Alexander Melnikov
Influenced by Sviatoslav Richter in his younger years, Alexander Melnikov became interested in the fortepiano and has devoted much of his career to historical performances. He is also an enthusiastic chamber music performer on both the fortepiano and the modern piano.
Melnikov was born in Moscow in 1973. A child prodigy, he performed Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 1 in F sharp minor, Op. 1, at the age of 12. He encountered Richter as a youth and was invited by him to perform at festivals in Russia and abroad. Melnikov entered the Moscow Conservatory, where he studied with Lev Naumov. More unusually, he became interested in historical performance, still a rarity in Russia in the early '90s, at age 18. He studied in that field with Alexei Lubimov, a Russian pioneer in historical performance, and with Andreas Staier, who became a frequent collaborator; the pair has often performed the 24 Preludes and Fugues for piano of Shostakovich, with Melnikov on piano, and Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier, with Staier on harpsichord. His recording debut came on the modern piano in 1996; he backed cellist Leonid Gorokhov on an album devoted to cello-and-piano works by Prokofiev, Stravinsky, and Shostakovich.
Melnikov has performed recitals at such prestigious venues as Wigmore Hall in London, Tokyo's Suntory Hall, and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. As a concerto soloist, he has performed with the NDR Sinfonieorchester, the Concertgebouw Orchestra, and the Philadelphia Orchestra, among many other top ensembles. Melnikov has been particularly noted as a chamber music player, appearing in this capacity on both modern and historical instruments. He has regularly performed with violinist Isabelle Faust, and the pair's recording of Beethoven's violin sonatas earned the ECHO Klassik prize and a Gramophone Award. He has also appeared with cellist Alexander Rudin and Jean-Guihen Queyras, baritone Georg Nigl, and larger groups. He often performs with major historical-instrument ensembles such as the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra, Concerto Köln, and the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin.
Melnikov has recorded mostly for the Harmonia Mundi label, with a 2012 disc featuring the two Shostakovich piano concertos, under conductor Teodor Currentzis, recognized as a standout. In 2020, he and Faust released the second volume in a new cycle devoted to Mozart's violin sonatas. That series continued to appear through the COVID-19 pandemic, during which Melnikov remained active; he released seven albums in 2021 and 2022 alone. In 2023, he released the album Fantasie: 7 Composers, 7 Keyboards, which featured instruments from his own collection. By that time, his recording catalog comprised some 40 albums.
© James Manheim /TiVo
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Ludwig van Beethoven : Complete Works for Violoncello and Piano
Jean-Guihen Queyras, Alexander Melnikov
Duo´s - Released by harmonia mundi on 22 sep. 2014
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Violin Sonatas Nos. 2 & 3 / Schumann: 3 Romances / F-A-E Sonata
Alexander Melnikov, Isabelle Faust
Duo´s - Released by harmonia mundi on 17 sep. 2015
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Violin Sonata No. 9 "Kreutzer"
Isabelle Faust, Alexander Melnikov
Klassiek - Released by harmonia mundi on 26 jun. 2020
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Horn and Piano: A Cor Basse Recital
Teunis van der Zwart, Alexander Melnikov
Kamermuziek - Released by harmonia mundi on 7 jan. 2022
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Johannes Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1 & Tragic Overture - Cherubini: Éliza (Overture)
Alexander Melnikov, Ivor Bolton, Sinfonieorchester Basel
Concertmuziek - Released by harmonia mundi on 27 aug. 2021
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Scriabin: Piano Sonatas Nos. 2, 3, 9 & Other Piano Works
Klassiek - Released by harmonia mundi on 31 jul. 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ludwig van Beethoven : Sonates pour violon & piano (Intégrale) (Isabelle Faust - Alexander Melnikov)
Kamermuziek - Released by harmonia mundi on 24 aug. 2009
Gramophone Award24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninov: Etudes-tableaux, Op.39, Poems, Op.38
Klassiek - Released by harmonia mundi on 14 apr. 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Piano Sonatas Nos.1 & 2
Klassiek - Released by harmonia mundi on 15 feb. 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Scriabine: Œuvres pour piano
Klassiek - Released by harmonia mundi on 31 jul. 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninov: Études-Tableaux
Elena Brilova, Alexander Melnikov
Klassiek - Released by harmonia mundi on 14 apr. 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart, Schubert & Chopin: Three Sonatas
Concertmuziek - Released by Pavane Records on 1 jan. 1991
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo