“The tour itself, it was a fantastic experience. I cherished discovering new places and meeting so many kind people, and I greatly appreciated the devoted and detailed guidance from the Keyboard Trust both in the months leading up to the tour and throughout it. That reliability is absolutely invaluable on such travels.
Each venue had its own uniqueness. Some pianos indeed allowed me to work particularly well on the repertoire and therefore to enjoy the performance even more – although what will stay with me most is the warmth, support, and heartfelt response of the audiences everywhere. For me, that metaphysical connection with the public is the true essence of performing; their reaction is the only way to know whether what I am each time striving to share has truly reached them.
I hope these reflections are helpful for your article, and I look forward very much to meeting you soon. Thank you again for your immense dedication, and for the honour of performing under the KT banner.
With warmest wishes,
Vladimir “
Vladimir PETROV Laureate and audience prize winner at the 63rd F. Busoni International Piano Competition (Italy, 2021).
Vladimir Petrov has been celebrated as “one of the best pianists of his generation” (Viviana Aubele, «Martin Wullich journal»). Critics have hailed him as “an amazing, highly talented pianist” (Denis Matsuev, Madiazvod) whose playing embodies “rare musicality and inimitable spirit” (Yurii Danilin, Literary Gazette). With roots in Russia, Petrov was raised from the age of three in Mexico, which he affectionately considers his homeland.
In addition to his appearance at the Busoni competition, he has also found success at numerous other international competitions, including first-prize wins at international competitions, such as «Lotar Shevchenko» in Russia; «Ciudad de Vigo» (Spain); «Jose Jacinto Cuevas» – Yamaha (Mexico); «NTD piano competition» (New York, USA), and «Neapolitan Masters Competition» (Italy).
His active concert career has included performances in Spain, Germany, France, South Korea, the United Stated, Holland, Russia, Italy, Hungary, Malta, Cyprus, Switzerland, Canada, Mexico, Belarus, Romania, Italy, Argentina, Colombia, and Chile.His concert activity includes several appearances at the most famous concert halls, such as the «Salle Cortot» in Paris, France, «Salle Frank Martin» in Geneva, Switzerland, Carnegie Hall (Weill Hall) in New York, USA, the Great Hall of the Moscow State Conservatory, Bolshoi and
Mariinsky Theatres in Russia. Vladimir Petrov has performed with major orchestras in Europe, collaborated with many conductors, including Valery Gergiev, Lanfranco Marceletti, Tito Muñoz, Pavel Gerstein, Gleb Skvortsov, among others. Additionally, he has collaborated in concert tours with the great violinists Graf Mourzha and Kristof Barati.
He has released four solo albums, including «Encores» (2021, «Mans» label, Spain), his 2019 release including Schumann’s Symphonic Etudes, was recorded in the famed Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory. The next album is scheduled for release in 2025, was recorded in New York.
Vladimir Petrov graduated from the Tchaikovsky State Conservatory in Moscow in 2020, where he studied with Valerii Piassetsky, and Elisso Virsaladze (top-graduate student of the year award). He continued his studies at the Hochschüle für Musik F. Liszt in Germany, with Grigory Gruzman.
Currently based in New York, he is pursuing a postgraduate degree at the Manhattan School of Music under the tutelage of Horacio Gutierrez.
Vladimir Petrov in Castleton Virginia,
12th October 2025 @ 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm Castleton Festival, Virginia 663 Castleton View Road, Castleton, VA, ( see below for comments and review)
Vladimir Petrov in Washington DC, USA
14th October 2025 @ 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm Arts Club of Washington 2017 I St NW, Washington, DC ( see below for comments)
Vladimir Petrov in Philadelphia
15th October 2025 @ 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm. A private recital at the home of Jane Guerin in Philadelphia.
Vladimir Petrov in Delaware, USA
17th October 2025 @ 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm. Cokesbury Village, USA 726 Loveville Road, Hockessin, DE,
Vladimir Petrov, piano, video of the concert sponsored by the Keyboard Trust in the auditorium at Cokesbury Village on October 17, 2025
https://youtu.be/8H9mfQU9w_M?si=73AVnECoO37iQF75
Helen Foss writes : ‘He was WONDERFUL!!!!!!!!’
