Mikhaïl Bouzine – 2020

Born in Moscow in January 1995, Mikhaïl Bouzine is a one-man orchestra. A creator of sounds. Composer of an often repetitive and bewitching music, he knows how to be facetious, surprising and confusing in his numerous works, as shown by the cycle he has been developing since 2012 on the letters of the Cyrillic alphabet. Facing the piano, he also becomes a dancer and a conductor. An incredible instrumentalist, he received one of the greatest educations possible, at the Moscow Conservatory with Andrei Shibko, whose master was one of the disciples of Heinrich Neuhaus, founder of the great Russian school. The piano was not enough for him, and Bouzine therefore also received harpsichord lessons from Tatiana Zenaïshvili, and composition lessons from Vladimir Tarnopolsky, a pupil of Edison Denisov. His pianistic performances reveal an obvious charisma, imbuing his performances with phenomenal energy and precision, always with respect to the score. He has placed his talent in the hands of such ensembles as KYMATIC or Thimk Collective, whether at the piano, harpsichord or electronic keyboard. He’s also doing a contemporary lied duo with soprano Ekaterina Maslakova. In 2013, he inaugurated online the KOIVU label, for which he performed a wide range of contemporary music. He is also active as an improviser, releasing three EPs under the “ShchRTTTShch” alias. Living in Stuttgart since 2019, Mikhaïl Bouzine is completing his studies there at the Musikhochschule with Nicholas Hodges, also drawing inspiration from the piano master classes of Alexei Lubimov, Peter Donohoe, Giovanni Valentini, Nicholas Hodges, Maria Grazia Bellocchio, Lars Vogt & Mark Stringer, and those of Vyacheslav Artyomov and Leif Segerstam for composition. In 2020 he was awarded the First Prize of the 14th International piano competition of Orléans (France), as well as the Polska Music Prize and the Samson François Prize.

By François-Xavier Szymczak

Mikhaïl Bouzine recorded the album ‘L’Oiseau rebelle’ (Label B Records) in May 2021 at the Théâtre d’Orléans (France), which was released in autumn 2021 and followed by an educational tour (concerts and masterclasses) in the Centre-Val de Loire region. Since then, he has also performed on prestigious stages in France (Lille, Paris, Orléans, Metz) and abroad (Germany, Cyprus, Italy…).

Awards:

• First Prize Blanche Selva
• Polska Music Prize
• Samson François Prize