LEFF NICOLAS POUISHNOFF (ODESSA,
UKRAINE, 11 OCTOBER, 1891 – LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM, 28 MAY, 1959)
He was born
into an aristocratic Russian family in either Kiev or Odessa, was drawn to the
piano as a young child, and, having acquired some aptitude before the age of
ten, gave two public concerts. His parents, not wishing him to be exploited,
discouraged this, but after his father’s death (when Leff was 9), financial
constraints led to his accepting concert engagements, and he rapidly gained a
reputation. Special arrangements were made for his schooling, where he had a
particular interest in chemistry. At the age of 14 he joined the State Opera
Company orchestra, but a chance meeting with Feodor Chaliapin persuaded him to
pursue his piano studies. He studied at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory under
Anna Yesipova (piano), with instruction from Rimsky-Korsakov, Liadov and
Glazunov (composition) and Nikolai Tcherepnin (conducting). He was one of the
most brilliant students of his time, and emerged in 1910 with a first class
diploma, a Gold Medal, and a cash prize equivalent to £120 for a voyage to
Europe. In that year he competed for the St Petersburg Rubinstein Prize against
Arthur Rubinstein, Alexander Borovsky, Julius Isserlis, Edwin Fischer and
Alfred Hoehn (the winner). However, instead of embarking at once on a
high-profile recital career, he chose instead to make a musical tour through
various European countries, studying their music and meeting their musicians,
which greatly broadened his experience. Returning to Russia, he made a recital
tour with the distinguished Hungarian violinist Leopold Auer, and followed this
with a solo tour giving piano recitals, which resulted in many offers of
engagements in the major European centres. His international reputation was
growing when World War I interrupted his progress. Owing to short-sightedness,
he was exempt from military service but, being confined to Russia, he played in
military camps and gave a series of concerts for wounded and convalescent men
in hospitals. He remained in Russia through the Russian Revolution, suffering
considerable want, and in 1919 had the opportunity to make a concert tour in
Persia (Iran), the first eminent European pianist to do so. After his
successful completion of it he returned and soon afterwards escaped across the
Russian frontier and made his way to Paris. In 1920 he moved on to London,
where he was unknown, but gave his first and highly acclaimed recital at the
Wigmore Hall on 2 February 1921, where he was greatly admired by Ernest Newman.
From this point he made his home in Britain. His career now burst upon the
European scene. He made numerous orchestral appearances in Britain, in London
at the Queen’s Hall and Royal Albert Hall, with the Hallé Orchestra in
Manchester and with the Scottish Orchestra. His many compositions for
orchestra, violin and piano were still in MS in 1924, but his piano pieces were
by then being published. He began to make regular visits to the principal
cities of France, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands, and was in the United
States in the seasons of 1924-5 and 1925-6, when he toured major cities. His
career eventually became worldwide. In summer 1926 he devoted a whole week of
recitals to playing over seventy of the principal works of Chopin, and repeated
this in 1927 to much acclaim. In recordings he is heard around 1930 as an
extremely articulate and intelligent accompanist to Frank Titterton in Schubert
song repertoire. He was among the earliest pianists to broadcast from Savoy
Hill in 1925, and in 1938 he became the first to be broadcast on television,
from Alexandra Palace. During World War II he gave concerts to factory workers,
miners and dockers, and made extensive tours among the forces in the Middle
East. Pouishnoff made a substantial number of recordings, especially of Chopin
and Liszt. He had a very extensive technique, and a delicacy and sensitivity of
nuance without effeminacy which won extremely high praise from some critics. He
ended his own life, in London. His widow Dorothy (née Hildreth), a former
pupil, died only three weeks after he did.
TRACKLIST
DUO-ART 074
SCRIABIN – Deux Morceaux, Op. 57, Nos. 1 and 2; Op. 52, No. 2
DUO-ART 098
BACH-SAINT-SAENS – Overture (Prelude) to Cantata No. 29
DUO-ART 0201
LIADOV – Barcarolle, Op. 44, F#
DUO-ART 6797
1921 Quand il Pleut and Musical Box
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