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You are here: Home / Archives for Ivan Gusev

Pianist Ivan Gusev at Tenri New York

Tuesday, February 11th, 2020 by Ken Turner

Ivan Gusev playing C. P. E. Bach in New York

Ivan Gusev plays C. P. E. Bach at Tenri Cultural Institute

On February 8th 2020, Ivan Gusev gave a piano recital at the Tenri Cultural Institute in New York. The event was organized by the Leschetizky Association in honor Theodor Leschetizky (1830-1915).

Mr. Gusev has been featured in this blog before.

However this was the first time we saw him play works written by a composer born before Mozart.

C. P. E. Bach: Rondo in C Major H 260; Sonata in A minor (Württemberg)

At the Tenri Institute, the ceiling was high and square, and the walls were bare. Acoustically, conditions were challenging for the performer.

Nevertheless, Gusev’s Rondo was a delightful morsel which the pianist evidently loved playing. But the A minor Sonata felt less clear, possibly due to acoustics.

Beethoven: Sonata No. 14 in C# minor Op. 27 No. 7 (“Moonlight”)

Gusev’s Adagio Sostenuto worked well with the room’s resonance. His stately pacing had a slow pulse that pulled the listener inexorably to the closing arpeggios.

The lighter Allegretto functioned as a measured transition from reflection to action. Gusev exploded into a riveting Presto Agitato that, despite the occasional glitch, felt glorious and triumphant.

Debussy: Preludes, Book 1

After the intermission, Ivan Gusev presented a set of Debussy preludes. It included favorites such as La Fille aux Cheveux de Lin. Gusev certainly has a flair for Debussy. This reviewer was so entranced that he forgot to take mental notes for his readers.

Encore: Minute Waltz and Liebestraum

Ivan Gusev’s first encore was Chopin’s crowd-pleasing Minute Waltz. I’ve heard him play this as an encore before. On this evening I preferred his second encore, Liszt’s Liebestraum S. 541 No. 3.

While Ivan Gusev appears to relish showpieces, his talent shines brightest in more atmospheric works such as the Debussy of this program, or his Rachmaninov Études-Tableaux cited in a prior Roving Pianist review.

Leschetizky Association

Zelma Bodzin, Ivan Gusev, Alison Thomas

Assn. President Zelma Bodzin, Ivan Gusev, VP Alison Thomas

Students of Theodor Leschetizky founded the non-profit Leschetizky Association “to perpetuate his ideals and principles of piano playing and teaching”.

The Association offers performance opportunities for members and their students. Also, they organize concerts, masterclasses and a concerto competition for young pianists.

We thoroughly enjoyed the Leschetizky Association’s concert featuring pianist Ivan Gusev. The venue was warm and pleasant, the organizers friendly, and the refreshments good.

While the performance space had acoustic challenges, Gusev adapted well. Also, the walls were too bright. When taking photographs, I was “shooting against the light”.

For more about the Association, consult www.leschetizky.org. The .com site www.leschetizky.com is unrelated.

Filed Under: Concerts, Public concerts Tagged With: Alison Thomas, Beethoven, C.P.E. Bach, Chopin Minute Waltz, Debussy Preludes, Ivan Gusev, Ken Turner, Leschetizky Association, Liebestraume, Liszt, Moonlight Sonata, pianist, piano, Roving Pianist, Tenri Cultural Institute, Theodor Leschetizky, Zelma Bodzin

Rosa Chang, Carlos Arcos perform with Ivan Gusev in NYC

Friday, May 24th, 2019 by Ken Turner

On May 23rd, 2019 I was privileged to attend an opera recital at the Shoemaker Salon on Central Park West in New York. The event featured Korean soprano Rosa Chang, Ecuadorian baritone Carlos Arcos, and Russian pianist Ivan Gusev.

Ms. Chang previously sang at this venue in January 2018, which I reviewed here. Mr. Gusev recently gave a recital that included some of the works played this evening, reviewed here.

