Berman Zauberflote

Grigory Sokolov is among the most important Russian pianists to have emerged from the latter half of the 20th century. His career has both suffered and thrived from restraints foisted on him by Soviet authorities: like other iconic Russian keyboard giants of the past, in particular Sviatoslav Richter and Lazar Berman, he was prohibited from appearance in the West for a time, but when he finally debuted in western Europe and the United States, his career took a meteoric upswing, with Sokolov suddenly in heavy demand in the world's major concert halls. Another aspect to Sokolov's career that has added to his charismatic though eccentric persona has been his general avoidance of the recording studio. Most of his recordings are drawn from live concerts, and they attest to his virtuosity and interpretive genius in unusual but generally conservative fare: while his repertory takes in Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann, Chopin, Brahms, Rachmaninov, and Prokofiev, it also includes Byrd, Couperin, Rameau, and Froberger. Sokolov has recorded for several labels, including Melodiya, Opus 111, and Naïve.