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Grigory Sokolov


Reviews

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04.07.2012 - Kult-Pianist Grigory Sokolov und das Wesen mozartscher GenialitätZu den Überraschungen des Abends gehörte die Interpretation von Mozarts a-Moll-Sonate. Bei Sokolov hatte schon der erste Satz nichts Martialisches und künstlich Dramatisiertes an sich. Der 62-Jährige spielte den Mozart nicht, als ob es sich um Beethoven handle. Unverkrampft und dennoch mit klarer Kontur präsentierte er das Werk. Frank Kupke
24.03.2012 - Grigory Sokolov in Warsaw"His astounding technique, variety of articulation, dynamic range and felt depth of emotion make his interpretations or rather recreations of this music, deeply convincing despite 'purist objections' to the contrary. Another sound and spiritual dimension opens before one." Michael Moran
17.08.2011 - Interlude: Grigory Sokolov in Aix-en-Provence"How good was Sokolov, if I am to compare him with other famous pianists? I make no ambiguity, he is the best I have heard live." Ian Pong
07.08.2011 - Notes from the 2011 Salzburg Festival"Grigory Sokolov has been treated as the insider's pianist for far longer than he's only been known to insiders. But the label sticks even if he is now among the most famous pianists on the circuit." Jens F. Laurson
15.05.2011 - Grigory the Great plays Bach and Schumann in Rome"Every Sokolov performance is an adventure. Obviously for him. And thrillingly for us." Jack Buckley
12.05.2011 - La grandezza di Grigory SokolovStraordinario concerto all'Accademia di Santa Cecilia, a Roma, di quest'artista dal carisma unico Mario Dal Bello
   
26.03.2011 - The greatest living pianistGrisha Sokolov is the greatest living pianist in the world — that's a bold claim, I know, but he manages to do things with a piano that should be categorised under 'not humanly possible'. James Rhodes
14.03.2011 - Laeiszhalle HamburgGrigory Sokolov's recitals have become annual events that have almost evolved into religious rituals. The number of faithful that flock to the concert hall increases, even though ticket prices do likewise. After devoutly listening to what invariably seems like a musical epiphany, a few listeners are exhausted and leave, while most don't stop begging for encore after encore. Sokolov typically obliges six times.
 Thomas K Thornton
07.12.2010 - “Grigory Sokolov, a colossus of the piano”«Grigory Sokolov, a colossus of the piano», proclaimed the title of the evening's program notes. This is no exaggeration, and it is a tall order to write about a recital by this exceptional artist... Bettina Mara
18.03.2010 - Unique SokolovGrigory Sokolov is unique; he is in a pianistic category which he alone occupies; moreover, this uniqueness is multi-faced. Jack Buckley
17.02.2009 - Grigory Sokolov, Laeiszhalle HamburgSokolov tends to play works in a way that makes them seem new even to those who thought they were familiar with them. Thomas K Thornton
   
17.04.2008 - When Fame Can't Cross the AtlanticOn Tuesday evening the Russian pianist Grigory Sokolov played, as he does dozens of times a year throughout Europe, to an ecstatic, sold-out house. Michael Kimmelman
04.04.2008 - Super SokolovThere was a great sense of expectation when the lights dimmed to almost darkness in the Strovolos Municipal Theatre on Friday night for the single concert of the great Russian pianist, Grigory Sokolov brought to Cyprus by the Pharos Trust. Saskia Constantinou
20.11.2007 - Récital Grigori Sokolov : Piano cosmiqueCar tout comme avec Glenn Gould, mais dans des esthétiques opposées, on peut dire : «il y a Sokolov, et il y a les pianistes». Théâtre des Champs-Élysées
09.06.2007 - Wigmore Hall, LondonA recital by Grigory Sokolov is like a vision of a lost age of Russian pianism. There is a wonderful ease about his playing, a security founded on a technique that seems utterly dependable, and a sense that every interpretation is founded upon total familiarity. Andrew Clements
07.06.2007 - Sokolov does it StainwayEven in the fastest passages, nothing was smudged or skipped, and his pedalling just illuminated his work even further. And the colours and details! Intermezzo
   
