Roman Borisov — a Rachmaninoff 150 encounter

On October 13, Radio Hall launched its 2023-2024 season with an all-Rachmaninoff performance by Romanian Radio National Orchestra and young Russian pianist Roman Borisov under the baton of John Axelrod. The festive programme consisted of Vocalise; Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 43; Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27.

Born in 2002 in the Russian city of Novosibirsk, Roman had his first professional appearance at the age of six, and at the early age of four he was introduced to legendary piano teacher Mary Lebenzon at the Novosibirsk Conservatory. Mrs Lebenzon accompanied him until 2020, when he moved to Berlin to continue his studies.

He is a winner of a dozen Russian and international competitions, including Vladimir Krainev Moscow International Piano Competition and Kissinger KlavierOlymp. He is an alumnus of the Summer Academy of the Verbier Festival (2019), where he won the Tabor Foundation Award as the best participant of the piano section.

Ahead of his first Romanian appearance, we took a look at Sergei Rachmaninoff — the composer and pianist — through his music. We also discussed important early musical experiences, effective mentoring, the main differences between Russian and Central European Conservatories, piano competitions and the aesthetics of this era, his future plans and the source of inspiration for his playing. Other highlights of Roman’s 2023/24 season include his debuts at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam and at the Konzerthaus Wien, many orchestral engagements around the world and also solo recitals at the Ruhr Piano Festival, the Bremen Music Festival, and the Brucknerhaus Linz. His performance of Rachmaninoff works at the Piano Festival Ruhr (2021) was incorporated into its annual CD release.

Meeting and listening to the young soloist was delightful: a gangly 20-year-old with pale skin and dark curls who avoids eye-contact. Very well-mannered and totally unaware of the fuss he causes. We delicately shook hands and proceeded to the talking. Many of his responses were directed at the floor, often followed by an endearingly shy smile. Totally in his element during the performance, his playing was different, more courageous than what I thought it would be after meeting him.

What really took me was the encore: Nikolai Medtner’s Forgotten Melodies Op. 38 No 6 Canzona Serenata, which rang splendidly under Roman’s fingers. Something happened when the last chord went away… he froze at the piano and no one began to clap. For brief seconds, everything stood still and the silence filled the whole hall. Roman’s encore was the genuine culmination of the all-Russian programme, that everyone there had a part in. Something happened that all of us were involved in for a few moments.

Medtner was a younger contemporary of Rachmaninoff. They were good friends and supported each other throughout their lives. He dedicated his Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 50 (1920–27) to Rachmaninoff, who dedicated his own Fourth Concerto to him. Unlike Rachmaninoff, Medtner did not leave Russia until well after the Revolution. In 1936, he and his wife settled in London, where he lived until his death in 1951.

Before the performance, Roman was still pondering on whether to play Rachmaninoff’s Prelude in G minor or Medtner’s Serenata. Now I’m glad he chose Medtner. Canzona Serenata’s lamenting tunes capture that very Russian something. I don’t know what it is, but I can feel it. Listening to the encore made me wonder why isn't Medtner as popular as Rachmaninoff. Made me want to attend Roman Borisov’s future solo recitals also.

Every time I listen to the Paganini Rhapsody I remember about my first encounter with it, in yet another dreamy interpretation: Daniil Trifonov alongside Israel Philharmonic under Zubin Mehta in 2011, when Daniil was only 20 years old. Coincidence? I just love when a pianist breathes new air into Russian classics. Here’s to Rachmaninoff 150 and to my first (and definitely not last) encounter with Roman Borisov.

Hello, Roman, and welcome to Bucharest! You’re about to play Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini alongside Romanian Radio National Orchestra & conductor John Axelrod. Let’s talk about the programme. How would you describe the score?

