Nikolai Kapustin - Early Pieces Collection (1962-1982)

DISCLAIMER: All the rights belong to maestro Nikolai Kapustin - even of his unpublished pieces - as well as performances (also to A Bu's 2017 recordings - check his channel here:    / @abu4064  .
This video's main intention is to spread Kapustin's compositional crafting to a greater audience, for them to better know his music


NIKOLAI KAPUSTIN - Early Phase's surviving recordings for big band and piano (1961-1983)

(---------) Op.2 = Piano Concerto n°1 (1961) [check pinned comment]
(00:00) Op.3 = Variations (1962)
(03:20) Op.6 = Rose-Marie Fantasia (1962)
(12:51) Op.8 = Toccata (1964)
(15:16) Op.10 = Big Band Sounds (1966)
(19:39) Op.12 = Aquarium Blues (1967)
(23:39) Op.14 = Piano Concerto No.2 (1972) (mvt.2 29:16 / mvt.3 34:34)
(39:12) Op.16 = Nocturne (1972)
(44:02) Op.19 = Étude (1974)
(47:40) Op.20 = Nocturne (1974)
(51:27) Op.21 = Minuet (1974)
(58:25) Op.24 = March (1975)
(1:00:54) Op.25 = Concert Rhapsody (1976)
(1:10:58) Op.26 = Daybreak (1976)
(------------) Op.30 = Two-Movement Concerto (1980) [check pinned comment]
(1:14:32) Op.34 = Meridian (1982)
(1:18:22) Op.35 = Closed Curve (1982)
(------------) Op.38 = Presentiment (1983) [check pinned comment]

BONUS:

(1:21:02) Op.3 = Variations (1962) [2017 PERFORMANCE]
(1:24:21) Op.19 = Etude (1974) [2017 PERFORMANCE]


*[????] means that its recording wasn't from the piece's première. Ex: 2017 (A Bu's performances) and 1980 (Tchaikovsky Hall performance)
*[=] means that it has both original and 2017 recordings (thus making the "Extra" part of this video with the new recordings)
*For Op.14 I didn't include a new recording, as there are plenty of them
*Op.27 wasn't included, for it being a piano solo piece
*Op.30 (Two-mvt. Concerto) wasn't included in the video's release as it only had a 4-hands piano performance on Youtube. But I shared a link to a well-done digital recording on the pinned comment. It might have a real live performance, as it was premiered in Brazil in 2014, but for now, there's no live recording of this piece we have notice of.

Most of these early pieces have only these recordings as a proof of existence: their sheet music are mislaid, with exception of the pieces performed by A Bu in 2017; and few other pieces from the list with found score and which got published

These early pieces sound quite different of what we're used to listen from Kapustin in his piano pieces. These pieces were designed for big bands, back when Kapustin was a band member in the 1960s and later a radio/cinema composer and performer in the 1970s and early 1980s. It was Kapustin's first phase as a composer (1957 - early 1980s)

As Kapustin was surrounded by a jazz band environment by his job in the 60s and 70s, it reflected on his pieces sounding a lot more like jazz repertoire, as he wrote them to be performed by his own big band ensemble. Being a classical virtuoso, Kapustin was very adventurous with his early compositions. Pieces like the 1st Piano Concerto were almost never performed, as his big band was used to light material only, and a proper concerto required too much endurance of the musicians - which didn't mean the piece had an insane difficulty as a concerto. It simply wasn't his band's comfort zone.

Kapustin left the big band and excessive traveling in 1972 to care for his family, as he started working for a radio orchestra. He still composed for orchestras and big ensembles, including film music. In 1980, Kapustin made his last stage performance with an orchestra, and his farewell couldn't be more special: his Piano Concerto n°2 performed at the Tchaikovsky Hall (which I believe this is where the famous recording with Kapustin as soloist comes from, and is the one I used in this video)

After 1980, Kapustin could finally become a full-time composer. As the big band routine became distant from Kapustin, writing pieces for this large ensemble lost priority to him. While Kapustin exchanged live performances to home recordings, he focused on piano pieces, and eventually on ensemble and even new piano concertos. From his 2nd phase as composer (1980s to 1993), many pieces are beloved by Kapustin's fans, the most famous ones are his 1st Piano Sonata and Concert Etudes (both from 1984), 24 Preludes in Jazz Style (1988), his 4th Piano Concerto (1989, being performed by well known soloists), among others

After his 6th Piano Concerto (1993), Kapustin focused on enhancing his piano solo repertoire and composed various Piano Sonatas and short pieces. And, after long years, Kapustin may have finally found the perfect balance between jazz and classical, in his later pieces (2000 onwards). From this 3rd phase, my favorite piece is "Paraphrase on Aquarela do Brasil" (2003), blending not only classical and jazz, but also early 20th century samba - genres from 3 different continents!

Enjoy some vintage Kapustin!

[p.s: Closed Curve is the most "disco" music with Opus number you'll ever listen]