The album of Svetozar Ivanov includes 14 pieces, whose authors are Johann Sebastian Bach, Erik Satie and David Del Tredici. This combination of music by the most influential Baroque composer, by a French composer and by an American avant-garde composer, considered one of the pioneers of neo-romanticism, is not at all accidental. Among the most famous works by Satie are the three Gymnopédies. The word "gymnopedie" was coined by the author himself and means a slow dance of religious origin, performed by adolescents in Ancient Greece.

Inspired by Satie, Del Tredici wrote three gymnopédies. The first of these is called "My Goldberg". As some have guessed it, the composer used a theme from Bach’s monumental work "Goldberg Variations." The next gymnopedie is  called “My Re” and is interesting with the fact that that two-bar phrases always end on the note D. The third gymnopédie is titled "My Loss." It is the longest one and is dedicated to composer Robert Helps, who died in 2001

Svetozar Ivanov usually presents his concerts to the audience in an unconventional way. His artistic creativity combines music with other art forms - theatre, animation, poetry, dance and more. The pianist is a professor at the University of South Florida and artistic director of the "Steinway Piano" concert series, which is held annually at the same university. Along with this, Svetozar Ivanov has realized numerous recordings. Some of them were released in two solo albums and he has a joint CD with violinist Carolyn Stuart. The duo that formed in the late 90s, performs a variety of musical styles. Several years ago, the two musicians participated in the premiere of "Trio Concerto" for piano, violin, cello and orchestra by Viktor Chouchkov. "I'm fascinated with the artistic spirit of the early XX century. This time of changes and new quests, marks the beginning of modern times" - says the pianist whose favourite composers are Claude Debussy, Arnold Schoenberg and Alexander Scriabin.

English version: Alexander Markov