Artist description Pianist

Music Style Classical

Artist History Pianist Andrew Russo, who recently gave debut performances at the Leipzig Gewandhaus and the Freylingshaus in Halle, is quickly gaining recognition abroad as one of America's rising stars. His recent appearances at New York's Alice Tully Hall, the Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires, the Leipzig Gewandhaus, Kioi Hall in Tokyo, the Salle Cortot in Paris and in Charleston at the Spoleto Festival and on the International Piano Series have received enthusiastic praise for their striking combination of "unbridled temperament with perfect control." Andrew Russo, who has been called "a reincarnated Liszt" and "a keyboard magician," possesses a seemingly limitless versatility, taking on the standard piano masterworks as well as obscure pieces and music intended for other instruments. A concert by Mr. Russo may include the pre-Baroque virginal works of William Byrd, Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique, or music by the avant-garde composer John Zorn. His curiosity has also led to such mixed-media projects as a 1997 appearance n Charleston, South Carolina, in which he recited Shakespeare between movements of Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet Suite, providing the audience with an interesting literary context for the piece. The Indianapolis Star appraised his originality in a similar light, saying, "Russo is an intense performer who can put an individual stamp on a variety of music...he has a knack for not letting individuality obscure his feeling for different styles." Mr. Russo's chamber music collaborations have included the St. Lawrence, Ysaye and Blair String Quartets, pianist Frederic Chiu, violinists James Ehnes and Akiko Suwanai and cellist Felix Fan. He has also performed a significant portion of the piano trio repertoire as the original pianist in the Arcadian Trio, an ensemble that he co-founded in 1995 and with which he performed for five years. Currently, Mr. Russo is in the midst of recording his debut CD, Danse Russe, a selection of music written for and inspired by the famed Diaghilev dance company, Ballet Russe. The program, which includes Mr. Russo's own transcriptions of Borodin's "Polovtsian Dances" from Prince Igor, will form the nucleus of Mr. Russo's concerts in the near future, including appearances in New York, Paris, Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston, Houston, and Baltimore. A graduate of The Juilliard School, Andrew Russo currently resides in Paris.

Instruments Piano

Press Reviews "ANDREW RUSSO swept the audience away very intensely with his crystal clear lines and his virtuosity. Russo seemed born to play Shostakovich. He grasped not only the eye-winking irony in Shostakovich's play with quotations, but has above all a sense for the long lyrical bends that are concealed throughout by the late Russian master." LEIPZIGER VOLKSZEITUNG, 21 May 2000 Leipzig, Germany "ANDREW RUSSO is an intense performer who can put an individual stamp on a variety of music. He has a knack for not letting individuality obscure his feeling for quite different styles. His expressive gifts carried the day." INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 21 February 2000 Indianapolis, Indiana"RUSSO's technique is Lisztian: there is no other word for it. He plays with passion, terrific strength, and where called for, a lilting grace. He is a true pianistic colorist. There is no doubt the world will soon take his measure." STEINWAY SOCIETY-THE BAY AREA, 6 November 1999 San Jose, CA "RUSSO possesses an affinity for modernity . . . His God-given virtuosic gifts allow him to tear through Stravinsky's Petrouchka at insane tempi and with a radical sense of rhythm. He sewed the harmonies of the work into a complex tapestry of sounds consisting of sharply delineated patterns . . . The unbelievable vitality of Russo's playing reminds one quite a bit of the legendary Michael Ponti . . . One hopes that Russo will remain connected to Leipzig through future appearances." LEIPZIGER VOLKSZEITUNG, 28 June 1999 Leipzig, Germany"RUSSO GRACES PIANO WITH PASSION - the tall and handsome RUSSO has the bearing of a star: breathtakingly dynamic at the keyboard and endearingly humble at the applause. RUSSO also demonstrated passion - just the sort necessary for Beethoven's "Appassionata" Sonata. Whether you are indignant or thrilled by Beethoven redefined, you have never heard that sonata played like this."CHARLESTON POST AND COURIER, 17 March 1999Charleston, South Carolina"ANDREW RUSSO is a 23-year-old keyboard magician from New York, who postures himself at the keyboard like Glenn Gould and has the technique to do anything possible. He combines unbridled temperament with perfect control. His Mendelssohn was revolutionary, but clear; romantic, but never superficial."MITTELDEUTSCHE ZEITUNG, 25 November 1998Halle, Germany

Location Paris - France

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