31.05.2007 - Sokolov Plays Conservatorio G. Verdi (He Won)Opera Chic is back tonight from a late night passed at Conservatorio G. Verdi where she basked in the glory of Grigory Sokolov's piano recital in the white belly of that huge auditorium on via Conservatorio. Opera Chic
09-10.2006 - Last of the TitansA few years ago I heard Grigory Sokolov play for the first time. Everything I had ever learned, thought or felt about the piano and performance upon it went up in smoke. Jessica Duchen
16.05.2006 - Barbican Hall, LondonMoments of infinite tenderness rubbed shoulders with pompous swagger, astonishing fantasy, echt-Schumannesque quirkiness and Lisztian bass tremolandi. There seemed to be an organic growth towards the work's coda. I can imagine no greater performance than this. Colin Clarke
16.05.2006 - Barbican Hall, LondonNot so much a recital but a 'happening', one that takes place in virtual darkness – a requirement of Grigory Sokolov that creates just the right ambience. With six substantial encores, four by Chopin (including a couple of the Impromptus and a Mazurka) and then Bach, as arranged first by Siloti and then by Busoni, this may have been a 'long' concert by the clock but a timeless, even disorientating one when measured in 'musical' rather than 'real' time. Colin Anderson
11.05.2006 - Soviet Russia's best-kept secret is outGrigory Sokolov is not yet a household name, but he should be. Many consider him, quite simply, the greatest pianist alive. He is 56, portly, his grey hair almost brushing his shoulders. He rarely announces his programmes as far in advance as most halls request; and he doesn't like interviews. It seems I'm the first British journalist to be admitted for a decade. Jessica Duchen
   
16.04.2005 - Sokolov: this is what it's all aboutThe long-sold-out QEH recital by Grigory Sokolov yesterday has left me sleepless most of the night. Jessica Duchen
15.04.2005 - Grigory Sokolov is a unique musicianGrigory Sokolov is a unique musician. Between him and other living performers there is an abyss. There is no way to write intelligibly of how he breathes not only freshness but also a sense of infinite possibility into the most familiar repertoire. What is heard is at once completely convincing and completely surprising. Ying Chang
16.04.2004 - Dimly Lit but DazzlingThere are no niceties in Grigory Sokolov's somewhat dour platform manner. Acknowledgement of his adoring public is not a priority as he focuses our attention — and his own — on his piano in a semi-darkened auditorium. Christopher Morley
21.01.2004 - Wigmore Hall, LondonSokolov, a physical and intellectual giant of a man, has something of a cult following. And it's easy to see why. Like Richter or Michelangeli, he plays in a dim, religious light, hunched over the keyboard with massively round shoulders. And, like nobody else apart from himself really, he plays with an obsessive and relentless intensity which elicits obsessive and often unreserved admiration. Hilary Finch
14.01.2004 - The conjuror of the keyboardI was once privileged to watch Grigory Sokolov practise, his figure so naturally hunched that his body seemed to have reshaped itself as an extension of his instrument. And he didn't so much "practise" the Brahms Ballade in front of him as meditate on it, intently studying a page, then turning back to the previous one, then forward, then back again, till I lost count. Then, he played a few slow bars, over and over again, varying the pedalling. No fireworks, no letting rip: it was an intense and private communion. Michael Church
   
28.08.2003 - Grigory Sokolov is the new Sviatoslav RichterGrigory Sokolov is the new Sviatoslav Richter. His choice of composers Bach and Beethoven for his piano recital on Thursday was in the tradition of his great Russian predecessor. The Sunday Herald
18.03.2003 - Interview with Grigory SokolovBackstage, Sokolov is just the kindest person, who takes his time and responds in a very intelligent and disarming way to the questions… Willem Boone had an exclusive interview for Piano-News.com with the Russian master pianist after his recital on 18 February 2003 in Utrecht. Willem Boone
30.06.2002 - At the Sintra FestivalSintra's new Centro Cultural Olga Cadaval, in honey-colored wood throughout, has just been christened, and the Sintra Festival has allowed it to be broken in like a new car: Grigory Sokolov's recital proved that its acoustics for chamber music are excellent. The concert also will have proved, to anyone who did not already know, what a consummate artist this reclusive Russian pianist is. Michael Church
10.02.2002 - Haydn, Komitas, Prokofiev. Queen Elizabeth HallGrigory Sokolov is a remarkable musician. His sheer force of personality and the integrity of his interpretations go hand-in-hand with playing of tremendous ardour to leave one breathless with admiration. Colin Clarke
20.05.2001 - The "Anti-Pianist"Grigory Sokolov offers a surprising and demanding program of keyboard works at Bellinzona's piano festival. Carlo Vitali
   
