Some very fine playing from a pianist I have heard many times over the past years during his studies with Dmitri Alexeev at the R.C.M. A young man trained superbly from a very early age yet seemed to have lost his way in a period when every young person has to find his own direction and the path that he wants to follow. I had heard from my colleague Elena Vorotoko who was on the jury of the Sheepdrove competition in Newbury recently that Nikita had won first prize, as he had evidently now found the direction and reignited a passion for music that has always been deep inside him. Today I heard a young man with something to say and a means to say it with burning intensity and conviction. It was so refreshing to see how the physical movements related so beautifully with the sounds he was making – like a painter in front of his canvas . This was a programme that needs a master pianist to do it justice, with Ravel’s Gaspard de la Nuit written especially as a test for pianists. Followed by Prokofiev’s Seventh Sonata – the second of his trilogy of war sonatas – and where the last movement is a ‘Precipitato’ of relentless dynamic drive. In between was one of Liszt’s Paganini Studies , a true test for any pianist.
Of course with Bach nothing can be hidden and Nikita had nothing to fear as the clarity and precision of his playing was matched by his intellectual and musical understanding. Immediately we were struck by the beauty in the way he approaches the keys with playing of great clarity and a kaleidoscope of sounds . The absolute precision of the fugue was played with very little pedal but with a rhythmic drive of burning intensity. Nikita gave an architectural shape to the various episodes of this youthful Toccata that is bubbling over with ideas and abrupt contrasts as Bach delights in spontaneity and a sense of improvised invention.
Poor Ondine at the beginning was submerged in water but as Nikita entered into this magic world she appeared with a glowing beauty as the water was allowed to shimmer with sparkling brilliance all around her . A breathtaking climax was played with controlled passion and extraordinary mastery with glissandi that seemed so easy, even gliding over the black keys with his left hand fist. There were ravishing waves as Ondine disappeared into the distance under Nikitas sensitive hands. Le Gibet was played with chiselled beauty and purity with a tempo where the relentless tolling of the bell created the atmosphere of the desolate gallows swinging in the distance. Nikita played with a remarkable control of tempo and colouring as the demon Scarbo shot out of the dark. This movement was written by Ravel to out do the difficulty of Balakirev’s Islamey. It is notoriously difficult to maintain the tempo and burning intensity but at the same time play with clarity and a kaleidoscope of colours .Nikita gave a remarkable performance of burning intensity and dynamic drive.
It was the same mastery he brought to Paganini, but here there was not only extraordinary technical brilliance but also a charm and grace that can turn a study into a miniature tone poem.
It was ,though, Prokofiev that truly ignited Nikita’s imagination with a performance of striking contrasts and a kaleidoscope of colour and driving brilliance . The first movement was certainly ‘Inquieto’ with the jagged rhythms and pounding chords contrasting with the beauty of the Andantino. A slow movement that was indeed ‘Caloroso ‘with playing of great beauty and almost improvised freedom with its brooding repetitive menacing murmurs before the consoling beauty of the return of the main melody. The ‘Precipitato’ just shot from Nikita’s fingers with astonishing control .Never allowing the tension to sag and with ‘marcato’ injections of horror thrown in on a terrifying journey that explodes in the final bars and which Nikita played with fearless abandon .
Born into a family of musicians in Donetsk, Ukraine, pianist Nikita Burzanitsa began his musical training at the age of seven with Prof. Nataliya Chesnokova. He studied at the Special Music School for Gifted Children in Donetsk, where his talent quickly drew national attention through multiple first prizes in prestigious competitions, including the Horowitz Debut, Artobolevsky, and Per aspera ad astra.
In 2015, he received a full scholarship to Wells Cathedral School in the UK and subsequently continued his studies at the Royal College of Music in London. There, he completed his Bachelor of Music, Master of Performance, and Artist Diploma, studying under John Byrne and later Dmitri Alexeev. His studies were generously supported by awards and scholarships from the ABRSM, Piano Charitable Trust, Talent Unlimited, and the Drake Calleja Trust.
Nikita has performed extensively throughout Europe, including solo recitals and concerto appearances in the UK, France, Italy, Poland, Belgium, and Kazakhstan. He has played with leading orchestras under conductors such as Nikolay Dyadura, Vladimir Sirenko, and Natalia Ponomarchuk. He is a laureate of numerous competitions, including the BPSE Intercollegiate Piano Competition, the Jazeps Vitols International Piano Competition (Latvia),the Vienna Virtuoso Competition, and in 2025 the Sheepdrove Competition in Newbury
ChristopherAxworthy-MusicCommentary 