October 30, 2000
Russian Pianist to Showcase an
All-Brahms Performance Nov. 11
“Lilya Zilberstein owns the
kind of fingers from which music pours naturally
They
are powerful fingers, accurate
beyond the dreams of most of her keyboard kin.”
—Toronto
Star
MIDDLEBURY, Vt. — Concertgoers are
in for a treat when Russian pianist Lilya Zilberstein returns to
Vermont for an evening of Brahms at 8 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 11, at the
concert hall in the Middlebury College Center for the Arts on South
Main Street (Route 30). Zilbersteins program will feature
Brahms Eight Piano Pieces, opus 76; Variations on an Original
Theme; Variations on a Hungarian Folk Song; Three Intermezzi, opus
117; and the Paganini Variations, opus 35.
An accomplished recitalist,
Zilberstein plays regularly throughout the United States, Europe, and
Japan. Her recent schedule included appearances in New York, San
Francisco, Rotterdam, Prague, Florence, Berlin, and Vienna. A
Deutsche Grammophon recording artist, she was the 1987 winner of the
Busoni International Piano Competition. More recently, she was the
1998 prizewinner of the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena,
Italy.
Zilberstein also enjoys solo
engagements alongside orchestras. Some of her acclaimed efforts have
been with the Berlin Philharmonic, the London Symphony, the Danish
National Radio Orchestra, the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, and the
Montreal Symphony.
Just one year ago, Zilberstein
visited Vermont with the Carl Nielsen Orchestra when it made an
appearance as a joint presentation by the Lane Series and
Burlingtons Flynn Theatre. She joined the orchestra for a piece
by Prokofiev. Of her efforts that night, one reviewer wrote,
“Zilberstein is the possessor of one of the most formidable
techniques that has come to Burlington. Her ability to shade dynamics
was incredible. Her playing of legato passages was marvelous, like a
shower of rose petals on the audience. Her handling of the more
percussive sections clearly reminded us that the piano is, first and
foremost, a percussive instrument.”
Zilberstein has cultivated a
trademark forceful command of her instrument, especially in handling
works of the Russian masters. The New York Times has called her “an
insightful interpreter with a powerful technique.”
A native of Moscow, Zilberstein
graduated from the Gnessin Pedagogical Institute and has claimed
numerous Russian piano competitions. She has lived in Hamburg for the
past 10 years with her husband and two sons.
Zilbersteins performance is
sponsored by the Middlebury College Concert Series.
Reservations for the concert are
required. Tickets are $10 for general admission and $8 for senior
citizens. A pre-performance dinner will be held at 6:30 p.m. at
Rehearsals Cafe in the Center for the Arts. For tickets or dinner
reservations, call the college box office 802-443-6433.
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