27.03.2001 - Sokolov in SloveniaEuropean critics have marveled at Sokolov's genius. After a performance at the Helsinki Festival, the Helsingin Sanomat praised him: "Saying that Grigory Sokolov is one of today's greatest pianists is no news, it is an obvious fact". Cankarjev dom
25.11.1999 - Stellar Russian pianist holds audience in thrallStellar Russian pianist holds audience in thrall. After a stunningly unique program, it took four encores to convince the crowd that it was time to call it a night. Ken Winters
12.03.1999 - Sokolov recital should be unforgettableTo hear Sokolov, a 48-year-old native of St. Petersburg, is to remember the experience, like it or not. There's nothing half-way about a Sokolov interpretation. He immerses himself in the music at hand, in the mentality of the composer, and in the process he burns a permanent mark on the listener's consciousness. Lawrence B. Johnson
06.03.1999 - Piano - A la RusseSokolov's highly personal interpretations reveal an original thinker, who is also a perfectionist. Sokolov disapproves of music lovers who go to concerts merely to relax. "A concert should be strong, hard, psychological work for both the performer and the audience," he asserts. Philip Anson
28.02.1999 - Russian pianist Sokolov plays to cheersThe Russian school at its best cultivates a remarkable range of tone color and Sokolov wedded this coloristic skill to a seemingly innate sense of rhythmic flexibility to make of the Nocturnes evocative mood pieces. William Littler
   
10.02.1998 - Sokolov in BerlinI admit that the program did not sound that attractive to me, but given the attention this pianist receives on the newsgroup, I was curious enough attend - and I was rewarded with one of the most exciting, intriguing and revealing piano recitals I have ever attended. Peter Lemken
24.01.1998 - Sokolov brilliantly eccentricOn Friday the city's most legendary pianist, Grigory Sokolov, made his Bay Area debut in a San Francisco Performances recital sure to go down as one of the most distinctive musical events of the decade. Timothy Pfaff
01.10.1998 - "Ich habe ein gutes Immunsystem!"Der russische Pianist Grigory Sokolov, immerhin Mitglied im illustren Kreis der Tschaikowsky-Preisträger, gehört nicht zu den glitzernden Tastenlöwen im Musik-business. Auch nicht zu den Plattenstars oder zu den Spezialisten, die in ihrem ureigenen Repertoire Perfektion suchen und Befriedigung finden. Sokolov lässt sich nicht einordnen. Seine wichtigste Richtschnur ist allein er selber. Reinmar Wagner
16.07.1996 - Sokolov records Beethoven"Mr. Sokolov and Mr. Pinnock had a wonderful collaboration. They worked with each other very well. It is important to have that so that you can make the best performance possible. You cannot do that if you put a pianist and orchestra together simply for the sake of a recording." Steven Mazey
18.03.1996 - Sokolov Review (British Columbia, Canada)Listening to Sokolov play, I couldn't believe that I wasn't listening to Gould. This almost magical feeling of reincarnation lasted all the way through the first Prelude, as each note, in its volume, its length, and its relation to other notes, seemed chosen exactly as Gould might have chosen it. The clarity of the voices, the serene spirit, the way Sokolov maintained an unbelievable tension in the lines through accent and touch rather than through volume--all of these seemed so reminiscent of Gould. Scott Sowerby
   
09.03.1996 - Bravura Russian pianist has Tchaikovsky and DSO at his fingertipsThis was, by a wide margin, the most original, technically dazzling and altogether electrifying performance of the Tchaikovsky B-flat Minor Piano Concerto I've experienced in my 27 seasons on the aisle. Lawrence B. Johnson
08.03.1996 - Sokolov's fierce intensity snaps stringsThis was a most impressive concert by a most outstanding musician. Michael Klingbeil
   
   
Biography