Debut Sasha Stychkina

• Maurice Ravel (1875 - 1937): Menuet sur le nom d’Haydn, M. 58:
• 1 Ravel: Menuet sur le nom d’Haydn, M. 58 01:48
• Alexei Stanchinsky (1888 - 1914): Five Preludes:
• 2 Stanchinsky: Five Preludes: No. 1, Andante 01:45
• 3 Stanchinsky: Five Preludes: No. 2, Adagio 01:30
• 4 Stanchinsky: Five Preludes: No. 3, Presto 00:56
• 5 Stanchinsky: Five Preludes: No. 4, Animato 00:30
• 6 Stanchinsky: Five Preludes: No. 5, Largo 01:26
• Frédéric Chopin (1810 - 1849): Waltz in A-Flat Major, Op. 42:
• 7 Chopin: Waltz in A-Flat Major, Op. 42 03:59
• Carl Maria von Weber (1786 - 1826): Piano Sonata No. 1 in C Major, Op. 24:
• 8 Weber: Piano Sonata No. 1 in C Major, Op. 24: I. Allegro 08:49
• 9 Weber: Piano Sonata No. 1 in C Major, Op. 24: II. Adagio 06:23
• 10 Weber: Piano Sonata No. 1 in C Major, Op. 24: III. Menuetto. Allegro 08:32
• 11 Weber: Piano Sonata No. 1 in C Major, Op. 24: IV. Presto 04:15
• Béla Bartók (1881 - 1945): Studies for Piano, Op. 18:
• 12 Bartók: Studies for Piano, Op. 18: No. 1, Allegro molto 02:30
• 13 Bartók: Studies for Piano, Op. 18: No. 2, Andante sostenuto 03:29
• 14 Bartók: Studies for Piano, Op. 18: No. 3, Rubato 02:15
• Franz Liszt (1811 - 1886): Variations on a Theme of Bach, S. 180 “Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen”:
• 15 Liszt: Variations on a Theme of Bach, S. 180 “Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen” 15:18
• Total Runtime 01:03:25

Info for Debut

Greek-Russian pianist Sasha Stychkina, born in December 2003 in Moscow into a family of musicians and filmmakers, is the youngest finalist and winner in the history of the Marguerite Long International Piano Competition in Paris in November 2019. Today she presents her first recital, recorded at the Teldex studio in Berlin under the artistic direction of her teacher, the charismatic and renowned pianist Kirill Gerstein. A decidedly varied programme—Weber, Bartók, Ravel, Chopin, Liszt—it is by turns virtuosic, dance-like and spiritual. Sasha Stychkina also introduces us to a little-known composer, Alexei Vladimirovich Stanchinsky (1888-1914), a mystical figure, considered mad – he spent a year in a psychiatric hospital – who drowned at the age of twenty-six. A student of Taneyev, encouraged by Scriabin, and introduced to Tolstoy, the composer nevertheless had a bright future ahead of him. The Five Preludes (1907-1912, published posthumously in 1928), chosen by Sasha Stychkina, are particularly evocative and visionary.

Sasha Stychkina, piano

Sasha Stychkina
The Berlin-based Greek-Russian pianist Sasha Stychkina is a young artist of exceptional promise. Born in December 2003 in Moscow and raised in a family of musicians and filmmakers, she began her musical education at an early age. From the age of nine, she studied at the Central Music School of the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory in the class of Mira Marchenko. The intensive training and frequent public performances during her formative years quickly brought her talent to the fore.

Her early pianistic brilliance was reflected in numerous competition successes, including first prizes at the Tbilisi and Astana International Piano Competitions, as well as awards at the Krainev Competition in Moscow, the International Chopin Competition in China, and the Jeune Chopin Competition in Switzerland. In November 2019, at the age of fifteen, she became the youngest finalist and prizewinner in the history of the Marguerite Long International Piano Competition in Paris, performing Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Orchestre National de France and gaining widespread international recognition.

Following this achievement, Sasha Stychkina made a conscious decision to step back from the competition circuit in order to devote herself to a sustained period of artistic development.

Since 2019, she has studied with Kirill Gerstein at the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin, where she is focusing on systematically expanding her solo and concert repertoire and refining her musical voice.

She has already appeared in major venues, including the Wiener Konzerthaus, the Barbican Centre in London, the Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza, the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Hall, and Wigmore Hall. Festival invitations have taken her to Verbier, among other places, where she was invited as a student in residence in 2018 and worked with Gábor Takács-Nagy, András Keller, and Frans Helmerson.

Recent engagements include performances at the Konzerthaus Berlin, where she performed Shostakovich’s Piano Concerto No. 2, and at the Kronberg Academy, collaborating with Gidon Kremer, Julia Hagen, and Kremerata Baltica in Lera Auerbach’s Triple Concerto. She has also made her debut with the Czech Philharmonic under the baton of Teddy Abrams, playing Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue. Early recognition of her artistic promise also led to an invitation by Sir András Schiff to participate in his masterclass at Wigmore Hall in 2016, where she performed the complete Two-Part Inventions by Johann Sebastian Bach.

Whether playing Liszt or Haydn, this young pianist is sure to make a name for herself, one thinks as soon as one hears her take command of the keyboard. She has the tone, the touch and that natural authority that captivate the listener. - Alain Lompech, bachtrack.com

Booklet for Debut