Obviously, it’s a variation cycle, a set of 24 variations on the 24th and last Caprice by Paganini. To speak precisely about the score, I would say that it’s much drier and simpler and maybe more angular than his usual compositions, than the early Rachmaninoff let’s say. The music itself is very bony and gnarled… it sounds like he wanted to describe Paganini’s portrait (laughs). I don’t know if he did it consciously or unconsciously, but there’s the correlation between Paganini’s Caprice no. 24 and the 24 variations. It might not have been a deliberate decision, but it’s interesting to notice these details in the score. There’s the Dies Irae sequence that we meet a lot... it’s an interesting combination of Caprice 24 variations, Dies Irae and descriptions of Paganini from the people who met him so I would say everything is somehow very smoothly connected.

What was your first contact with the music of Rachmaninoff?

I’m not entirely sure. I suppose the first piece I played was Prelude in G minor, but I think what I first listened to might have been Second Concerto, just because it’s very often performed and I probably attended some performances when I was kid. Consciously, the first piece I played was the fifth prelude op. 23. Over the years I played both sonatas, Corelli Variations, the Second Concerto and now the Rhapsody. I will definitely keep these pieces in my repertoire, but I will also add new ones.

I was going to ask you what was the first Rachmaninoff piece that you played and what does your Rachmaninoff repertoire look like at the moment?

Spoiler! This season I’m playing the Paganini Rhapsody, the Second Concerto, and Corelli Variations. I’ll also record a solo CD with the Corelli Variations. For the next season, I want to include the First Sonata because I really love this piece, even though it’s not very well-known. I think it’s one of Rachmaninoff’s very underestimated compositions. So a lot of work incoming!

Actually, I haven’t listened to it yet. That’s weird.

You haven’t?! You must! It’s really huge, it lasts around 40 minutes, but it’s not a one-time piece or a two-time piece… you have to survive the third movement several times to get used to it and then the music becomes amazing. It’s what I would call gigantism.

Which one of Rachmaninoff’s works is your favorite and why?

Unfortunately, Rachmaninoff didn’t write a lot of pieces, we have less than fifty opuses and several pieces which do not have opus number… are we talking about piano compositions or symphonic music?

Let’s do both.

Both, ok. Of course, the highest point is Symphonic Dances…

Very Russian. I love it.

One very obvious controversial thing is that in the first part this very Russian melody is played by saxophone, which isn’t Russian at all. In Rhapsody, we also have jazz moments, but this sometimes seems more ironic. We have some associations with Gershwin’s Rhapsody since it’s the first attempt to write a rhapsody for piano and orchestra as a big, individual piece. Rhapsody in Blue is of course all about jazz whilst here we have a little more satirical moments I would say. I also like Isle of the Dead, opus 29. It’s a symphonic poem inspired by Arnold Böcklin’s painting with the same name. The highest point is Dances, but that doesn’t mean that everything else is worse, it’s just a little bit different. Maybe Third Symphony is quite close to Dances…

Speaking about piano, for me it’s difficult to be objective. For piano solo, I would go for First Sonata. Concertos, that’s even more difficult – I really love No. 4, but it’s impossible not to mention No. 3, so it’s extremely difficult.

No. 3 is my favorite.

It’s hard to choose. Let’s go for Symphonic Dances, First Piano Sonata, we’ll add Corelli Variations, but I also like Chopin Variations. And piano concertos… all of them.

This is a Rachmaninoff year. We’ve been watching worldwide celebrations for the iconic composer. Have you enjoyed a concert in particular? Do you have a favorite Rachmaninoff interpreter?

It’s a difficult question, because there are so many pianists that perform Rachmaninoff incredibly well and music is not objective. Even subjectively speaking, it’s hard to say, because people play differently but that doesn’t mean that somebody is worse or better, they’re just different. Of course, the best Rachmaninoff interpreter is Rachmaninoff himself, but speaking about modern ones, I really love Lugansky for example. He’s been doing a lot of Rachmaninoff recitals throughout the year. I haven’t had the chance to attend any, but I heard a lot of his Rachmaninoff recordings.

You were introduced to legendary piano teacher Mary Lebenzon at the Novosibirsk Conservatory at the age of four. What would you say was an important early musical experience?