Rosa Chang: Rossini, Liszt and Fauré

Rosa Chang

Ms. Chang introduced each program item before singing it. This was informative and at times entertaining, making for a lively evening.

Rosa Chang’s La Promessa was a treat. Gusev’s sparkling piano intertwined with her conversational phrases in a charming duet. The aria closed on a sustained octave leap, which Ms. Chang hit and held flawlessly.

Throughout the evening Ms. Chang showed fine control over every aspect of her performance: her voice, expressions and gestures.

Carlos Arcos: Tosti, Reynaldo Hahn

Carlos Arcos

Mr. Arcos’s Tosti showcased his passionate delivery and magnificent voice. An Ecuadorian, he convinced me that he had become Italian for Tosti’s Non t’amo piu.

Carlos Arcos’s A Chloris opened with a harmonic progression on the piano that is reminiscent of Pachelbel’s Canon. Indeed after his performance, a member of the audience asked Arcos about possible influences.

Ivan Gusev plays Rachmaninov

Ivan Gusev: Rachmaninov, Paganini-Liszt

Rachmaninov’s Études Tableaux in A minor (“The Sea and the Seagulls”) is one of the composer’s crowning achievements.

Gusev’s performance was mesmerizing. I looked for a comparable performance on the Internet and found just one, by Vladimir Ashkenazy.

The work opens in a dream-like state. The right hand crosses the left to punctuate Rachmaninov’s reflective arpeggios with a slow bass motif..

This morphs into waves of excruciating collapse at 2:20, 2:50 and beyond. Then it transitions to a major key, only to slip back to the opening calm. These timings are with respect to Gusev’s 2018 Youtube video.

Gusev also played Liszt’s La Campanella, a demanding work that is as much fun to watch as it is to listen to.

Rigoletto, Don Pasquale, Camelot, La Traviata

After a short Intermission we heard three more excellent arias from Rosa Chang and one song from Carlos Arcos.

I don’t have room here to give a run-down on each item. However I would single out Mr. Arcos who, supported by pianist Gusev, gave a heartfelt rendition of If ever I would leave you, the show-stopping romantic ballad from Camelot.

Encores

Ivan Gusev, Robin Shoemaker, Rosa Chang, Carlos Arcos

Carlos Arcos sang Pampamapa by Carlos Guastavino. The piano accompaniment for this Argentinian song at times imitates the strumming of a guitar.

Rosa Chang sang Puccini’s O mio babbino caro, The aching beauty of this aria is so typical of Puccini. Ms. Chang’s refined vibrato and her perfect attack once again resulted in an exquisite performance.

Ivan Gusev closed the evening with a virtuoso performance of Chopin’s Minute Waltz. I loved how he played with pacing in order to magnify the accelerando of the waltz.

Closing Thoughts

In these troubled times it is reassuring to see such diverse musicians collaborate to present an evening of great music.

Rosa Chang stood out as as a superlative soprano who could perform for the most discriminating audience.

Carlos Arcos pulled off a win despite joining the program at short notice.

And pianist Ivan Gusev played tirelessly through the entire evening, both as an accompanist and as a soloist.

Filed Under: Concerts, Private Concerts Tagged With: Camelot, Carlos Arcos, Carlos Guastavino, Chopin, Donizetti, Etudes Tableaux, Ivan Gusev, Liszt, Minute Waltz, O mio babbino caro, Paganini, Pampamapa, Puccini, Rachmaninov, Reynaldo Hahn, Robin Shoemaker, Rosa Chang, Verdi, Vladimir Ashkenazy

Pianist Ivan Gusev plays at Private Event

Saturday, May 18th, 2019 by Ken Turner

Ivan Gusev

Pianist Ivan Gusev was born in Kazakhstan. He has two degrees from the Moscow Conservatory, an institution that produces pianists of the pedigree of Emil Gilels, Sviatoslav Richter etc.

