Piano | Mikhail Pletnev

Conductor | Kirill Karabits

Orchestra | Rachmaninoff International Orchestra

 

 

Concert I 2025/10/10

 

Rachmaninoff

Vocalise, Op. 34 No. 14 (Orchestral Version)

Piano Concerto No. 1 in F-sharp minor, Op. 1

Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18

 

Concert II 2025/10/11

 

Rachmaninoff

Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30

Piano Concerto No. 4 in G minor, Op. 40

 

*Programs subject to change

 

 

 

Mikhail Pletnev
“Piano playing at its best . . . this performance alone would be enough to earn Pletnev a place among the very greatest pianists who have ever lived.” – BBC Music Magazine

The brilliant pianist and conductor Mikhail Pletnev, winner of the 1978 Tchaikovsky Piano Competition, is not only one of the best representatives of the Russian piano tradition, but is also a stunning and idiosyncratic interpreter of the standard repertoire. He is considered one of the greatest pianists of our time.

 

In 1990 Pletnev formed the first independent orchestra in Russia’s history. Sharing his vision for a new model for the performing arts, many of the country’s finest musicians joined Pletnev in launching the Russian National Orchestra. Under his leadership, the RNO achieved in a few short years a towering stature among the world’s orchestras. In 2006, he launched the Mikhail Pletnev Fund for the Support of National Culture, a non-profit organization that supports major cultural initiatives and projects, including the RNO’s annual Volga Tour and, in collaboration with Deutsche Grammophon, the Mikhail Pletnev Beethoven Project.

 

His recordings and live performances have proved him to be an outstanding interpreter of an extensive repertoire. The London Telegraph noted: ‘From Pletnev’s fingers and mind come ideas that vitalize the music and make it teem with freshness and humor. [He] made the music leap with joy.’ The Times described his playing as ‘born of a miraculous virtuosity of imagination that is outrageous in its beauty.’

 

Pletnev’s recordings have earned numerous prizes, including a 2005 Grammy Award for the CD of his own arrangement, for two pianos, of Prokofiev’s Cinderella, recorded with Martha Argerich and Pletnev at the keyboards. He received Grammy nominations for a CD of Schumann Symphonic Etudes (2004) and for his recording of Rachmaninov and Prokofiev Piano Concertos No. 3 with the RNO and conductor Mstislav Rostropovich (2003). His album of Scarlatti’s Keyboard Sonatas (Virgin/EMI) received a Gramophone Award in 1996. BBC Music Magazine called the recording “piano playing at its greatest… this performance alone would be enough to secure Pletnev a place among the greatest pianists ever known.” In 2007 he recorded all of Beethoven’s piano concertos with Deutsche Grammophon, and the recording of concertos 2 and 4 was named “The Best Concerto Recording of 2007” by the Tokyo Record Academy.

 

As a composer, Pletnev’s works include Classical Symphony, Triptych for Symphony Orchestra, Fantasy on Kazakh Themes and Capriccio for Piano and Orchestra. His unrivalled transcriptions for piano of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite and Sleeping Beauty were selected, along with his performance of Tchaikovsky’s Second Piano Concerto and The Seasons, for the 1998 anthology “Great Pianists of the 20th Century” (Philips Classics).

 

The son of musician parents, Pletnev was conducting and learning multiple instruments as a young child and entered the Moscow Conservatory as a teenager. Today he is one of Russia’s most respected and influential artists. An advisor on Russia’s Cultural Council, in 2007 and 2019 Pletnev was awarded a Presidential Prize, as well als the Platonov Award in 2014, for his contributions to the artistic life of the country. Pianist, conductor, composer and cultural leader — all are significant facets of Mikhail Pletnev’s life as an artist. Yet he considers himself, simply, a musician.

 

 

 

Bournemouth Symphony becomes “The World’s favourite orchestra of 2014”

Voices from the East, a critically acclaimed discovery series of music from Eastern Europe and central Asia

 

Karabits is the son of composer Ivan Karabits and grew up surrounded by music. He studied conducting at the Lysenko Music School in Kyiv and later at the Vienna University of Music and Performing Arts. His early career saw him working with major orchestras across Europe such as the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Strasbourg Philharmonic, Staatskapelle Weimar, Budapest Festival Orchestra among others.

 

Known for his deep connection to the music of his homeland, Karabits has also been involved in the rediscovery and first performances of lesser-known music from the Eastern Europe as well as Ukrainian and Soviet-era composers. His repertoire ranges from classical staples to contemporary works, making him one of the most versatile conductors of his generation.

 

 

Born of a singular moment in history, the Rachmaninoff International Orchestra embodies the vision of its founder, Mikhail Pletnev, and his commitment to dismantling barriers through the universal language of music.

 

The name of the orchestra was inspired by composer, pianist, and conductor Sergei Rachmaninoff, an artist who loved his country but left and did not return due to the political forces in his homeland. Like Rachmaninoff, the RIO is dedicated to the highest standards of performance and artistic expression. Composed of preeminent musicians from Eastern and Western Europe, the RIO’s recordings and performances draw from the wide breadth of classical repertoire, with a focus on the Romantic and modern composers whose works have been the hallmark of Mikhail Pletnev’s celebrated interpretations.

 

In the summer of the orchestra's founding year, 2022, the RIO made its debut recording under Mikhail Pletnev’s baton – the suite from Swan Lake by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and Carmen Suite by Rodion Shchedrin, released on the EuroArts label.

 

In October 2023 the orchestra recorded the four piano concertos and the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini by Sergei Rachmaninoff in celebration of his 150th birthday – live in two concerts at Le Rosey Concert Hall in the Swiss town of Rolle, with Mikhail Pletnev at the keyboard and Kent Nagano conducting. Both performances were recorded for broadcast on Medici.tv and released by EuroArts.

 

In 2023 the RIO also recorded an album for Farao Classics of works by Hartmann, Ravel and Sadikova conducted by Kent Nagano, who enjoys a close collaboration with the orchestra.

 

In November 2024, the RIO under the baton of Massimo Quarta kicked off the 800th anniversary celebrations of the Cathedral of Santa Maria in Toledo, Spain, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with a concert featuring works by Bach and Pergolesi.

 

In January 2025, the orchestra recorded Pletnev's Trumpet Concerto (soloist: Sergei Nakariakov; conductor Vladislav Lavrik) and Pletnev’s 14 Mémoires musicales (conducted by Mikhail Pletnev) as well as another album with works by Rachmaninoff and Pletnev, both for release by EuroArts.

 

The RIO’s recordings and broadcasts have received acclaim from critics and audiences around the globe. The orchestra is reaching an ever-expanding audience, with forthcoming appearances in Europe and prestigious festivals in Shanghai, Beijing, Macau and Seoul.