Ksenia Nosikova
Concert Pianist

Discography


Schumann & Schumann

Works of Robert and Clara Schumann

CD Cover  

Robert Schumann (1810-1856)

Sonata in F minor, op. 14

1. Allegro Brillante

2.Quasi Variazioni: Andantino de Clara Wieck

3. Scherzo: Molto comodo

4. Scherzo: Vivacissimo

5. Prestissimo possible

Clara Schumann (1819-1896)

6. Notturno in F Major op. 6 No. 2

7. Scene Fantastique: Le Ballet des Revenants

Robert Schumann (1810-1856)

Sonata in F-sharp minor, op. 11

8. Introduzione: Un Poco Adagio-Allegro Vivace

9. Aria

10. Scherzo e Intermezzo: Allegrissimo-Lento

11. Finale: Allegro Un Poco Maestoso

Total Duration 76:33

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Music for Piano and Chamber Music

Works of Liszt, Mendelssohn, and Clementi


Disk Picture.   This disc presents an interesting collection of three relatively unfamiliar piano concertos: Liszt's phantasmogorical and brilliant Malèdiction for Piano and Strings composed in 1833, when Liszt was 22 years old and in the midst of his virtuoso career; Concerto in A minor by Mendelssohn, writen by 13-years-old Mendelssohn in 1822, a juvenile work but testamental of the composer's childhood genius; and the delightful Clementi's Piano Concerto in C major, which was written in the 1780's and survived only in a copy made in 1796 with altered instrumentation by a third party.

"The Malèdiction is excellent and one of the best recordings ever made of this piece; the performance succeeds in maintaining a dramatic argument for the whole 15 minute movement with admirable cooperation between the soloist and accompaniment, rather than a piece that maintains only for certain sections, as is common to recordings of the work", All Music Guide, April 2010

"an interesting and worthwhile recording...leaves me wanting to hear more", Fanfare, Burton Rothleder, March-April 2010

"A collector would be hard pressed to obtain a tripling of more convincing performances of such rarities on one CD, and all played with a twinkle in the eye, a simultaneously wistly penetration (especially the Mendelssohn), and a self-effacing validity that carries these musical "Footnotes" into the realm of the absolutely listenable- and perhaps memorable, as well". Amazon.com, Melvyn M. Sobel, April, 2010



1. Franz Liszt: Malèdiction for Piano & Strings

Felix Mendelssohn: Concerto in A minor

2. i. Allegro

3. ii. Adagio

4. iii. Allegro ma non troppo

original cadenza by Ksenia Nosikova

Muzio Clementi: Concerto in C Major

5. i. Allegro con spirito

6. ii. Adagio e cantabile, con grande espressione

7. iii. Presto

original cadenza by Ksenia Nosikova

Total Duration 73:42

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Flight and Fire

Music of Lera Auerbach


Disk Picture.   The Russian pianist and composer Lera Auerbach was born in 1973. Her music is powerfully communicative and, although concentrated in its organization, has the ability to transport the listener. Music is life. Life is music. The composer herself is fascinating; someone who writes music bursting with vitality and color - generous in its impact - yet is reluctant to speak about it. However, in her attempt to not disclose too much, Lera Auerbach is actually very forthcoming.

"I am afraid I would not be able to help with the interview. When I was younger I enjoyed writing program notes for my music: I felt it was a way for me to protect it from possible misunderstanding; one last service that a composer could do for his child before it is fully on its own. I no longer like writing about my music. Even being interviewed about it becomes an inner-burden. What I realized is that you can't protect your child and should just let it be without any attempts to explain or defend it. Sometimes letting go is the hardest thing to do. The music is out there on its own whether you like it or not; it's no longer under your control, and frankly, it never was. Revealing the chord that still ties you, as a composer, to your work only does your music disservice. "

"Let music connect directly to the listener regardless of the composer's own attempts to interpret its essence. Jorge Luis Borges wrote, 'A man sets himself in the task of portraying the world. Over the years he fills a given surface with images of provinces and kingdoms, mountains, bays, ships, islands, fish, rooms, instruments, heavenly bodies, horses, and people. Shortly before he dies he discovers that this patient labyrinth of lines is a drawing of his own face'."
From Booklet's Notes by Colin Anderson