So when I received an invitation to attend Ivan’s recital in a private home, I was thrilled. A Russian School pianist playing Rachmaninov! I couldn’t wait to hear him play.

The program opened with some light Mozart. Thereafter the recital grew progressively more intense, closing with fireworks in the form of a virtuoso Rachmaninov prelude.

Mozart: Sonata No. 12 in F Major K322

Mozart’s Allegro opens friskily, bouncing back and forth to minor key arpeggios, with glimpses of Beethoven-like drama. Gusev glided through this with confidence.

The gentle Adagio over a clockwork (Alberti) bass introduced us to Gusev’s signature head-back eyes-closed happy face. Mozart can have that effect on people!

The closing Allegro Assai was a little more rambunctuous, giving Gusev room to show some pianistic flair.

Schubert: Four Impromptus, Op. 90

Gusev addressing the audience

Schubert’s weightier warmth allowed Gusev room to be more expressive. Here, as throughout the recital, I was struck by how focused he was and how rich his sound. The deep low end of the house Steinway helped.

Grieg: Six Poetic Tone Pictures, Op. 3

These short Grieg works are, as Gusev noted, very romantic. He played them with passion, but to me the works themselves were incoherent.

Here and there we heard echoes of a folk dance or a lullaby. At other times, Grieg sounded like Chopin having a bad practice day.

Rachmaninov: Three Etudes-Tableaux

Of the selected Etudes-Tableaux, I most enjoyed the first (A minor Op. 39 No. 2 “The Sea and the Seagulls”). Gusev’s resonant harmonics glowed. His right hand crossed his left in a slow, mesmerizing arc for the bass motif. Indeed his presentation of Rachmaninov’s cacophonous layers was so riveting that I momentarily forgot to breathe.

The E-flat minor had more of a movie-theme feel. It was expansive, pounding and appropriately slushy. After the opening drama and subsequent clatter the theme returned, crumbling into dissonance. Again Gusev projected emotion with controlled intensity.

Gusev gave an expansive, weighty performance of the C minor Op. 33 no. 3 (compare with Yuja Wang, Berlin 2018) . When the big theme came forward over a dominant low end, the result was quite different from what you hear in other performances. I loved it.

Rachmaninov: Prelude in B-Flat Major, Op. 23 No. 2

From the resounding opening through dazzling two-handed descents to glittering right hand swirls, Gusev threw everything he had into this showpiece. He appeared enraptured, playing with such vigor that the piano shook.

This was a remarkable performance, larger than the pianist and the setting. While one could nitpick here and there, I felt that this was Rachmaninov as he should be played. As the final chord faded, someone shouted “yeah!”. The pianist stood up with a huge grin. He knew that he had nailed it.

Encores: Chopin Waltzes

The first encore was Chopin’s Waltz in A minor Op. Post. This is a forgiving work that pianists can easily put their personal stamp on. Gusev’s Waltz was adventurous, with liberal rubato and fast upper register runs.  Finally, Gusev played Chopin’s Minute Waltz Op. 64 No. 1.

Russian soul?

Ivan Gusev’s performance style is low-key. Sometimes he leans into the piano or tilts his head back. At other times, he raises an arm to punctuate a phrase. His facial expressions are not theatrical. They are those of a pianist immersed in creating an authentic musical experience.

With the exception of Grieg (for which I hold the composer responsible), Gusev’s entire recital was enjoyable. But his Rachmaninov outshone everything else. It was simply stunning.

Was this because Gusev is, as he explained to me, culturally 75% Russian? Or is it more a product of his Moscow Conservatory education? From either perspective, I miss only the vodka and zakuski.

Filed Under: Concerts, Private Concerts Tagged With: Chopin, Grieg, Ivan Gusev, Moscow Conservatory, Mozart, piano, Rachmaninov, Schubert

©2025 Ken Turner | Roving Pianist

 

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