LOMAZOV-RACKERS PIANO DUO

"[In the Corigliano and the Bolcom] It’s clear that the pianists are enjoying themselves. I hear a variety of different kinds of accents and articulations throughout the Corigliano, including a very welcome warmth to the quiet playing in the middle section... [there’s] a fine sense of fun throughout the duo’s Bolcom performance."

Myron Silberstein, Fanfare [May/June 2023]

"This follow-up program celebrates American works for two pianos from the past half-century with an ear for color, texture, and variety... Fang Man’s compelling, impressionist `Two Colors’ combines dense Ligetian textures and minimalist patterns, and Chinese tonal modes. The duo’s performances...are excellent, as are their rip-roaring renditions of `The Eternal Feminine’ and `The Serpent’s Kiss’ from William Bolcom’s ragtime collection, The Garden of Eden... there is good playing here, and the excellent programming makes this album worth hearing. I commend the duo for their valuable work in  strengthening the contemporary repertory for two pianos."

American Record Guide [March/April 2023]

"Two hearts, four hands and one mind…daunting for some, but for Marina Lomazov and Joseph Rackers, their marriage...provided them an extra-added innate edge when it comes to performing as a piano duo... What’s nice about Fusion is that it has colorful contrasts and varied themes... Marina Lomazov and Joseph Rackers are masters in their game. Highly worth visiting."

Christie Grimstad, ConcertoNet [December 2022]

"Marina Lomazov and Joseph Rackers, who play all the works on the CD with aplomb, sound as if they are thoroughly enjoying offering these specific pieces to an audience."

Mark J. Estren, InfoDad [December 2022]

In selecting works for this album, we were guided by the idea that writing for two pianos provides composers with a special freedom to create textures and colors that go beyond the capacity of one instrument to evoke. The title of the album, Fusion, reflects the uniqueness of what is possible in the two-piano format, specifically the layering of voices that is prevalent in most of the music featured here. The repertoire also represents the wide range of styles in modern piano music during the past half-century; from the virtuosity of John Adams’ work within repetitive patterns and Fang Man’s use of Chinese modes and influence of Peking Opera, to the dialogue in the John Corigliano and John Fitz Rogers works, as well as the intensity of rhythm and range in Bolcom’s Serpent’s Kiss.
 

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The Lomazov-Rackers Piano Duo garnered wide attention as the Second Prize Winners of the sixth biennial Ellis Duo Piano Competition, the only national competition for piano duo in the United States at that time. Since then, they have performed as recitalists and in concert with orchestras throughout the United  States, Europe and Asia including performances at the Gina  Bachauer International Piano Festival, Indiana University Piano Festival, American Liszt Society Festival, Kiev (Kyiv) International Music Festival, Perugia International Music Festival, Seoul International Piano Festival, Amalfi Coast Music and Arts Festival, Varna International Piano Festival, Burgos International Music Festival and Infiorata di Genzano, in addition to appearances in every region of the United States. Lomazov and Rackers are Steinway Artists.

As a solo pianist, Marina Lomazov has earned prizes in the Cleveland International Piano Competition, Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition, William Kapell International Piano Competition and Hilton Head International Piano Competition and was the first pianist to be awarded the Artist Diploma at the Eastman School of Music in nearly two decades.

Joseph Rackers has performed throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Ukraine, China and South Korea at notable venues including the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, Sichuan Conservatory of Music, Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concert Series, Banff Centre for the Arts and Yantai International Music Festival, among others. He is a recipient of the Performer’s Certificate from the Eastman School of Music.

Lomazov and Rackers each earned the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Piano Performance from the Eastman School of Music, where they are both currently Professors of Piano. Marina Lomazov and Joseph Rackers founded and direct the Southeastern Piano Festival and also serve as Artistic Directors of the Vivace Music Foundation.
  JOHN ADAMS (b.1947)
HALLELUJAH JUNCTION (1996)

WORLD PREMIERE RECORDING
FANG MAN (b.1977)
TWO COLORS
Pure White (2001)
Big Red (1996)

JOHN CORIGLIANO (b.1938)
KALEIDOSCOPE (1959)

WORLD PREMIERE RECORDING
JOHN FITZ ROGERS (b.1963)
AD LUCEM (2007)

WILLIAM BOLCOM (b.1938)
THE GARDEN OF EDEN [selections] (2006)
The Eternal Feminine
The Serpent’s Kiss
 

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Recorded 15-19 June 2020 at the University of South Carolina School of Music Recital Hall. Recording Engineer: Jeff Francis.



MSR Classics