"Entitled, "Flight and Fire", this disc offers a stimulating fare of the piano music of the Russian composer, Lera Aurebach…Nosikova plays with fingers of steel; yet she can turn her tone inwards at a moments' notice, as in the quieter passages of the second movement. The elusive nature of the fourth movement is particularly spellbinding, while the concentration of the final Adagio religioso belies the studio conditions… Fascinating listening. It is hard to imagine a disc that does greater service to Auerbach's piano music." Fanfare Magazine, Colin Clarke, February 2008


"The really first-rate pianist Ksenia Nosikova enters into a competition with Lera Auerbach as an interpreter…It is not by chance that the composer dedicated the first sonata to her. From the "Fantasia" of the year 1986 to the "Il Segno" of 2006, the interpreter crafts a focused insight into the piano creations of 1973-born Auerbach. She clearly exemplifies the game with old forms of Russian precursors (like toccata or sonata) by cutting to the character. She elucidates the contrasts of introspect and "barbaro" expressions with large dynamic broadness." Fono Forum (Germany), Michael Stenger, October 2007


La Fenice: Sonata for Piano No. 1
1. Moderato [listen]
2. Allegro ma non troppo
3. L'istessee tempo
4. Moderato ma con moto
5. Andante [listen]
6. Adagio religioso

Il Segno, Piano Sonata for Piano No. 2
7. Adagio tragico
8. Toccata [listen]
9. Grave
10. Allegro [listen]

Memento Mori
11. Requiem - Canon - Requiem [listen]
12. Back to Childhood - Let's Play Grownups - Childhood [listen]
13. Adulthood - Memento Mori

14. Fantasia

Images from Childhood
15. The Question [listen]
16. What a Story!
17. Dialog
18. Quarrel [listen]
19. An Old Photograph from the Grandparent's Childhood [listen]
20. After the War (The Field of the Dead) [listen]
21. Decision
22. Family Holiday
23. Stubborn
24. E-Creatures [listen]
25. Shadows on the Wall [listen]
26. Prayer [listen]

Total Duration 64:31

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Complete Années de Pèlerinage


(Years of Pilgrimage)
by Franz Liszt

Disk Picture. Liszt worked on the Années de Pèlerinage almost constantly throughout his life. The cycle consists of three volumes. The first, Switzerland, records Liszt's experiences while traveling in Switzerland in 1837-37. In a letter to the writer George Sand, Liszt wrote: “That musician especially who is inspired by nature, without copying her, breathes out in tones the tenderest secrets of his destiny: he thinks, feels, and speaks through her.” This philosophy pervades the first book of Années de Pèlerinage as it never had before in music. The second, Italy, reflects his impressions of travels through Italy with the glamorous Countess Maries d'Agoult, who was the great love and inspiration of Liszt's life. Their life together was filled with art, music, and literature, particularly the poems of Petrarch and the Divine Comedy of Dante, which they read to each other during evenings at a villa on Lake Como. The music of the second volume explores the inner reaches of emotion deeply and challenges the performer to interpret what Sacheverell Sitwell called "the lofty impressions of a sensitive tourist." The Third Year, published three years before Liszt’s death in 1886, is given mostly to solemn meditations on religious themes and to scenes connected with the Villa d’Este, the estate near Rome where Liszt lived during his stays in that city. Here we see an elderly and introspective Franz Liszt seeking to epitomize the consolations of faith in a setting of startling beauty and splendor. In its entirety, the Années de Pèlerinage is considered a musical self portrait that covers many aspects of Liszt's personality.     