The most important experience was that I really grew up with music. Something I realized only recently is that I never had this question that many people ask themselves at the age of sixteen “what should I do with my life?”. For me, it was always obvious, I simply didn’t have to think about it. You grow up with a dog and you feel like that dog is part of your life, it becomes part of your life.

So, you’ve been playing the piano since…

3 years old. I’m not even sure I was able to talk properly (laughs). Speaking about Mary, we’ve been working for 13 or 14 years together. We’ve come a long way and I appreciate everything she has done for me, her attitude and our great relationship. She really loved music, which is essential because she worked mainly with children and she, somehow, instilled her love for music into all of us. To work on music means to love it, not only to practice. I don’t know how to explain, she simply effortlessly shared this.

You’ve been studying with her from 2007, I guess.

I was four, so yes.

Until 2020.

Exactly.

Until her death.

When the Corona pandemic hit, she suggested to me to have online lessons because I was preparing for important concerts. By that time, I already knew that teaching was extremely difficult for her, and I very much appreciate her taking the time to work with me and sharing her love for music with me until the end.

Wow… What can you tell us about effective mentoring and how can that improve the technical, expressive and psychological qualities of a pianist?

To be honest, Mary and I never worked on technique.

Because you were already good with it (laughing).

I wanted to make the most of my time with such a great teacher, so I prepared the technical side of things beforehand, and focused on her advice and knowledge. It’s very important to have a mentor because experienced people are more experienced, sorry for the tautology (laughs). We’re all different and they know exactly what is better for each and one of us and how to get there. Just because somebody else does something and it works, that doesn’t mean that exact thing will work for you as well. We don’t have to follow the same strategy. And a 10 year-old musician cannot really estimate the situation. Mentors don’t have to be your teachers, it can be someone else or a combination of a teacher and someone else. In music, there are many possibilities of getting better.

You graduated from the College of the Novosibirsk State Conservatory in 2021 and you’re currently a student of the Hanns Eisler School of Music in Berlin.

Genau. You do know.

I did my homework. My German is pretty good as well: Wagner, Kaiserschmarrn, schnitzel (laughs). What are the main differences between Russian and Central European Conservatories? Russian school is very powerful. I’ve been studying ballet for example.

Where?

Here in Romania. And before the pandemic I completed my art history scholarship in Moscow.

So, you lived in Moscow for a while.

Yes, for 7 months.

Have you learnt some Russian?

Я забыла слишком много слов!

We’ll practice.

Well, to begin with, I’ve never studied in conservatories in Russia. I graduated from a special music school, then I went directly to Europe. Because I, personally, wasn’t enrolled in a Russian conservatory, I can’t really compare the institutions. I would say the style is completely different. In Russia there’s a very big accent on theory classes. Also, a very high-level of harmony, solfeggio, music theory, music literature et cetera. If you study there, you spend a lot of time on these lectures. Here it is a bit different. Actually, I heard that in Germany there are Hochschule and Universität der Künste. Apparently, the difference is that Hochschule is more about performing and Universität der Künste is more about teaching, so maybe there would be more theory subjects. My university is quite free. Of course, I have mandatory subjects like solfeggio, music literature et cetera, but I can also choose many, many other classes, from fitness to anything. Last semester I visited chamber classes, this semester I decided I need more fitness in my life (laughs).

Rachmaninoff requires some stamina (laughs).

I would say the approach is a little bit different, both systems have advantages and disadvantages. Russian school is more structured and strict, you’re not given options, you have a mandatory plan that has to be followed, you either study like this or you’re out. Whilst here there’s more freedom, it really depends on the kind of person you are. You have to find what works best for you. If you can focus when you have a lot of freedom and you know that you can do whatever you want whenever you want, it’s good to have options. I can’t say what’s better or worse, but this is the main difference between the two.

