Nikita Magaloff
Nikita Magaloff was one of the more interesting and charismatic keyboard figures of the twentieth century. Many of his recordings are still available and in modern sound; yet here was a man who was a friend of Rachmaninov, Prokofiev, from whom he took composition lessons, and Ravel, who was an enthusiastic admirer. Magaloff concertized with the most important conductors and orchestras of the day and at the most prestigious festivals. He also collaborated with the leading string players, like violinist Joseph Szigeti. Though Magaloff was born in Russia, he was cosmopolitan in outlook, with a broad repertory that favored Chopin: he played many all-Chopin concerts and had the distinction of being the first pianist to record all of Chopin's piano music. But his repertory also included Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Mozart, Brahms, Schumann, Liszt, Debussy, Ravel, Fauré, Prokofiev, Rachmaninov, Stravinsky, Scriabin, and numerous others. Many of Magaloff's recordings are available on Philips and Decca.
Magaloff was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, on February 8 (January 26, Julian, or old style), 1912. His family fled the Revolution when he was six, traveling first to Finland, then to the United States, and finally settling in Paris in 1922. Magaloff's first advanced studies were at the Paris Conservatory, where his chief teacher was Isidor Philipp.
It was in the 1920s in Paris that Magaloff met Prokofiev, Ravel, and Rachmaninov, composers whose music and influence figured prominently in his career. He also befriended Szigeti there, a man he credited with introducing him to a broad range of chamber music and whose daughter he would later marry.
While from the 1920s through the 1950s Magaloff was active in the concert hall and recording studio, his career seemed to take wing after 1960. This lift might have been due to the cessation of his teaching activities: from 1949 to 1959 he regularly held master classes at the Geneva Conservatory. But then perhaps part of Magaloff's late success owed something to the change in his style: he took more chances, displayed greater passion, and played, arguably, with more spirit.
Most of Magaloff's available recordings were made after 1960. He remained busy throughout the last three decades of his career, hardly slowing down even near the end: in the 1990-1991 season, he gave a six-concert series that covered nearly the complete Chopin output. He died in Vevey, Switzerland, of cancer on December 26, 1992.
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Franz Schubert: Trios Op.99, Op.100
Arthur Grumiaux, Pierre Fournier, Nikita Magaloff
Klassik - Erschienen bei NAR International am 01.04.2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
R. Schumann: Allegro in B Minor, Op. 8 & Waldszenen, Op. 82
Klassik - Erschienen bei SWR Mediaservices GmbH am 25.05.2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Le Petit Ménestrel: Debussy raconté aux enfants
Jean Piat, Thierry Bourdon, Rene Morard, Nikita Magaloff
Kinder - Erschienen bei Universal Music Division Decca Records France am 01.01.2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
R. Schumann: Papillons, Op. 2 & Carnaval, Op. 9
Klassik - Erschienen bei SWR Mediaservices GmbH am 12.10.2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Granados: Goyescas, extraits de la suite pour piano & El Pelele (Mono Version)
Verschiedenes - Erschienen bei BNF Collection am 01.01.1954
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Chopin: The Complete Piano Music
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 01.01.1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Liszt: The Complete Etudes
Claudio Arrau, Nikita Magaloff
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 01.01.1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Chopin: 24 Preludes, Piano Sonata No. 3
Klassik - Erschienen bei Denon am 11.08.2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Scriabin: Les trois cahiers d'études pour piano
Klassik - Erschienen bei naïve classique am 01.04.1994
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
R. Schumann: Albumblätter, 6 Paganini-Étuden & 5 Gesänge der Frühe
Klassik - Erschienen bei SWR Mediaservices GmbH am 01.06.2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mendelssohn (Live au Festival de Montreux-Vevey / 1988)
Klassik - Erschienen bei Universal Music Division Decca Records France am 04.05.2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Chopin - Mazurkas, Preludes & Etudes
Klassik - Erschienen bei UME - Global Clearing House am 25.11.2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Magaloff Plays Chopin
Klassik - Erschienen bei UME - Global Clearing House am 09.01.2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Scriabin: Piano Sonatas Nos. 5 & 9, "Black Mass" & 8 Etudes, Op. 42
Klassik - Erschienen bei SWR Mediaservices GmbH am 01.08.2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
La valse
Klassik - Erschienen bei Universal Music Division Decca Records France am 04.05.2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mendelssohn: Trios Op. 49, Op. 66
Arthur Grumiaux, Pierre Fournier, Nikita Magaloff
Klassik - Erschienen bei NAR International am 01.01.1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Les tableaux d'une exposition et autres grandes pages de musique russe
Klassik - Erschienen bei naïve classique am 01.01.1998
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Debussy. Fauré. Ravel
Klassik - Erschienen bei Universal Music Division Decca Records France am 04.05.2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Granados: Goyescas, El pelele
Klassik - Erschienen bei Universal Music Australia Pty. Ltd. am 01.01.1954
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Chopin: 51 Mazurkas
Klassik - Erschienen bei Universal Music Australia Pty. Ltd. am 01.01.1957
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Chopin: Recital
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 01.01.1955
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo