Sonatas by Medtner, Rachmaninov, Scriabin

by Kenny Broberg

Overview

Pianist Kenny Broberg emerged from the University of Houston's music program and took prizes in the big two competitions emphasizing pure Russian-school virtuosity, the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in Fort Worth, Texas, and the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Russia. Now part of the roster of the Steinway & Sons label and splendidly recorded by that label's engineering team at Sono Luminus studios in Virginia, he offers as a debut recording three notorious Russian finger-crunchers, the Piano Sonata No. 2 in B flat minor, Op. 36, of Rachmaninov, the Piano Sonata No. 5, Op. 53, of Scriabin (which Sviatoslav Richter called the most difficult work in the piano repertory), and the Piano Sonata No. 2 in E minor, Op. 25, No. 2, of Nikolay Medtner, with a short Medtner piece to ring down the curtain. There is a lot to like here: the crisp, properly edgy tone in the Medtner sonata (which is not as commonly played as the other works), the clean execution of the Scriabin, but really, the best news is Broberg's careful structuring of the melodic material, even amidst the clatter of percussive, rapid runs. Sample the very beginning of the first movement of the Rachmaninov sonata, where the keyboard-spanning heroics instantly command the listener's attention. This is a major pianist to watch in the music of the Russian school, which hasn't had a big champion in the U.S. lately. ~ James Manheim

Product Details

Release Date:	01/06/2023
Label:	Steinway & Sons
UPC:	0034062301980
Rank:	187803

Tracks

1. Sonata No. 2 in B flat minor, Op. 36~Allegro agitato
2. Sonata No. 2 in B flat minor, Op. 36~Non allegro - Lento
3. Sonata No. 2 in B flat minor, Op. 36~Allegro molto
4. Sonata No. 5, Op. 53
5. Sonata in E minor, Op. 25 No. 2 'Night Wind'~Introduzione: Andante - Allegro
6. Sonata in E minor, Op. 25 No. 2 'Night Wind'~Allegro molto sfrenatamente
7. Forgotten Melodies Op. 38~No. 3 Danza festiva

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Kenny Broberg   Primary Artist,Piano

Technical Credits

Lee Clifford   Photography
Anilda Carrasquillo   Cover Design
Nikolay Medtner   Composer
Dan Merceruio   Producer
Daniel Shores   Mixing,Engineer,Mastering
Jon Feidner   Executive Producer
Eric Feidner   Executive Producer
Polina Osherov   Photography
John Veitch   Piano Technician
Jackie Fugere   Art Direction
Renee Oakford   Production Assistant
Joshua Frey   Assistant Engineer
Sergey Rachmaninov   Composer
Alexander Scriabin   Composer