Nikolai Kapustin

Short bio Nikolai Kapustin

Birthday: 1937 in Gorlovka, Ukraine

Died: 2020 in Moscow, Russia

Active: 1950s - 2010s

Genre: Classical

Period: 20th Century, Contemporary, Modern

Full biography Nikolai Kapustin

Nikolai Kapustin was a celebrated Russian composer and pianist who was born on November 22, 1937, in Gorlovka, Ukraine. Despite being trained in the classical tradition, Kapustin's music was heavily influenced by jazz, blues, and boogie-woogie.

His music can be described as a fusion of classical and jazz, with complex harmonies, intricate rhythms, and improvisational elements. He earned critical acclaim for his compositions, which include solo piano works, concertos, and chamber music.

Kapustin began his musical studies at the age of six, and he quickly displayed exceptional talent as a pianist. He later attended the Moscow Conservatory, where he studied under Alexander Goldenweiser and Boris Zemliansky.

Initially, Kapustin focused on his career as a performer, and he gained a reputation as an impressive pianist. However, he began to compose seriously in the 1950s, and his works quickly gained attention in Russia and abroad.

In the 1980s and 1990s, Kapustin's music gained international recognition, especially in Japan and Europe. His works were performed by renowned musicians such as Vadim Repin, Yo-Yo Ma, and Vladimir Spivakov.

Kapustin also taught composition and jazz at the Moscow Conservatory from 1961 until his retirement in 2002. He was known for his uncompromising attitude towards the fusion of classical and jazz music, as his compositions required an exceptional level of technical ability from the performers.

Overall, Nikolai Kapustin's music stands as a testament to his unique artistic vision and his ability to bring together disparate genres into a cohesive and engaging whole.

Compositions featuring Nikolai Kapustin

#	Name	Duration	Genre	Year
1	A Little Duo, for flute & cello, Op. 156	6:23 min	Chamber Music	2014
2	Piano Sonata No. 15, Op. 127 "Fantasia quasi Sonata"	23:13 min	Keyboard	2005
3	Divertissement for violin, cello & piano, Op. 126	20:22 min	Chamber Music	2005
4	Sonata for flute & piano, Op. 125	19:54 min	Chamber Music	2004
5	Paraphrase on "Blue Bossa" by Kenny Dorham, for piano, Op. 123	4:06 min	Keyboard	2004
6	The End of the Rainbow, for piano, Op. 112	6:07 min	Keyboard	2003
7	Paraphrase on Barroso's Aquarela do Brasil, for piano, Op. 118	3:57 min	Keyboard	2003
8	Concerto for violin, piano & string orchestra, Op. 105	21:34 min	Concerto	2002
9	Sonatina for piano, Op. 100	3:36 min	Keyboard	2000
10	Burlesque for cello & piano, Op. 97	3:30 min	Chamber Music	1999
11	Nearly Waltz, for cello & piano, Op. 98	2:56 min	Chamber Music	1999
12	Elegy for cello & piano, Op. 96	5:35 min	Chamber Music	1999
13	Divertissement for 2 flutes, cello & piano, Op. 91	17:09 min	Chamber Music	1998
14	Preludes and Fugues (24) for piano, Op. 82		Keyboard	1997
15	Sonata for cello & piano No. 2, Op. 84	21:18 min	Chamber Music	1997
16	Cello Concerto No. 1, Op. 85	24:46 min	Concerto	1997
17	Inventions (10) for piano, Op. 73		Keyboard	1993
18	Piano Concerto No. 5, Op. 72	20:43 min	Concerto	1993
19	Études (5) in Different Intervals, for piano, Op. 68	16:04 min	Keyboard	1992
20	Piano Sonata No. 7, Op. 64	24:14 min	Keyboard	1991
21	Piano Sonata No. 6, Op. 62	12:36 min	Keyboard	1991
22	Piano Sonata No. 5, Op. 61	11:39 min	Keyboard	1991
23	Piano Sonata No. 4, Op. 60	12:22 min	Keyboard	1991
24	Sonata for cello & piano No. 1, Op. 63	20:27 min	Chamber Music	1991
25	Andante for piano, Op. 58	5:35 min	Keyboard	1990
26	Andante, for piano, Op. 58	4:43 min	Keyboard	1990
27	Chamber Symphony, Op. 57	20:53 min	Symphony	1990
28	Piano Concerto No. 4, Op. 56	21:45 min	Concerto	1989
29	Piano Sonata No. 2, Op. 54	22:57 min	Keyboard	1989
30	Meditation for piano, Op. 47	5:51 min	Keyboard	1987
31	Saxophone Concerto, Op. 50	14:05 min	Concerto	1987
32	Sound of Big Band, for piano, Op. 46	4:25 min	Keyboard	1986
33	Sinfonietta for piano, four hands, Op. 49	18:44 min	Keyboard	1986
34	Moving Force, for piano, Op. 45	1:43 min	Keyboard	1985
35	Jazz Concert Etudes (8) for piano, Op. 40	21:32 min	Keyboard	1984
36	Variations for piano, Op. 41	7:20 min	Keyboard	1984
37	Piano Sonata No. 1, Op. 39 "Sonata-Fantasia"	19:48 min	Keyboard	1984
38	Dawn (Rassvet), for piano	3:12 min	Keyboard	1983
39	Suite in the Old Style, for piano, Op. 28	13:32 min	Keyboard	1977
40	Day-Break, for piano ("Sunrise"), Op. 26	3:32 min	Keyboard	1976
41	Intermezzo for piano, Op. 13	3:09 min	Keyboard	1968
42	Paraphrase for 2 pianos on Dizzy Gillespie's "Manteca", Op. 129	4:07 min	Keyboard	-
43	Trio for flute, cello & piano, Op. 86	19:05 min	Chamber Music	-
44	Toccatina for piano, Op. 36	3:05 min	Keyboard	-
45	Bagatelles (10) for piano, Op. 59	14:38 min	Keyboard	-
46	String Quartet, Op. 88	21:01 min	Chamber Music	-
47	Moon Rainbow, for piano, Op. 161	6:50 min	Keyboard	-
48	Cello Concerto No. 2, for cello & string orchestra, Op. 103	23:24 min	Concerto	-
49	Sonata for viola & piano, Op. 69	16:46 min	Chamber Music	-
50	Piano Concerto No. 2, Op. 14	16:35 min	Concerto	-
51	Concert Études (8) for piano, Op. 49		Keyboard	-
52	Concerto for 2 pianos & 2 percussionists, Op. 104	20:15 min	Concerto	-
53	Piano Quintet, Op. 89	21:10 min	Chamber Music	-
54	Preludes (24) in Jazz Style for piano, Op. 53	44:14 min	Keyboard	-
55	Piano Trio No. 2, Op. 142	19:13 min	Chamber Music	-
56	Piano Sonata No. 14, Op. 120	14:49 min	Keyboard	-
57	Duet for cello & alto saxophone, Op. 99	11:56 min	Chamber Music	-
58	Impromptu for piano, Op. 66/2	4:10 min	Keyboard	-