Vladimir Petrov in Delaware, USA
18th October 2025 @ 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm Country House, Delaware, USA 4830 Kennett Pike,, Wilmington,
Janet Jones writes : ‘ Dear Helen, Thank you for arranging this. This was one of the highlights of my classical music experiences. Vladimir Petrov gave an Immaculate performance and made sure that the audience heard every note he played. It was quite wonderful and magical. Thank you for making it possible. Jan J’
Vladimir Petrov at Klavierhaus, New York – LIVESTREAM on 19 October 7pm (BST) Link to concert https://www.youtube.com/live/t7XoaemSTaQ?si=3LXxcmmO52rqzgok
Klavierhaus, New York, USA 790 11th Ave, New York, NY,( see below for review by Christopher Axworthy )
PROGRAMMES
CASTLETON, VIRGINIA (90 mins – with interval)
Bach/Siloti – Prelude in B minor
J. Haydn – Sonata in C major Hob. XVI:50
F. Chopin – Sonata No. 3 in B minor, Op. 58
– interval –
M. Ravel – Ondine from Gaspard de la Nuit
A. Scriabin – Prelude and Nocturne Op. 9
S. Rachmaninov – Moments musicaux Op. 16 Nos. 3, 4, 5, 6
EVERYWHERE ELSE (60 mins – no interval)
Bach/Siloti – Prelude in B minor
J. Haydn – Sonata in C major Hob. XVI:50
M. Ravel – Ondine from Gaspard de la Nuit
A. Scriabin – Prelude and Nocturne Op. 9
F. Chopin – Scherzo No. 3 in C sharp minor, Op. 39
Much belated thank you for your kind words! I just sent you a detailed report about this magnificent concert – full house – standing ovations – mesmerizing performance!!! And the sweetest house guest one could imagine…
Thank you for sending Vladimir to us – he was such an enriching experience for our audience, for me personally, and he played so so well!!! Dietlinde Maazel Wood Castleton
Petrov’s Transcendent Performance
By Paul Reisler • 10-14-25
I think the last time I wrote a music review was back in the 60’s when I reviewed a performance in Washington of The Band’s final tour—the Last Waltz for my college newspaper. My ink well ran dry believing Martin Mull’s declaration that “writing about music is like dancing about
architecture.”
Somehow, the October 12th concert by pianist Vladimer Petrov at the Castleton Theatre House revived my sleeping pen.
Petrov’s meticulously woven Gaspard de la Nuit by Maurice Ravel painted the story of each of the three poems of Aloysius Bertrand that inspired the suite. As a songwriter, I’ve always believed that “the music is in the words, and the words are in the music.” In Petrov’s reading
we could hear the poetry–a dark, fantastical vision of medieval Europe drawn from the worlds of Rembrandt and Callot. Petrov’s fingers flew over the keys like butterflies in flight, lovingly caressing each note in a cascade of shimmering arpeggios.
After suffering an injury to his right hand, Scriabin wrote Prelude and Nocturne Op.9 for the left hand. With one hand tied figuratively behind his back, Petrov was able to conjure an evocative harmonic richness that sounded as if it were piano for four hands…not one.
While the program featured masterful interpretations of Bach’s Prelude in B minor, Haydn’s Sonata in C major, as well as some of the most difficult pieces in the entire repertoire including
Chopin’s Sonata No. 3 and Rachmaninov’s Moments Musicaux, it’s not the compositions I want to write about.
What had us all hanging over the balcony, what threw us back against our chairs, and what brought us instantly to our feet was the way Petrov imbued meaning into every single phrase.
He wasn’t reciting a section or playing through a movement, he was letting us in on an intimate conversation between one phrase and the next. It whispered, it thundered, it touched us
deeply. The music was dense—raindrops in a hurricane. Yet, every note rang out with clarity, subtlety and purpose.
It’s hard to imagine that after a lifetime of music, I can still hear a concert that I can call one of the best I’ve ever heard. It could only happen at Castleton where the intimacy and acoustic
perfection of the hall, the ongoing partnership between Castleton and London’s Keyboard Charitable Trust, and such impeccable artistry blend together to create a transcendent afternoon of musical magic.
Jaimie Treese of country house Delaware writes :” Vladimir was fantastic and our residents had the opportunity to dine with him prior to his performance.”
‘Vladimir is MARVELLOUS! We moved the planned salon concert from our upstairs Monroe Parlor to our theatre on the first floor. He performed on our newest Steinway on our historic stage. The turnout was very good. His talent is stellar.’ Jameson Paul Freeman, President, The Arts Club of Washington
Attached are some photos that guests took of the evening. I have a few short videos as well, which we shared over our social media.
Marja Kaisla in Philadelphia writes
Vladimir Petrov’s performance at the Young Musicians Musicales series was extremely well received by the enthusiastic audience, as the music was highly emotionally charged at all times, no matter which composer, combined with the pianist’s extraordinary technical facility. He began with the solemn Bach/Siloti Prelude with exquisitely crafted voicing, followed by the late Haydn C Major Sonata, in which the 2nd movement presented the pianist with an opportunity to treat it as almost an improvisatory romance, sandwiched by quirky outer movements.
While freshly learned, Vladimir was able to bring about a beautiful display of colors washed in ever-changing keys in Ondine from Ravel’s Gaspard de la nuit.
Rachmaninoff’s two Musical Moments had a somewhat mysteriously quality, but together with two additional Preludes, Vladimir was able to show his very impressive command of the instrument and once again bring the music to incredible emotional rollercoaster, for the listener virtually impossible to escape. Vladimir is able to maintain two seemingly opposite qualities in his portrayal of music, especially in “fast and furious” pieces: while well thought out, it also feels interestingly improvisatory.
Scriabin’s Prelude and Nocturne for the left hand were subtle but no less expressive than rest of the program, and for this writer, the Nocturne may have been the highlight of the program, as both the voicing and phrasing were exceedingly well thought out and crafted accordingly.
