Kirill Gerstein on Bach, Rach and jazz

St. Paul, Minn. — Kirill Gerstein is a pianist with a talent for both jazz and classical. He was finally forced to choose between the two, to which he would devote his life and follow in a career.

He chose classical.

But that was only after he studied under some of the finest jazz musicians at the Berklee School in Boston. He became a college student and emigrated to the United States when he was only 14, and as the youngest student ever accepted at the college.

What caught my attention about Gerstein's playing came from his recital last summer at the Verbier Festival. He played Bach and Rachmaninov with a clarity, freshness and a rhythmic "groove" that seems to be an outgrowth of his jazz training.

I had a chance to speak with Gerstein about his philosophy on Bach, Rachmaninov and jazz, in between his Shostakovich rehearsals with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra.

Guests

• Kirill Gerstein: Russian pianist Kirill Gerstein is the guest in this weekend's Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra concerts playing Shostakovich Piano Concerto No. 2 with Hans Graf conducting. Mr. Gerstein will be performing all over North America this season - the Chicago Symphony Orchestra with Charles Dutoit, the Atlanta Symphony, as well as re-engagements with the Detroit, Houston, and Oregon Symphonies and a tour with cellist Steven Isserlis that includes performances at the Kennedy Center and in San Francisco. He'll also return to South America to play in Caracas with Gustavo Dudamel and the Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra. Born in 1979 in Voronezh, Russia, Mr. Gerstein taught himself to play jazz by listening to his parents' extensive record collection. He came to the U.S. at 14 to continue his studies in jazz piano as the youngest student ever to attend Boston's Berklee College of Music. He studied classical piano at the Manhattan School of Music.