Albums featuring Nikolai Kapustin

#	Name album	Year	Music label
1	Dora Deliyska, Chopin, Debussy, Ligeti, Kapustin – Études & Préludes	2023	Haenssler-Verlag Gmbh & Co. Kg
2	Nikolai Kapustin, Frank Dupree, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Dominik Beykirch – Piano Concerto No. 5 / Concerto Op. 104 / Sinfonietta Op. 49	2023	Capriccio (2)
3	Nikolai Kapustin, A Bu – New Memories(14×File, AAC, Album)	2022	Wergo Concept
4	Ivan Yanakov, Nikolai Kapustin – Eight Concert Etudes, Op. 40: Finale(File, WAV, Single, Stereo)	2021	Ivan Yanakov
5	Yeol-Eum Son, Kapustin – Kapustin(CD, Stereo)	2021	Onyx (6)
6	Roberts Balanas (2), Ravel, Shostakovitch, Kapustin, Royal Academy of Music – Ravel, Shostakovich & Kapustin(9×File, AAC, Album)	2021	Linn Records
7	Nikolai Kapustin, Frank Dupree, Rosanne Philippens, Würtembergisches Kammerorchester Heilbronn, Case Scaglione – Piano Concerto No. 4 / Double Concerto / Chamber Symphony	2021	Capriccio (2)
8	Yeol-Eum Son, Kapustin – Kapustin(15×File, AAC, Album)	2021	Not On Label
9	Nikolai Kapustin, Elisaveta Blumina, Peter Bruns, Clair-Obscur Saxophonquartett – Saxophone Chamber Music(CD, Album)	2020	Capriccio (2)
10	Kapustin - Masahiro Kawakami – Complete Piano Works IV(CD, Album)	2020	Triton (6)
11	Kapustin \| Schnittke, Eckart Runge, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Frank Strobel – Transitions: Cello Concertos(CD, )	2020	Capriccio (2)
12	Bach, Kapustin, Luisa Imorde – Moon Rainbow(CD, Album)	2020	Berlin Classics
13	Kapustin - Masahiro Kawakami – Complete Piano Works III(CD, Album)	2019	Triton (6)
14	Nikolai Kapustin, Immanuel Davis, Adam Kuenzel, Pitnarry Shin, Käthe Jarka, Timothy Lovelace – Complete Chamber Works For Flute(CD, Album)	2019	Naxos
15	Muzio Clementi \| Frédéric Chopin, Sergei Prokofiev \| Alberto Ginastera, Nikolai Kapustin, Marie François – Eclectic \| Being Me(CD, Album)	2019	Challenge Classics
16	Anna Kavalerova, Schumann, Rachmaninov, Kapustin – Themes & Variations(CD, Album)	2019	Solo Musica (2)
17	Kapustin - Masahiro Kawakami – Complete Piano Works I(CD, Album)	2018	Triton (6)
18	Kapustin - Masahiro Kawakami – Complete Piano Works II(CD, Album)	2018	Triton (6)
19	Nikolai Kapustin, Duo Perfetto – Complete Music For Cello And Piano(CD, Album)	2017	Brilliant Classics
20	Yasmin Rowe, Yelian He, Mendelssohn, Liszt, Henryson, Kapustin & Piazzolla – Music For Cello & Piano(CD, Album)	2017	Willowhayne Records
21	Bach , Chopin, Janáček, Kapustin, Yasmin Rowe – Bach , Chopin , Janáček , Kapustin(CD, Album)	2016	Willowhayne Records
