His virtuosity is such that he is free from concentrating on technical difficulties, his touch is so skilled that brings to life all the nuances of musical intonation, his inner world is so rich that allows him to create bright, expressive and complete musical images, and his mind is clear enough to sculpt the sounds into something very close to perfection. (“People newspaper”)

He is absolutely free of bluffing, an excessive expression and “over action”, which are often for young pianists who wish to be virtuosos. His genuinely serious attitude towards music is really impressive. Any music lover, listening to him, becomes aware of his skill and his experience in the international musical arena and wants more time to listen to just him. (composer and pianist Norihiko Wada, Japan)

…not only a virtuoso, but also an extraordinary musician who has a fine feeling of the instrument’s nature and can draw the most intimate nuances out of it. The grand piano turned into a real orchestra that evening. (newspaper «Kultura»)

…finds such feelings in music by Rachmaninov, Chopin, Liszt that the well-known pieces sound as if they had never been performed, but have been just composed… (H. Stepanskaya)

Comments on Vyacheslav Gryaznov’s original, essentially composer’s mind, sound continuously. He reads any musical text as if his own. («Novye Izvestiya»)

He never resorts to stereotypes. That is why he can be an outstanding pianist. (Noda Minoru, Japan)

These are reviews given in the press by the music critics to Vyacheslav Gryaznov, one of the most talented, multifaceted gifted and demanded musicians in the new generation of Russian pianists.

Vyacheslav was born in 1982 in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Russia. Vyacheslav’s musical talent appeared in his early childhood and soon it manifested so evidentely that his parents, not being musicians, ventured on a heroic step – they gave up everything in their hometown and moved to distant Moscow, having neigher anything nor anyone in it – just in the purpose of professional music training of their son.

In 1991 being 9 years old Vyacheslav entered the Central Music School under the Moscow State Conservatory (class of Professor Manana Kandelaki), which he graduated from with honors in 2001. In 2001-1006 he studied at the Moscow Conservatory in the class of Professor Yuri Slesarev and graduated from it also with honors. In 2006-2009 he attended the Moscow Conservatory as a post-graduate student, and since 2008 he joined a teaching faculty of the Conservatory where he has a position of assistant professor at the Piano Department. Starting from 2008/2009 concert season Vyacheslav Gryaznov belongs to the Moscow Philharmonic Society Artistic Management which represents him exclusively in Russia.

Gryaznov has been granted scholarships by prestigious international charitable funds: Russian Performing Art Foundation; Yamaha Scholarship; M. Rostropovich’ Foundation; V. Spivakov’s Foundation. Vyacheslav Gryaznov is a member of various international music festivals, among which are “Dialogue of Cultures” (Vilnius), «Art Masters» (St. Moritz, Switzerland), “Russian Music on the Baltics” (Kaliningrad, Vilnius), “Musical Kremlin” (Moscow, Bryansk). He is an owner of the First Russian President Award and of the numerous awards at international competitions in Moscow, Italy, Ukraine, Denmark, Georgia, Japan, among which there are six First and Grand Prix prizes.

Among Vyacheslav’s awards there is one that is particularly valuable to the musician. It is the Award of Tbilisi International Piano Competition (2001). Here is what the Georgian press wrote about it: “19-year-old Russian pianist Vyacheslav Gryaznov was nearly the leader in the first three rounds of the competition. He did not get to the fourth round. However, there is nothing unusual in it. Unusual is the fact that fans of the young pianist, mainly Tbilisi musical youth, made an obstruction to the jury demanding to pay tribute to their idol. Tbilisi fans of Vyacheslav forced the jury to make corrections in the nominations of the Competition. He was honored with additionally introduced Award “Favourite of the public”…” To abtain such love of the audience is much harder than to win any prize, but that is what Vyacheslav Gryaznov is always able to do.

