Lazar Naumovich Berman (Russian Лазарь Наумович Берман, Lasari Naumovič Berman, February 26, 1930 in Leningrad - February 6, 2005 in Florence) was a Soviet Russian classical pianist. Russian ( transliteration:,) is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages Events 747 BC - Epoch (origin of Ptolemy 's Nabonassar Era 364 - Valentinian I is proclaimed Year 1930 ( MCMXXX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display 1930 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River Events 46 BC - Julius Caesar defeats the combined army of Pompeian followers and Numidians under Metellus Scipio Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Florence ( Italian: Firenze Florentia and Fiorenza) is the Capital City of the Italian region of Tuscany A soviet (сове́т, "council" originally was a workers' local council in late Imperial Russia. Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Classical music is a broad term that usually refers to mainstream music produced in or rooted in the traditions of Western liturgical and Secular music A pianist (/'piənɪst/ is a Musician who plays the Piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces play with an ensemble or Orchestra
Berman's playing showed great technical brilliance, showmanship, emotional and physical force. He had the endurance to play three concertos or four sonatas in one night, and was considered a brilliant interpreter of Franz Liszt, winning the 1977 Franz Liszt Prize in Hungary for his interpretation of the Transcendental Studies. A piano concerto is a work written for Piano and Orchestra.See also Harpsichord concerto; some of these works are occasionally played on piano The Baroque keyboard sonata In the Baroque era the use of the term "sonata" generally referred to either the Sonata da chiesa ( Church sonata Also 1977 (album by Ash. Year 1977 ( MCMLXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays Hungary (Magyarország 'mɔɟɔrorsaːg) officially in English the Republic of Hungary ( Magyar Köztársaság, literally Magyar (Hungarian Republic The Transcendental Etudes (Études d'exécution transcendante S Berman once described the driving forces of his style as being lyricism, clarity and virtuosity.
Berman refused to play Chopin, explaining "Of course I used to play him, but many years ago I entered for a Chopin competition in Warsaw and I did not qualify. Warsaw (Warszawa; also known by other names) is the Capital and Largest city of Poland. It was a tremendous blow to my pride, and I vowed that I would never play him again. " His playing of Chopin, however, is well documented, in both a concert film and a DGG recording of the polonaises from the 1970's.
Biography
Berman was born to Jewish parents in Leningrad. His mother, Anna Makhover, had played the piano herself until ear problems stopped her. She introduced the boy to the piano, and he entered his first competition at the age of three, and recorded a Mozart fantasia and a mazurka that he had composed himself at the age of seven, before he could even read music. The fantasia (also fantasy fancy Fantasie fantaisie is a musical composition with its roots in the art of Improvisation. The mazurka is a stylized Polish Folk dance in Triple meter with a lively tempo that has a heavy accent on the third or second beat Emil Gilels described him as a "phenomenon of the musical world". Emil Grigoryevich Gilels (Эми́ль Григо́рьевич Ги́лельс ru-Latn Emi'li Grego'rievič Gi'lelis; October 19 1916 – October When Lazar was nine, the family moved to Moscow so that he could study with Alexander Goldenweiser at the Conservatoire, as well as Sviatoslav Richter, Vladimir Sofronitsky and Maria Yudina. Moscow (Москва́ romanised: Moskvá, IPA: see also other names) is the Capital and the largest city of The Moscow Conservatory (Московская Государственная Консерватория им Sviatoslav Teofilovich Richter (Святосла́в Теофи́лович Рихтер Svjatoslav Teofilovič Rikhter) ( &ndash August 1, 1997) was Vladimir Vladimirovich Sofronitsky (or Sofronitzky, Russian: Владимир Владимирович Софроницкий Vladimir Sofronitskij; &ndash Maria Veniaminovna Yudina or Mariya Yudina (Мария Вениаминовна Юдина Marija Veniamnovna Yudina) ( 28 August (O The next year he made his formal debut playing Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 25 with the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra. The Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra is an Orchestra based in Moscow, Russia. In 1941, students, pupils and parents were evacuated to Kuibichev, a city on the Volga, because of World War II. Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Samara (Сама́ра ( Kuybyshev (ru Ку́йбышев from 1935 to 1990 is one of the largest cities in Russia. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Living conditions were so poor that his mother had to cut the fingers from a pair of gloves to allow him to continue to practise without freezing his hands.
He subsequently began to acquire a small international visibility. At the age of 12 he played Liszt's La Campanella to a British audience over the radio; in 1956 he won a prize at the Queen Elizabeth Music Competition in Belgium, with Vladimir Ashkenazy; and in 1958, he performed in London and recorded for Saga records. La Campanella ("The Handbell" or "The Little Bell" is a Piano Etude, also known as a study piece written by Virtuoso pianist Year 1956 ( MCMLVI) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Queen Elisabeth Music Competition, a founding member of the World Federation of International Music Competitions (1957 has been since its foundation considered the world The Kingdom of Belgium is a Country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters as well as those WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Vladimir Davidovich Ashkenazy ( Russian: Владимир Давидович Year 1958 ( MCMLVIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom.
