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Sirotin Sergei
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3.08.2011, 19:28
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Nikolai Petrov, renowned Russian pianist and Moscow’s Conservatory professor, died in Moscow on August 3, aged 69.
The musician already became famous as a Moscow Conservatory student when he grabbed prizes at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in the US and the Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition in Belgium. Later, his talented performances gathered full houses all over the world.
Nikolai Petrov especially cared about young musicians. He lectured at Moscow’s Conservatory and delivered master-classes abroad. Petrov set up a charity for talented musicians who had a chance to perform at an annual festival in the Kremlin Armour.
This May Petrov talked to a VoR correspondent, not long before he became very ill:
“I think we all share the importance of the succession of generations. Thus, the festival’s mission is to introduce young unknown performers to the audiences, to make them known. I find musicians at competitions and master classes all over the world. The festival doesn’t bring them directly to musical Olympus but certainly helps in promotion.”
Nikolai Petrov himself embodies the succession of generations. His granddad, operatic bass Vasily Petrov, sang in the Bolshoi Theater with legendary Chaliapin, his dad played the cello and mother wrote librettos. Petrov received his first musical classes from his grandmother, the award winner of Moscow Conservatory.
The pianist’s brilliant talent revealed the essence of the most complicated musical pieces and he toured around the world with the best orchestras, though his favorites were Russian conductors Gennady Rozhdestvensky and Valery Gergiev. Petrov’s musical interests were far beyond classics and included modern music and jazz. Music reviewers praised him for individuality, will-power, accuracy and exceptional skills and talent
