by the superb complete collection of Scriabin’s solo music he has recorded for Brilliant Classics (6 CDs); and many other recordings, including all the Rachmaninov Preludes and Chopin Mazurkas, bear witness to his inheritance of the highest and most excellent traditions in Russian piano playing. His concert activity is world-wide but he has endeared himself to British audiences by his appearances in UK. A similar British/international cachet marks his work as Professor of Piano in the Royal College of Music, London. We celebrate and welcome him!
Simon Nicholls
Russian pianist Dmitri Alexeev is one of the world’s most highly regarded artists. His critically acclaimed recitals on the world’s leading concert stages and concer- to appearances with the most prestigious orchestras have secured his position as one of “the most remarkable pianists of the day” (Daily Telegraph).
He has performed in all major concert halls around the world and has performed with all leading orchestras such as the Berlin Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw of Amsterdam, the five London orchestras, Orchestre de Paris, Israel Philharmonic and the Munich Bavarian Radio Orchestra amongst others. He has worked with conductors such as Ashkenazy, Boulez, Dorati, Giulini, Jansons, Muti, Pappano, Rozhdestvensky, Salonen, Svetlanov, Temirkanov, Tilson Thomas and Klaus Tennstedt amongst many others.
Alexeev has been a juror for many of the world’s most prestigious International Piano Competitions, including the Leeds, Chopin (Warsaw), Van Cliburn, San- tander, Beethoven (Vienna) and Tchaikovsky (Moscow) International Piano Com- petition. He regularly gives masterclasses around the world. .
Alexeev has made many fine recordings for EMI, BMG, Virgin Classics, Hyperion and Russian labels. Following his Virgin Classics recording of the complete Rachmaninov Preludes, which won the Edison Award in the Netherlands, BBC Music Magazine described him as “a pianist at once aristocratic, grand and con- fessionally poetic. This is an inspiring disc.” His recording of the complete Chopin Mazurkas was released in 2014. A recording that Gramophone Magazine referred to as “one of the best recordings of the Chopin Mazurkas that have appeared in the past three-quarters of a century – one of the best alongside those of Rubin- stein and Yakov Flier.“
His recordings of complete Scriabin’s works for piano solo were released by Bril- liant Classics in 2022.
Alexeev’s two piano transcriptions of works by Shostakovich, Stravinsky and Gershwin as well as a his transcription of Brahms’ Ballade for Viola and Piano were recently published.