NZSM hosts Sofya Gulyak

Te Koki, New Zealand School of Music is delighted to welcome Russian-born pianist Sofya Gulyak directly from her April 25th performance for the New Zealand International Piano Festival (NZIPF) in Auckland.

Sofya Gulyak is currently the only woman to have won the Leeds Piano Competition, in 2009, and she has since appeared in concerts all over the world to great acclaim. In addition to her worldwide performances in solo recital, Sofya Gulyak has appeared with many front-rank orchestras, and in major music festivals such as the Liszt Festival at the Villa d’Este, and the Chopin festival in Duzniki-Zdroj. She has had recitals broadcast on the radio and TV stations of more than a dozen countries. She is also sought after for masterclasses, notably in Russia and in Paris, and now, through NZIPF and NZSM, in New Zealand.

Sofya will present an all-Russian programme in this concert.
A 'Rachmaninov' first half features four of the composer’s shorter pieces, and includes the famous 'Prelude in c sharp minor'. These items are followed by Rachmaninov’s last solo piano piece, the 'Corelli Variations'; not so well known perhaps as his Paganini Variations, but warm, showy, and at the time, very modern.

This concert’s second half will open with two Scriabin ‘Poemes’ in the manner of Chopin, followed by a 'Prelude and Fugue' by Shostakovich, a work much influenced by Bach. The climax of the programme will be Prokofiev’s 'War Sonata: Number 6', composed during WW2, and full of a wide range of conflicting moods including sadness, mockery, drama, and even violence.

Sofya Gulyak will also conduct a masterclass with NZSM piano students on Friday 27 April in the same venue. Members of the public are welcome to attend as observers at no charge.
NZSM is indebted to NZIPF and John Eady for facilitating Ms Gulyak's visit to Wellington.