Vladimir Vitalievich Selivokhin (Selivokhin, Vladimir) |

Selivokhin, Vladimir

For almost two decades, the main Busoni Prize at the International Competition in the Italian city of Bolzano was awarded only seven times. Its eighth owner in 1968 was the Soviet pianist Vladimir Selivokhin. Even then, he attracted listeners with thoughtful performances of works by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, Prokofiev, and Western European classics. As M. Voskresensky noted, “Selivokhin is a virtuoso pianist. This is evidenced by his excellent performance of Liszt’s fantasy “Don Giovanni” on the theme of Mozart, the works of Prokofiev. But at the same time, he is not devoid of the warmth of lyrical talent. His interpretation is always attracted by the harmony of the idea, I would say, the architecture of execution. And in further reviews of his performances, as a rule, they note the culture and literacy of the game, good technique, strong professional training, and a strong reliance on the foundation of traditions.

Selivokhin inherited these traditions from his teachers at the Kyiv and Moscow conservatories. In Kyiv, he studied with V. V. Topilin (1962-1965), and in 1969 he graduated from the Moscow Conservatory in the class of L. N. Oborin; until 1971, the young pianist, under the guidance of L. N. Oborin, perfected himself as an assistant trainee. “A thoughtful musician with excellent technique, a rare ability to work,” this is how an outstanding teacher spoke of his student.

Selivokhin retained these qualities and became a mature concert performer. On the stage, he feels extremely confident. At least that’s how it seems to listeners. Perhaps this is facilitated by the fact that the pianist met with a wide audience already at a very young age. At the age of thirteen, while still living in Kyiv, he successfully played Tchaikovsky’s First Concerto. But, of course, it was after the victory in Bolzano that the doors of large halls opened before him both in our country and abroad. The artist’s repertoire, and now very diverse, is replenished with each season. It includes many creations of Bach, Scarlatti, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann, Chopin, Liszt, Ravel. Critics, as a rule, note the pianist’s original approach to samples of Russian classics, to the music of Soviet composers. Vladimir Selivokhin often plays works by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, Prokofiev, Shostakovich.

L. Grigoriev, J. Platek, 1990