22	Kapustin, Sun Hee You – Piano Sonatas 1 & 7, Études, Variations(CD, Album)	2015	Piano Classics (2)
23	Nikolai Kapustin, Sukyeon Kim – Piano Works(CD, )	2015	Piano Classics (2)
24	Aveline Gram, Johann Sebastian Bach, Frédéric Chopin, Nikolai Kapustin, Franz Liszt – Works By: Bach, Chopin, Kapustin, Liszt (The Balmoral Recordings 2015)(CD, Album)	2015	YBT (Young Belgian Talent)
25	Clare Hammond - Chin, Kapustin, Lyapunov, Szymanowski – Etude(SACD, Hybrid, Multichannel, Album)	2014	BIS
26	Rachmaninoff, Prokofiev, Kapustin – Mario Häring – Russian Moments(SACD, Hybrid, Multichannel, Album)	2014	Ars Produktion
27	Nikolaj Kapustin • Astor Piazzolla – Enrico Dindo, I Solisti Di Pavia – Cello Concerto(CD, )	2013	Decca
28	Bach, Gershwin, Kapustin, Ginastera – Evelyn Hilschmann – Bach Meets Jazz(CD, Album)	2012	Ars Produktion
29	Nikolai Kapustin – Catherine Gordeladze – Eight Concert Etudes • 24 Preludes In Jazz Style(CD, )	2011	Naxos
30	Kapustin, Masahiro Kawakami, Yukari Kawakami, Akane Otsuka, Hayato Takenaka – Kapustin: Chamber Music Works 1(CD, Album)	2010	Nippon Acoustic Records
31	Nikolai Kapustin, Masahiro Kawakami – Kapustin: Piano Works 3(CD, Album)	2009	Nippon Acoustic Records
32	Kapustin Returns!(CD, )	2008	Nippon Acoustic Records
33	Nikolai Kapustin, John Salmon (2) – Piano Sonata No. 15(CD, Album)	2008	Naxos
34	Nikolai Kapustin, Masahiro Kawakami – Kapustin: Piano Works 2(CD, Album)	2005	Nippon Acoustic Records
35	Nikolai Kapustin, Masahiro Kawakami – Kapustin: Piano Works 1(CD, Album)	2005	Nippon Acoustic Records
36	Nikolai Petrov, Schulhoff, Prokofiev, Stravinsky, Kapustin – 20th Centry Piano Sonatas(CD, Album, Compilation)	2004	Международная Книга Музыка
37	Kapustin : Eight Concert Etudes(CD, Album, Remastered)	2004	Octavia Records Inc.
38	Last Recording(CD, )	2004	Triton (6)
39	Nikolai Kapustin - Marc-André Hamelin – Piano Music(CD, Album)	2004	Hyperion
40	Nikolai Kapustin, Piano Quintet – Kapustin Piano Quintet(CD, Album)	2001	Triton (5)
41	Jazz Pieces For Piano(CD, Album)	2000	Boheme Music
42	Nikolai Kapustin - Steven Osborne – Piano Music(CD, Album)	2000	Hyperion
43	Kapustin Plays Kapustin - Jazz Portrait	1992	Mezhdunarodnaya Kniga
44	Николай Капустин = Nikolai Kapustin – Джазовые Пьесы Для Фортепиано = Jazz Pieces For Piano(LP)	1989	Мелодия
45	Николай Капустин = Nikolai Kapustin – 24 Прелюдии В Джазовом Стиле = 24 Preludes In Jazz Style	1989	Мелодия
46	Nikolai Kapustin = Николай Капустин – Nikolai Kapustin = Николай Капустин(LP, Album)	1986	Мелодия