 

Disk Picture.Années de Pèlerinage (Years of Pilgrimage)
Première anneé: Suisse (First Year: Switerland)

  1. Chapelle de Guillaume Tell (William Tell's Chapel)
  2. Au lac de Wallenstadt (At the Lake of Walenstadt)
  3. Pastorale
  4. Au bord d'une source (Beside a Spring)
  5. Orage (Storm) [listen]
  6. Vallée d'Obermann (Oberman's Valley) [listen]
  7. Eglogue (Eclogue)
  8. Le mal du pays (Homesickness)
  9. Les cloches de Genéve: Nocturne (The Bells of Geneva: Nocturne) [listen]
  10. Polonaise Melancolique [listen]

Total Duration 63:14

"Her (Ksenia Nosikova’s) tone in Vallèe d‘Obermann, the keystone of this collection (Switzerland) is sensuous and singing. Moreover, superb pacing and two marvelously constructed climaxes turn this diffuse and difficult tone-poem into a tour de force… Les Cloches de Genêve glows with luminous tonal shading and has real charm and emotional power… Her Polonaise Melancolique is indeed revelatory. Here she achieves extraordinary elasticity of rhythm, tasteful rubato, and above all, spellbinding atmosphere. I don’t expect this unusual work so remarkably played any time soon."
American Record Guide, March, 2004

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Années de Pèlerinage (Years of Pilgrimage)
Deuxième anneé: Italie (Second Year: Italy)

Disk Picture.
  1. Sposalizio (Marriage [of the Virgin: a painting by Raphael] [listen]
  2. Il Pensieroso (The Thinker [a statue by Michelangelo)
  3. Canzonetta del Salvatore Rosa (Salvator Rosa's Song)
  4. Sonetto 47 del Petrarca (Petrarch's Sonnet 47)
  5. Sonetto 104 del Petrarca (Petrarch's Sonnet 104) [listen]
  6. Sonetto 123 del Petrarca (Petrarch's Sonnet 123)
  7. Apres une lecture du Dante Fantasis quasi sonata [listen]
    (After Reading Dante:Fantasia quasi sonata)
    Venezia e Neapoli (Venice and Naples)
    [Supplement to the Second Year]
  8. Gondolliera (Gondolier's Song)
  9. Canzone
  10. Tarantella [listen]

Total Duration 67:59

"Nosikova's interpretations are instinctively straightforward, exuding musical intelligence, honest integrity and a rock-solid technique. Her sonority is full-bodied . . . Nosikova is at her best in a glowing account of the Dante sonata, richly colourful and full of dramatic intensity. Rounded off by a fine account of Venezia e Napoli, this is a super disc.
From the recordings of the 'Italie' book of Années de pélerinage discussed above, there are six that are recommendable: Brendel (1972), Berman, Bolet, Hatto, Nosikova and Hitzlberger.
International Piano, Tim Parry, London (UK), July/August, 2006

"The Italian leg of Liszt's Années de Pèlerinage is frequently traversed on disc these days. Happily, Ksenia Nosikova proves to be a worthy contender on every level, as her stylish, intelligent, and technically rock-solid artistry bears out. Nosikova’s laser-like projection and lean yet never flinty tone are in keeping with her direct, straightforward readings…Tempos are judged to perfection and even seemingly fragmented works such as Tarantella from Venezia e Napoli ebb and flow in judicious proportion… Nosikova's Dante Sonata is particularly incisive, dramatic, and colorful and shines alongside excellent recent versions . . . "
ClassicsToday, October, 2002

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Années de Pèlerinage (Years of Pilgrimage)
Disk Picture.Troisiéme anneé: (Third Year)

  1. Angélus! Prière aux anges gardiens [listen]
  2. Aux cyprès de la Villa d'Este I: Thrénodie [listen]
  3. Aux cyprès de la Villa d'Este II: Thrénodie
  4. Les jeux d'eau à la Villa d'Este [listen]
  5. Sunt lacrymae rerum / En mode hongrois
  6. Marche funèbre
  7. Sursum corda
  8. Polonaise [listen]

Total Duration 63:51

"In the third and least-performed book of Liszt's Années de Pèlerinage, pianist Ksenia Nosikova upholds the excellent standards she brought to the cycle's first two volumes …she keeps sparse, austere selections like the two Thrénodies and the Marche funèbre aloft and fluid. She also is attuned to Liszt's harmonic inventiveness: notice how tellingly she shades the odd major-to-minor shifts in Angelus! Prière aux anges gardiens… no arpeggio or tremolo is simply rattled off (Les jeux d'eau à la Villa d'Este); every note is carefully voiced and well considered. I admire the energy and sweep Nosikova brings to the E major Polonaise."
ClassicsToday, August, 2006

