VIDEO RELEASE: JUNE 20, 2024

PIANIST MAXIM LANDO PREMIERES THREE DANCES FROM FRANKENSTEIN BY LOWELL LIEBERMANN

Pianist and Young Gilmore Artist Maxim Lando performs Three Dances from Frankenstein, composed by Lowell Liebermann, commissioned by Maxim Lando with assistance from The Gilmore. Filmed by Skillman Music on location at the Church of the Intercession, directly prior to the world premiere, presented by Death of Classical’s Crypt Sessions.

“It is rare that you see a new score and think ‘Wow. This could be THE cult piece for an entire generation of pianists.’ Of course time will only tell, but that is exactly how I felt when I first started reading through the score of Lowell Lieberman’s Three Dances from Frankenstein. While the work is based on Lieberman’s acclaimed ballet Frankenstein, it is a stand-alone major work for piano that utilizes the instrument in every way possible. It is virtuosic, exciting, daring, dramatic, and heartbreakingly beautiful. The work immediately captures the emotions of loneliness, loss, love, misunderstanding, and the grotesque. I think Frankenstein might be one of the hardest pieces I’ve ever played, and at the same time one of the most rewarding.

My idea was to make a live performance video of Three Dances from Frankenstein in a visually appealing, and hopefully somewhat creepy setting. I was absolutely thrilled when Andrew Ousley from Death of Classical offered the possibility of filming at the Crypt underneath the Church of Intercession in Harlem.

I am tremendously grateful to The Gilmore for awarding me the funds to commission this extraordinary new work, to Young Concert Artists for supporting both financially and creatively the idea of filming this project, to Skillman Music for recording and video artistry, and to Death of Classical for giving me a spectacular location in which to film this project. Most of all, I am thankful to Lowell for creating this music.”

–Maxim Lando, pianist, Young Gilmore Artist