Nikolai Kapustin

Nikolai Kapustin is considered a pioneer of the Soviet jazz scene. His music combines typical idioms of jazz with classical forms. The Trio op. 86 for flute, violoncello and piano from 1998 is one of the most popular chamber music works by Kapustin. He recorded it himself together with Alexander Zagorinsky and Alexander Korneev.

Nikolai Kapustin born in 1937 is regarded as pioneer of the Soviet jazz scene. In his music he combines typical jazz idioms with classical forms. Sonata Op. 69 for viola and piano was written in 1992.

The introductory theme of the Variations op. 41 takes the form of a jazzed-up rendition of the opening solo bassoon motif from Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring and the whole set of variations encompasses Kapustin's style in microcosm. Every conceivable mainstream jazz influence is to be found in this work evoking memories of Count Basie and Erroll Garner amongst others while all the time subjecting itself to traditional classical form. In particular the last four pages contain some of Kapustin's most exciting music.

Virtuoso jazz in classical form: Nikolai Kapustin (b. 1937) is an excellent jazz pianist arranger and composer. His piano sonatas are now published by Schott Music for the first time. Suitable for pianists looking for technically demanding pieces between modern and jazz music which sound like highly skilled yet notated improvisation. Kapustin's monumental set of Preludes and Fugues Op.82 completed in 1997 may well be the most important work written for piano in the genre since Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier and Shostakovich's 24 Preludes and Fugues Op.87. In this sprawling collection Kapustin combines his complete mastery of jazzidioms with a thorough assimilation of contrapunctal techniques like canon imitation inversion and augmentation. Ingenuously each prelude and fugue pair share their motivic material.

Kapustin’s Twenty-Four Preludes op.53 were written in 1988. Clearly influenced by Chopin in their key scheme and brevity they present us with a great variety of jazz styles: blues (prelude 11) ballad (5 & 9) jazz waltz (18) swing (17 & 19) jazz funk (7 & 12) and even an allusion to Take Five (13). In many of them the composer states a theme and then “improvises” a new melody over the underlying chord structure. The whole set projects an ebullient spontaneity and it is fast becoming one of Kapustin’s most popular works. The composer himself performing no. 11:

Nicolai Kapustin's Piano Sonata No. 8 Op. 77 was composed in 1995. In this single-movement work he develops three contrasting themes: a rhapsodic Scriabinesque opening section a quirky offbeat scherzando and a slow romantic interlude which towards the end of the piece reappears triumphantly.

Virtuoso jazz in classical form: Nikolai Kapustin (b. 1937) is an excellent jazz pianist arranger and composer. His piano sonatas are now published by Schott Music for the first time. Suitable for pianists looking for technically demanding pieces between modern and jazz music which sound like highly skilled yet notated improvisation. Kapustin's monumental set of Preludes and Fugues Op.82 completed in 1997 may well be the most important work written for piano in the genre since Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier and Shostakovich's 24 Preludes and Fugues Op.87. In this sprawling collection Kapustin combines his complete mastery of jazzidioms with a thorough assimilation of contrapunctal techniques like canon imitation inversion and augmentation. Ingenuously each prelude and fugue pair share their motivic material.

Nikolai Kapustin's Rainy Weather for Piano was composed in 2015. Born in the Ukraine in 1937 Nikolai Kapustin has earned a veritable reputation as a Jazz pianist arranger and composer fusing Jazz sensibilities into a classical setting. Suitable for pianists looking for technically demanding pieces between modern and jazz music which sound like highly skilled yet notated improvisation.

Piano Sonata No. 6 Op. 62 (composed in 1991) is the shortest of the thirteen piano sonatas written by Nikolai Kapustin to date. The three movements are full of twists and surprises with excursions into boogie-woogie.