Although he was known to international music aficionados who had heard the occasional recording on the Russian Melodiya record label, as well as those who visited the Soviet Union, he was not generally well known outside Russia before his 1975 American tour, organised by the impresario Jacques Leiser. Melodiya ( Μелодия, meaning Melody) is a Russian (formerly Soviet) Record label. Year 1975 ( MCMLXXV) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Impresario, from the Italian impresa an enterprise or undertaking is a traditional term still very much in use in the Entertainment industry for Jacques Leiser is an international artists manager and photographer who has represented and collaborated with many of the world's greatest concert pianists composers violinists composers His now legendary New York debut at the 92 Street Y, where he played Liszt's Transcendental Etudes, struck the music world like a lightning. He became an overnight sensation. Before that, he had been generally restricted to the Soviet concert circuit, playing on old and decrepit pianos to audiences of varied degrees of interest. Invitations to tour outside the Soviet Union were ignored by the Soviet state concert agency, Gosconcert. He lived in a tiny two-room apartment in Moscow, with a grand piano occupying an entire room. The piano is a Musical instrument played by means of a keyboard that produces sound by striking steel strings with Felt covered hammers But after his 1975 tour, he was immediately in great demand, with Deutsche Grammophon, EMI, and CBS vying to record him. Deutsche Grammophon is a German classical Record label. The company has long been known for its high standards of audio fidelity. The EMI Group is a British music company comprising the major record company EMI Music – which operates several labels and is based in Kensington in CBS Broadcasting Inc ( CBS) is an American radio and Television network. He recorded the Tchaikovsky First Piano Concerto with Herbert von Karajan, as well as broadcasting it on international television with Antal Dorati, to mark United Nations Day in 1976. The Piano Concerto No 1 in B-flat minor by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Op WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Herbert von Karajan ( April 5 WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Antal Doráti KBE ( April 9, 1906 &ndash United Nations Day, proclaimed in 1948 by the United Nations General Assembly, is held annually on 24 October, the anniversary of the coming into force Year 1976 ( MCMLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. His recordings with Claudio Abbado conducting (particularly the works of Rachmaninoff) are still in high demand and are considered by many to be definitive.
Most of his British appearances came in the late 1970s and early 1980s. This article is about the Decade 1970-1979 For the Year 1970 see 1970. The 1980s was the decade spanning from January 1 1980 to December 31 1989. In December 1976, he performed music by Sergei Prokofiev and Franz Liszt at the Royal Festival Hall, in 1978 he played Liszt's A major concerto with Klaus Tennstedt and the London Symphony Orchestra, and in 1984 he played Tchaikovsky's first Piano Concerto with Sir John Pritchard at the Proms. Year 1976 ( MCMLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev (Серге́й Серге́евич Проко́фьев Sergéj Sergéjevič Prokófjev) ( - 5 March 1953 was a Russian composer who Royal Festival Hall is a concert dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London, England. Year 1978 ( MCMLXXVIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar) Franz Liszt wrote drafts for his Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No Klaus Tennstedt ( June 6, 1926 &ndash January 11, 1998) was a German conductor from Merseburg. The London Symphony Orchestra ( LSO) is one of the major orchestras of the United Kingdom. Year 1984 ( MCMLXXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1984 Gregorian calendar) Sir John Michael Pritchard CBE ( 5 February 1921 &ndash 5 December 1989) was a English conductor The Proms, more formally known as The BBC Proms, or The Henry Wood Promenade Concerts presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily Orchestral
The Soviet authorities even then intermittently restricted his international travels; in 1980 his scheduled appearance at the Llandaff Festival had to be cancelled. Year 1980 ( MCMLXXX) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1980 Gregorian calendar) It was at that time when after a trip to the West, American literature banned in the Soviet Union was found in his luggage by the KGB watchdogs. As the result, his name was black-listed, and his career was black-flagged by the Soviet authorities. His being Jewish only aggravated the issue (In the Soviet Union, Jews were considered potential dissidents and subjects to flee the country. ) The frequency of this interference declined, however, as the Soviet Union entered the last phase of its existence, and he finally left Russia for Italy in 1990, settling in Florence in 1995. Florence ( Italian: Firenze Florentia and Fiorenza) is the Capital City of the Italian region of Tuscany Year 1995 ( MCMXCV) was a Common year starting on Sunday. Events of 1995
He was survived by his wife Valentina, also a pianist, whom he married in 1961, and their only son, the talented violinist and conductor Pavel Berman. Year 1961 ( MCMLXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.
Recently, his memoires were published in German and in Russian. They are titled "The Years of Peregrination. A Musician's Reverie".
External links
- Times Colonist Obituary
- Recordings of Lazar Berman
- Lazar Berman commercial discography
- Discography at SonyBMG Masterworks
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic