Russian piano master driven by love of music
Print Edition
DANIIL Trifonov, a 23-year-old Russian pianist, couldn’t help but rub his fingers nervously as he searched for the right words during a recent interview with Shanghai Daily. But this promising young pianist delivered his musical message effortlessly last Saturday to an audience of Shanghai listeners.
“I don’t consider music as a career for me, just something I love to do,” says Trifonov.
Trifonov was performing together with the New York Philharmonic, conducted by Alan Gilbert, at the opening concert of Music in Summer Air (MISA).
Apart from arranged pieces like Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 2, Richard Strauss’ “Ein Heldenleben” and Chinese composer Xu Shuya’s “The Light of Summer,” Trifonov also presented his own composition “Rachmaninov” as a tribute to the great composer. He turned his deft fingers to Rachmaninov’s transcription of the Gavotte from Bach’s Violin Partita No. 3 as an encore.
Born into a music family in 1991, Trifonov’s talents became evident at a young age. At the age of five, after Trifonov was discovered modifying his father’s compositions with a pencil, his parents decided to enroll him in a special art school.
“It turned out that music interested me most, so I started my connection with piano ever since then,” says Trifonov.
His talent develops quickly along with his interest. At the age of eight, he gave his first performance with an orchestra. He studied under Tatiana Zelikman at Gnessin School of Music in Moscow, who later recommended Trifonov to Sergei Babayan at the Cleveland Institute of Music.
“Zelikman and Babayan were from the same line of Heinrich Neuhaus, but they still have very individual approaches in music. I benefited a lot when studying with them, as I tried to take the best of them both,” says Trifonov.
By 2011, the young performer had also taken medals at a host of major piano contests, including the International Scriabin Competition, International Chopin Piano Competition and Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition.
His winning of the First Prize, Grand Prix, Audience Award and the Award for the Best Performance of a Chamber Concerto at the 14th International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow helped spread his fame around the world.
“I felt so honored to be granted the Grand Prix, which is only given to the most outstanding competitors,” says Trifonov.
He had his Carnegie Hall debut in 2013, a performance that launched his career as a traveling musician. During his very first visit in Shanghai, Trifonov discussed his taste in music as well as his life away from the piano with Shanghai Daily.
Q: Do you have a preference in music style or with particular composers’ works?
A: I am always working on expanding my repertoire. For every season, I chose to feature works of composers whom I have less experience with. For example, I will work on more 20th century music for the up-coming season.
I do have a favorite composer. That is Alexander Scriabin. I love his “Poem of Ecstasy.” I love the way he express emotions, ideas and all the non-material things in his music. It is fascinating. I play many of his works.
Q: Since you also compose, do you prefer playing your own piece?
A: No, I don’t play my work so often. I think it is important to learn as much repertoire as possible. Besides, I don’t have many works since I don’t have much time for composition. I am recently working on a double concerto for piano, violin and chamber orchestra. Ideally, I would like to spend more time on composition if possible.
Q: It’s been said that you cannot bear a day without playing the piano. Is that true?
A: I love playing the piano, but I do skip it sometimes as a way to clear my mind.
Practicing can be very spontaneous for me. Every day is different. Certainly, practice is important to improve techniques, but I consider it more important to get close to the music material, and make it personal. It does not have to be completed all with piano. I also do internal practice just within my mind.
I never play more than eight hours a day. To prevent intense practicing from posing damage to my health, I will do some yoga positions and stretching at break time.
Q: Do you have any particular hobbies in your spare time?
A: Yes, I love mountain hiking especially; I always feel good about getting close to nature. If time permits and there are mountains around, I always love to go hiking around where I perform. I will also visit museums sometimes, but not that often due to time limits. I used to play football, but quit lest potential injuries affect my piano playing. After all, music is my favorite.
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