Oleg Maisenberg

Pianist Oleg Maisenberg was heard especially often in chamber music after emigrating to the West. He was also an important educator. In 1967, Maisenberg scored double breakthroughs with a pair of prizes in Austria. He was a major star in the Soviet Union in the 1970s, appearing as a concerto soloist with the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra and other top ensembles. His recording career began during the LP era. Among his early digital recordings was a 1983 album featuring Schubert's Wanderer Fantasie, D. 760. Maisenberg had begun to perform with violinist Gidon Kremer even before leaving the Soviet Union, and in the West, he was most often known as a chamber musician. His list of collaborators included baritone Hermann Prey, oboist Heinz Holliger, and pianist András Schiff. Maisenberg's 1990 performance of Grieg's Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 16 was reissued in 2023 on the SWR Music label.