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In This Moment

Women and Their Songs


with Katherine Eberle, mezzo-soprano


Moment Cover

Juliana Hall

Letters from Edna (1993)

8 Songs on Letters of Edna St. Vincent Millay

1. To Mr. Fick & Mr. Bynner (December 5, 1912)

2. To Arthur Davison Ficke (February 9, 1913)

3. To Anne Gardner Lynch (December 23, 1921)

4. To Harriet Monroe (March 1, 1918)

5. To Norma Millay (May 25, 1921)

6. To Arthur Davison Ficke (July 9, 1943)

7. To Arthur Davison Ficke (October 14, 1930)

8. To Mother (June 15, 1921)

Lori Laitman

9. Homeless (Michael Flack) (2002)

10. Echo (Christina Rossetti) (1995)

Libby Larsen

Raspberry Island Dreaming (2002)

11. The River Is (Joyce Sutphen)

12. Where the River Bends (Joyce Sutphen)

13. Raspberry Island (Patricia Hampl)

Judith Cloud

14. Song and Music (Dante Gabriel Rosetti) (2011)

15. The Lake Has Swallowed the Whole Sky (Silvia Curbelo) ( 2002)

16. Drinking Song (Silvia Curbelo) (2002)

17. The Shape of Laughter (Betty Andrews) (1994)

18. I do not love you as if you were salt-rose, or topaz (Pablo Neruda, trans. Stephen Tapscott) ( 2006)

19. The Room was a Pond (Silvia Curbelo) (2002)

20. Death of the Tango (Silvia Curbelo) (2002)

21. When I was Young (Betty Andrews) (1994)

Total Duration 66:00

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The Blissful Viola


Disk Picture.with Christine Rutledge, viola


The Blissful Viola CD recording comprises of works for viola and piano by 20-century British composers Sir Arthur Bliss (1891-1975), Franck Bridge (1879-1941), and Rebecca Clarke (1886-1979). The first piece of the CD, the Viola Sonata by Rebecca Clarke (1919) stands as one of the composer's most widely recognized works. While it follows in the formal tradition of the German post-Romantic sonata, its melodic outlines, textures, and colouristic devices point out to impressionistic influences that often draw comparisons to the music of Debussy, Franck, or Ravel. Sir Arthur Bliss wrote the Sonata for Viola and Pianoforte in 1933 for the great virtuoso and fellow Englishman, Lionel Tertis. This is one of several works Bliss wrote between 1926 and 1935 for specific virtuoso performers, each a reflection of the individual's unique musical character and capabilities. Often described as the successor of Elgar, Bliss's works are expansive, demonstrating an interest in illustration and outward expression rather then thematic transformation or introspective reflection. Like the Bliss's Sonata, Frank Bridge's Pensiero (1905) and Allegro Appasionato (1908) were written for violist Lionel Tertis. The works were commissioned as part of a project by Tertis to compile a library of British viola works that would promote both English composers and the viola as a solo instrument.
  • Rebecca Clarke: Sonata for Viola and Piano (1919)
  • Impetuoso [listen]
  • Vivace
  • Adagio-Risoluto [listen]
  • Frank Bridge: Two Pieces for Viola and Piano
  • Pensiero (1905)
  • Alegro appassionato (1908)
  • Sir Arthur Bliss: Sonata for Viola and Pianoforte
  • Moderato [listen]
  • Andante
  • Furiant [listen]
  • Coda

Total Duration 57:00
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The University of Iowa Center for New Music performs
Twentieth-Century American Music

Disk Picture.
William Albright Abiding Passions
Mario Davidovsky Flashbacks[listen]
Bernard Rands   Concertino
Noel Zahler Agarttha
Michael Daughtery Sinatra Shag[listen]
David K Gompper Don't Go There[listen]
David K Gompper Finnegan's Wake

Total Duration 70:27

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