Artist to Perform December Carnegie Hall Solo Recital Which Garnered An Extended 9 Curtain Calls!
KANSAS CITY, MO (February 19, 2020) — Park International Center for Music (Park ICM) confirmed today that their 2019-2020 performance season at midtown’s intimate 1900 Building would continue with internationally renowned pianist, Behzod Abduraimov. Behzod will perform the repertoire he played at Carnegie Hall in December to rave reviews.
The New York Classical Review, “From the start, this was special with a feeling of distinction. Abduraimov didn’t just play with clarity and power, but with fervor and personal commitment.”
Called “the most perfectly accomplished pianist of his generation,” Behzod Abduraimov is Artist-in-Residence at Park ICM and former student of Park ICM founder and Artistic Director Stanislav Ioudenitch. Behzod has soloed with leading orchestras worldwide such as the LA Philharmonic, London Symphony Orchestra, and prestigious conductors including Valery Gergiev, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Vasily Petrenko and others.
Behzod remarked on how he developed the repertoire for the solo recital:
“I built this program on miniatures, beginning with a kaleidoscope of all kinds of human emotions. In ‘Chopin 24 Preludes,’ if I’m not mistaken, Chopin was the first to establish the prelude as an independent music form. The challenge of them is to switch contrasts drastically to show the essence of each prelude as well as build up an arch from the first to the last prelude.”
Chopin’s Op. 28 Preludes are concise masterpieces that convey a tremendous range of emotion, for which Abduraimov has become famous.
Next up on the concert are Debussy’s gentle miniatures. Known as tender reflections on childhood, Abduraimov continued:
“Debussy’s charming set of 6 pieces, dedicated to his daughter, were not only meant to entertain her, but were to allow us to see the world through a child’s eyes. I see these pieces for adults to immerse themselves into the world of children with some nostalgia thrown in and, of course, a sense of humor.”
Finally, Mussorgsky’s Pictures at the Exhibition brings paintings of Mussorgsky’s friend Viktor Hartmann to life. Abduraimov said,
“These pictures are highly imaginative and give the performer the freedom to basically create music in the actual pictures.”
Mussorgsky based his music on drawings and watercolors by Hartmann produced mostly during Hartmann’s travels abroad to Italy, France, Russia, Poland, and Ukraine. Today most of the pictures from Hartmann’s exhibition are lost which makes it fairly impossible to know exactly which of Hartmann’s works Mussorgsky referenced.
The New York Classical Review: “Throughout the piece, the pianist showed he wasn’t satisfied with just making the music sound great, but digging into it to see what might be underneath. He never abandoned the fine musical judgement he had been displaying earlier, yet he was always inside the music, pushing it to extremes while always working with what Mussorgsky had given. This was individual and exhilarating pianism.”
Park ICM 1900 Series Featuring Behzod Abduraimov, Piano, Wednesday, March 25, 2020, 7:30 p.m., 1900 Building, Mission Woods, Kansas.
Described by The New York Times as the “master of all he surveys” and with The Washington Post noting to “keep your ear on this one,” Abduraimov’s captivating performances continue to receive international praise. Following his debut success at Carnegie Hall in 2015, recent seasons have seen Abduraimov work with leading orchestras worldwide. An award-winning recording artist, he released his first concerto disc in 2014 on Decca Classics which features Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No.3 and Tchaikovsky’s Concerto No.1 with the Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della Rai under Juraj Valčuha. His debut recital CD won both the Choc de Classica and the Diapason Découverte. Born in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, in 1990, Abduraimov began to play the piano at the age of five as a pupil of Tamara Popovich at Uspensky State Central Lyceum in Tashkent.
ABOUT PARK INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR MUSIC – Park ICM was established (www.park.edu) at Park University in 2003. This All-Steinway School trains and educates the next generation of accomplished musicians in a focused and creative atmosphere with an international faculty of renowned excellence. Park ICM offers degree, certificate and diploma programs at the graduate and undergraduate levels. Our courses of study are focused in the areas of performance in violin, viola, cello and piano. At the core of all ICM programs is one-on-one studio instruction providing vital interactions between the student and master faculty, now in its 14th season. This extremely exclusive music academy selects just 30 students each year to study in the historic European apprenticeship tradition. Each student receives individual studio instruction twice weekly. Park’s amazing campus provides focused and uninterrupted practice time 24-hours daily in a serene and extremely supportive environment. The international faculty’s incredible network of acquaintances throughout the world provide for master classes with renowned guest artists in each performance degree. The European tradition demands public concerts as part of student training that creates performances alongside faculty in sublime intimate concerts throughout Kansas City. Ultimately, the Park ICM master faculty mentors inspiring apprentice musicians and trains them in music and performance. The master faculty also coaches musicianship and career development so that the students will become award-winning musicians, traveling the world and entertaining the most discerning music lovers across all continents.
Visit icm.Park.edu for more information about Park ICM’s 2019-2020 performance season. High-resolution photos of the performer can be obtained by contacting Ellen McDonald at 816-213-4355 or ellen@mershonandmcdonald.com
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Parking
Parking at the 1900 Building is free and readily available.
Student Discounts
At the 1900 Building, Student tickets are available for $10 (with valid ID, one ticket per ID). General admission tickets are $30. All tickets may be purchased in advance at 1900bldg.com or at the door prior to the performances based on availability. The Box Office opens 30-minutes prior to all performances.
Social Media
Receive updates by joining Park ICM Facebook at www.facebook.com/ICMPark, following @ICM_Park on Twitter or @icmpark on Instagram.
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Please direct all media inquiries to Ellen McDonald
816-444-0052 or ellen@mershonandmcdonald.com
