Denis Kozhukhin

East Coast tour with Philadelphia Orchestra

Denis Kozhukhin joins the Philadelphia Orchestra in February for a brief tour of the US East Coast, performing in West Palm Beach on 7 February, Sarasota on 9 February and Princeton, NJ on 11 February 2017. Under the baton of Stéphane Denève, he performs Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No.3.

At the end of the month, Kozhukhin makes his debut with the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, performing in Utrecht on 24 February (broadcast live on NPO Radio 4) and in Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw on 25 and 27 February. Conducted by Marc Albrecht, he performs R. Strauss Burleske in D minor.

New recording: Johannes Brahms Ballades & Fantasies

Denis Kozhukhin releases his second recording on Pentatone on 3 February, Brahms’ Ballades and Fantasies.

This is his first solo recording for the label, and follows a disc of Grieg and Tchaikovsky concertos released in 2016. His Pentatone debut was selected Gramophone Editor’s Choice and Disc of the month in both Fono Forum and Stereophone, with Gramophone commenting: “listening to Kozhukhin, you’re left with one thing: the music – incontestable, complete.”

Writing about the Ballades and Fantasies in the CD booklet, Kozhukhin says:

“These works by Brahms reflect the many aspects of the life of a great man; the intellect of an exceptional mind and the emotions of a profoundly sensitive human being.

From the Ballades with their resonance of a young man wondering about an uncertain future, to the Phantasies, with their sickening contrasts, which move from the despair of a man who suffered great loss to the powerful resilient strength of a human being who refuses to accept the approaching end.”

Visit Pentatone’s Soundcloud to hear a preview of the recording. The recording is available to buy from Pentatone directly, or on Amazon and iTunes from 3 February 2017.

Rachmaninov with the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra

Denis Kozhukhin begins a month of performances of Rachmaninov when he returns to the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra for three performances in Salzburg’s Großes Festspielhaus on 18, 19 and 20 January 2017. Performing under the baton of conductor Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Kozhukhin performs Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No.3 in the first two concerts, before moving on to Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No.4 in the final one.

The following week, Kozhukhin joins Orozco-Estrada once more for three performances with the Houston Symphony at Jones Hall on 27, 28 and 29 January, where he again perform Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No.3.

Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg return

Denis Kozhukhin returns to the Orchestre Philharmonie du Luxembourg on 16 December for a concert at the Philharmonie Luxembourg. He plays Haydn’s Keyboard Concerto No.11 conducted by Andrew Manze.

Kozhukhin regularly performs the work of Haydn and in 2014 recorded his Piano Sonatas with Onyx Classics. Visit the audio page or Kozhukhin’s Soundcloud to listen to excerpts from the release.

Debut with Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin

Denis Kozhukhin makes his debut with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin this month in a concert at the Berliner Philharmonie on 30 November. Together with conductor Andris Poga, he will perform Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No.1 in B-flat minor.

Kozhukhin released Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No.1 on Pentatone earlier this year, alongside the Grieg Piano Concerto. The recording has received outstanding reviews, and was selected as Gramophone Editor’s Choice for May. Visit Pentatone’s Soundcloud to hear the recording, and read an excerpt from Gramophone’s review below:

“Listening to Kozhukhin, you’re left with one thing: the music – incontestable, complete.”

Return to Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Denis Kozhukhin returns to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for four performances of Prokofiev Piano Concerto No.2 on 17, 18, 19 and 22 November. The performances, at Chicago’s Symphony Center, are conducted by Emmanuel Krivine.

One concert will be recorded for deferred radio broadcast and streamed subsequently on csosoundsandstories.org.

Kozhukhin previously performed with the CSO in June 2015, when his performance of Ravel’s Piano Concerto for the Left Hand conducted by Ludovic Morlot was praised by the Chicago Tribune:

“His firm tone, incisive attacks and supple sense of line made light of the work’s enormous technical difficulties. Especially in the formidable cadenza that closes the concerto, it was hard to believe he could deliver such commanding sound and spot-on accuracy using only five fingers. With Morlot’s sympathetic partnering, this was another winning performance… Thursday’s audience roared its approval.”

Philadelphia Orchestra return as part of US tour

Denis Kozhukhin returns to the Philadelphia Orchestra for the three concerts with the orchestra and conductor Stéphane Denève on 20, 21 and 22 October 2016. Kozhukhin joins the orchestra to perform Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No.1 at Verizon Hall.

The concerts in Philadelphia form part of Kozhukhin’s tour of North America, which opens with two recitals at Portland’s Lincoln Performance Hall on 8 and 9 October, when he performs two separate programmes: Handel, Franck, Brahms, Weber and Bartók on the first night, and Haydn, Prokofiev, Liszt, Ligeti and Rachmaninov on the second. He also gives recitals in Washington D.C. on 16 October and Miami on 17 October.

In addition to these recitals, Kozhukhin also joins the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Hugh Wolff for two performances of Gershwin Piano Concerto on 13 and 15 October.

Finally he rounds off his tour in Toronto, where he performs Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No.4 and Gershwin Rhapsody in Blue in two concerts on 26 and 27 October with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Kristjan Järvi.