Vyacheslav Gryaznov performs regularly both as a soloist and appearing in programmes with symphonic orchestras in Italy, Denmark, Great Britain, Croatia, Sweden, Norway, Holland, Georgia, Armenia, Poland, African and Baltic countries, and all over Russia. V. Gryaznov has a lot of fans in Japan. Working with NHK Company in 2004-2006 he played about 10-15 recitals a year in many cities of Japan, he recorded the CD with pieces by Chopin, his video recordings (Liszt – Mefisto-Waltz, Bach-Busoni – Chiaconne, works by Chopin) which were made in NHK studio are broadcasted frequently by the Japanese TV channels. His performing of Rachmaninov’s Third Piano Concerto with Sendai Philharmonic Orchestra (conductor – Yosuke Funabashi) in 2010 was appreciated as the best work of this orchestra with a soloist. For summer 2012 V. Gryaznov is invited to teach piano at the Kurashiki University of Science and the Arts, give recitals and master-classes.

V. Gryaznov willingly participates in charity concerts and festivals. In 2007 he initiated the educational-charitable project «To Rachmaninov and his beloved Ivanovka», the main purpose of which is to make live recordings of all piano and chamber works by Rachmaninov composed in Ivanovka (the majority of his works) and to help restore buildings there. The first CD of the project is released, another one is ready to be released.

V. Gryaznov played with many major orchestras including the CIS Youth Symphony Orchestra, the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, Sendai Philharmonic Orchestra, The New Russia Orchestra directed by Yuri Bashmet, Moscow State Symphony Orchestra / Music Director & Chief Conductor Pavel Kogan, Tbilisi Symphony Orchestra and many others; he worked with conductors: E. Bushkov, M. Eklund, Y. Funabashi, Dj. Kakhidze, Yu. Simonov, A. Sladkovsky, E. Sheiko, E. Selvik, P. Verrot, K. Yamashita, etc. Many of Gryaznov’s recitals and performances with orchestras are recorded and often sound on the radio “Orpheus” in Russia.

Musician’s repertoire is extensive and varies from D. Scarlatti’s sonatas to the works by N. Kapustin and A. Tchaikovsky (whose Second Piano Sonata was first performed in Russia by V. Gryaznov). It includes, along with a large number of works by Rachmaninov and Liszt, such rarely performed pearls of piano repertoire as “Aphorisms” by D. Shostakovich, as well as such grand cycles as I.S. Bach’s “Art of the Fugue” or 24 preludes and 24 Etudes by Chopin. Concertos for piano and orchestra – by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Grieg, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, Ravel, Gershwin — are widely represented, too. V. Gryaznov’s repertoire is constantly and rapidly updated, including by different masterpieces of opera, symphonic and chamber music, due to the transcriptions made by the pianist himself.

Among V. Gryaznov’s recent major transcriptions there are the symphonic overture-fantasie “Romeo and Juliet” by P.I. Tchaikovsky, and the Rhapsody on the themes of George Gershwin’s opera “Porgy and Bess,” about which Nikolai Petrov, a distinguished Russian pianist, said: “I will not be exaggerating if I say that this composition is an outstanding one. The arrangement is done with such virtuosity and charge of creative durability, it could not be better”.

Brilliant concert transcriptions have already brought V. Gryaznov the reputation as one of the most prominent contemporary young transcribers. Many of his transcriptions have been published: “Valse-fantasie” by M. Glinka; “Italian Polka” by S. Rachmaninov; the Second Suite from the Maurice Ravel’s ballet “Daphnis and Chloe” for two pianos; «Habanera for two» after Bizet for four-hand piano; “Prelude a l’apres-midi d’un faune” by Debussy; three Romanses by Rachmaninov – “The night is sad”, “Vocalise,” “How peaceful” (2005, 2007, 2011, Deka-VS, Moscow, series «Masterpieces of piano transcription», volumes 3, 8, 18). Two discs with transcriptions by Vyacheslav Gryaznov are to be released.