Your international acclaim is a result of your participation in many piano competitions. Critical voices believe that today’s competition pianists are lacking certain elements in their playing, that perhaps they are overly concerned with technical perfection. What are your thoughts on the aesthetics of this era and what is your take as a performer nowadays?

I wouldn’t say most of participants are focused on technique, I don’t really agree to that statement. The technical skills are important, obviously, but only as a tool to help you build what you want to build. I think music is something more than just notes and mistakes and dynamic. If people believe you, believe in what you’re doing, if you can convince them, that’s what matters. After a concert, if you speak with people about their thoughts on the performance, nobody will say to you “his technique was great” or “he did 7 mistakes”.

They’ll talk about emotion.

Yes. If they received something. If you do not convince them or they didn’t believe you 100%, then maybe will be some small talks… I actually think we shouldn’t worry that much on technique. If you were to choose between going to a concert with brilliant technique or going to a concert to get some emotions, who will choose brilliant technique?! Nobody.

What are your plans for the near future? Are you going to continue enrolling in piano competitions?

For me, the goal of the competition is to help you to develop your career. It’s not the olympic games — you train to win olympic games and that’s it. Whilst for us, we try to win competitions in order to have something else. Winning is not the goal, the last point. Preparing for competitions takes time, so I’ll see what the next best steps will be.

Good luck!

Thank you!

You said that it is not enough just to play the instrument. “You have to put something into the music, and if you want to put something you have to take that from somewhere”. From where do you take that something? Where do you search for inspiration?

You can search for inspiration, but I think you just live your life and you have some events in your life that you can take inspiration from. You go somewhere, you visit something, you travel, and something happens, it can be something accidental, like a really amazing wave that you accidentally see, or some interesting tree… of course, there can be something planned: if you’re going to the museum, it’s quite obvious that you’ll find something, but if you go to the park, you’re not so sure. I think it’s just about living your life and trying to notice things… I don’t remember Brahms’ words exactly, but he said that artists grab inspiration from bad experiences. As you live your life, you get emotions from talking to people, from your friends, from the ones who don’t like you, from some argues/fights et cetera. It’s not about looking for inspiration here, in this corner, or over there, in that corner. We’re having a conversation right now, this can be an inspirational experience. It’s a possibility.

If you could have dinner with 3 pianists or composers, who would you choose and what would you ask them?

Composers it would be Rachmaninoff, Brahms and Beethoven. And pianists… Rachmaninoff (laughs)… hmm, it’s a conductor but I would really love to meet and talk to Ormandy about the recording process with Rachmaninoff, it would be interesting to hear opinions from both sides. The next would be Emil Gilels, he was the favorite pianist of my first teacher, so he’s very important for me personally. I don’t know what I would ask him exactly, but I would love to get to know him, to feel this vibe from my teacher. To feel this emotional wave from my teacher through her favorite musician. And… (thinking pause) Glenn Gould.

I swear I was thinking about Glenn Gould. The guy’s insane.

Let’s talk to Glenn Gould! I want to see him watching seven televisions at once whilst answering my question (laughs).

How do you define music for yourself?

Is it too basic to say that it’s the biggest part of my life? Because it’s true. As I said before, music is not about notes and mistakes, it’s something more. If your life lacks emotion, music can help you to fill this empty space. I’m getting lost in my words, that’s not an easy question. Music was there my whole life, I didn’t consciously choose it.

Do you come from a musical family?

No, not at all. Everyone is a doctor in my family.

And you began to play out of nowhere at 3 years old?

My parents noticed that when I saw a piano in someone’s house or anywhere else, I tried to somehow push some notes, I was playing with it and they decided to take me to the music school. General education, good for the brain. They found a private teacher who was specialised in working with children, and after she tested me she told my parents that they have to take me to college to one specific teacher. I mean, I don’t remember a thing, but my parents told me they started to worry about my future, but here I am… Fourteen years later, in Berlin, still studying music.

Do you have perfect pitch?

Yes. Not the type that makes you able to hear a quarter of tones, but yes. My classmates were always looking in my notebooks (laughs).