Chopin: 3 Etudes Sonata

DMITRY SHISHKIN

In the long history of the International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition, it has been rare for Russia not to be represented among the laureates, and 2015 proved the rule again. This time, though, the highest-ranking Russian was placed sixth in the final accounting: Dmitry Shishkin, who by the standards of Russian-schooled players had displayed quite a light touch. Something of a veteran of competitions already- having won prizes in youth competitions as long ago as 2006, and more significantly the third prize in the 2013 Ferruccio Busoni Competition- Shishkin certainly showed that he knew how to pace himself across the grueling three weeks in Warsaw. Weighing up his performances for the Chopin Courier at the end of the competition, Andrzej Sulek said that, ‘From the first round onwards, the Russian presented enormous technical potential,’ also adding that, ‘On the plus side of his balance sheet, we should mention structure drawn with geometric clarity. And this, too, distinguished his vision of the Concerto in E minor.’ Shishkin’s virtuosity was never in doubt, at least not after he launched himself into the First Stage with the first three of the Etudes Op. 10. The bravura dimension he supplies in the first of these, in C major, serves very satisfyingly to show just how in this early part of Chopin’s career the composer was already elevating the Etude form onto its highest musical plane.

Price: $22.98