Grigory Sokolov

Grigory Sokolov is among the most important Russian pianists to have emerged from the latter half of the 20th century. His career has both suffered and thrived due to restraints foisted on him by Soviet authorities: like other iconic Russian keyboard giants of the past, in particular Sviatoslav Richter and Lazar Berman, he was prohibited from appearing in the West for a time, but when he finally debuted in Western Europe and the U.S., his career took a meteoric upswing, with Sokolov suddenly in heavy demand in the world's major concert halls. Another aspect of Sokolov's career...