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Barbara Nissman
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Full Name: Barbara Nissman
Born:
Philadelphia, PA, USA
Nationality: American
Instrument: piano
Home Page: http://www.barbaranissman.com/
Discography: http://users.sgi.net/~bniss/recordings.htm
Biography
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Barbara Nissman received a doctoral degree from the University of Michigan. Her international career took off in 1971 when she undertook a highly successful tour of Europe sponsored by Philadelphia Orchestra conductor Eugene Ormandy. Since then, she has toured around the world, appearing with leading orchestras including the Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic, the London Philharmonic, the BBC Symphony, l'Orchestre de Suisse Romande, the Munich Philharmonic, the Bavarian Radio Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, the St. Louis Symphony Orhestra, and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.Her brilliant technique yet lush style can be best described as virtuosic yet in the Romantic tradition. Her charged playing style has been compared with that of Liszt, Rubinstein, and Rachmaninov. It may therefore strike many as surprising that her specialties lie in 20th century music, notably Prokofiev, Bartok and Alberto Ginastera. The latter composer in fact dedicated his Third Piano Sonata to her. Nissman's three-disc Ginastera cycle won record of the year nominations from both Gramophone magazine and American Record Guide in 1989. Nissman currently resides in the Allegheny Mountains of West Virginia.
Nissman and Prokofiev
Nissman was one of the first artists to begin recording Prokofiev's cycle of complete piano sonatas in the late 1980s. In 1989, she made history by becoming the first pianist to perform the all of the Prokofiev piano sonatas in a series of recitals in both London and New York. Her monumental feat was put to disc, spanning three volumes on the Newport Classics label. The series stands as perhaps the finest complete Prokofiev piano sonata cycle in the last twenty years.
More important than merely championing the sonatas, Nissman's piano artistry both on stage and in the recordings was stunning. Audiences and critics alike took note. Of the recorded discs the New York Post commented that "Barbara Nissman is probably the reigning Prokofiev specialist of the day." American Record Guide noted: "Nissman brings to these fascinating sonatas an all-too-rare combination of stunning technique and unmistakable thoughtfulness. A significant release and a must for anyone with an interest in Russian piano music, 20th century piano music, or just great piano playing."
Nissman is also a noted Prokofiev scholar -- she was invited to to Moscow to collaborate with leading Soviet musicians in a detailed study of Prokofiev manuscripts kept at the Central State Archives. In commemoration of Prokofiev's 100th birthday, Nissman performed the complete sonatas throughout the United States and Europe during the 1991-1992 concert season. She was invited back to Moscow in 1998 to the Moscow Conservatory to give concerts and teach master classes on the music of Prokofiev. During this trip, she also taught master classes at the St. Petersburg Conservatory. Although her Newport Classics discs are now out-of-print, they remain a must-own for any serious Prokofiev collector.
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