The program ended with Chopin’s Scherzo C sharp minor op. 39. Vladimir gave his all in his powerful portrayal of the intense drama of the stormy octaves and contrasting angelic arpeggios.
The audience was treated to the delightful Chopin’s Minute Waltz – any audience’s perpetual favourite encore.
Watch VLADIMIR PETROV, currently on the Keyboard Trust US Tour, live from Klavierhaus in New York this evening – Sunday 19 October – at 7pm (BST).
The refined artistry of a star a review by Christopher Axworthy
A beautiful way to start a concert with Siloti’s transcription of Bach’s Prelude in E minor BWV 855a that has been described as “perhaps Siloti’s most tender and perfect” transcription. It transposes Bach’s original down from the original E minor into B minor, with the steady semiquaver figuration that was originally given by Bach to the left hand being instead assigned to the right hand. Siloti also adds a repeat of the entire work, in order to allow for a change of voicing where the melody in the left hand is emphasized. In the published score, the chords in the left hand are arpeggiated ; however, according to Siloti’s daughter Kyriena (to whom the work was dedicated), he would omit the arpeggiation on the first pass and restore it on the repeat in order to heighten the effect of the left-hand melody. It has been performed by many pianists, most famously Emil Gilels but also by Tatyana Nikolaeva and our own Vitaly Pisarenko . Vitaly played it in a special weekend dedicated to the people of Aquila ,who had recently suffered a devastating earthquake not far from Rome. I remember our founders accompanying pianists of the Keyboard Trust from three different nations : Vitaly Pisarenko ,Pablo Rossi and Me Yi Fu to offer a weekend of hope and beauty to the survivors. A concert hall donated to this devastated city by the city of Trento and inaugurated by Claudio Abbado ( one of the original Trustees and founder member of the KT).The moment that Vitaly played the opening notes of this Prelude on a beautiful Fabbrini Steinway , Noretta and I looked at each other as the celestial sounds wafted around this desolate city and it was a feeling of love and beauty that filled this torrid atmosphere.
Vladimir was playing on a brighter Fazioli piano than the Steinway and brought a crystalline clarity to the opening but also a warmth as his superb sense of balance allowed the tenor melody to sing with chorale like poignancy, as the gentle wave of sounds continued like water flowing gently in a mountain stream. Vladimir’s beautiful long fingers stretched out over they keys with a natural shape just as Chopin would encourage his pupils to caress the keys. This was rather than the claw like precision that had been necessary for keyboard instruments before the invention of the pedals ,which Anton Rubinstein declared were the very soul of the piano.
The Haydn ‘English’ Sonata was written for and dedicated to Therese Jansen Bartolozzi in 1794 who subsequently published the sonata with the title: “A Grand Sonata for the Piano Forte Composed Expressly for and dedicated to Mrs. Bartolozzi by Haydn … Op. 79 … London. Printed for, and to be had of the Proprietor 82 Wells Street and of the Publishers J. and H. Caulfield 36 Picadilly.” Vladimir played it with brilliant rhythmic clarity and Haydn’s genial use of the pedal created a music box effect played by Vladimir with refined delicacy. Vladimir sacrificed charm and elegance in this first movement,though, for classical purity and brilliance . It was to the Adagio that he brought noble beauty and radiance before the exhilarating ‘joie de vivre’ of the Allegro molto that sprang from his well oiled fingers with lightness and dynamic drive.
Of course it was to Rachmaninov that he brought a kaleidoscope of colours and nostalgic beauty. A glowing warmth and beauty to the first Moment musicaux and a remarkable fluidity to the streams of notes of the second that he played with passionate intensity. There was subtle beauty to the Prelude op 32 n.5 in G minor with the beautiful mellifluous flowing left hand on which was floated a melody of timeless nostalgia and delicacy. There was ravishing beauty too, to the tenor melody of op 32 n. 12 with stylish playing of subtle beauty. A natural freedom where the melodic line was allowed to build to a climax of passionate intensity before dissolving to a mere whisper finishing in a puff of smoke.
Scriabin’s Prelude and Nocturne for the left hand alone was played with subtle rubato and a kaleidoscope of ravishing colours.The nocturne taking wing with a glowing whispered fluidity and an etherial cadenza of featherlight fantasy like jewels glistening in the half light of this intoxicating atmosphere.
Chopin’s Third Scherzo was played with the extraordinary contrasts between dynamic octave drive and the magically decorated chorale. A coda of breathtaking brilliance and excitement brought this great work to a masterly conclusion .
Two encores by great request , the last of which was the Minute Waltz played in 99 seconds but with such beguiling beauty and artistry it could have lasted even longer. The first encore was a transcription by Alexis Weissenberg of Trenet’s song ‘En Avril à Paris. It was played with the relaxed mastery of an Oscar Peterson or Art Tatum throwing streams of notes off with nonchalant ease and elegant showmanship .
ChristopherAxworthy-MusicCommentary 