Education
- ARCM, Royal College of Music
Biography
Alma Petchersky’s debut at the illustrious Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires marked her as one of the outstanding pianists of her generation. Since then, she has become an artist of international calibre, with recordings for the BBC and on the ASV, Lorelt and Canadian Broadcasting Corporation labels of the rich music of the Americas, Spain and Russia. She has performed to acclaim across Europe, the Americas and Asia. Reviews of her concerts at Wigmore Hall and the Kennedy Centre were glowing, and Gramophone magazine has praised her performances as "alive with fantasy and brilliance."
The release of her 6th CD, a CBC Musica Viva recording of the works of the Spanish composer Joaquin Turina, prompted The International Record Review (U.K.) to note its “thrilling shots of spirited bravura” and the Toronto Star’s William Littler called the CD a "listening pleasure from beginning to end.”
Alma Petchersky is passionately devoted to the recovery of masterpieces by great, often neglected composers. Her dedicated exploration of the complete piano music of Villa-Lobos resulted in a highly acclaimed set of three CDs, of which Music and Musicians, UK said: “an artist in love with sonority and colour, her technique is consummate, her dynamic and expressive resources range from the softest, warmest intimacy to the most clangorously brilliant. Her musicality is at once all embracing.” From American Record Review: “Her playing is marked not only by technical excellence but also a sense of discovery...Exciting pianism.”
Her CD of Ginastera's complete piano music was given five stars by the BBC Music Magazine. Also included in her highly praised discography is a recording of works by Tchaikovsky and Scriabin on ASV. Of this album, the Frankfurter Rundschau wrote: “What one encounters here is rock like artistry such as only Kempff employed in his late Beethoven recordings”. After a highly regarded album of the piano pieces of the Argentine composer Guastavino for Lorelt UK, she is currently working on a recording of pieces by Fanny Hensel - Mendelssohn.
Throughout her career, Alma has maintained a very active interest in Music Education. As well as teaching at the University of Toronto and in her private studio, she taught at York University and privately for several years in the United Kingdom. She has conducted master classes in Russia, Mexico, Japan, Spain, etc. while on concert tours.
Alma Petchersky had the privilege of studying piano with prominent teachers, such as Maria Curcio and Roberto Caamaño, themselves students of Arthur Schnabel and Claudio Arrau, and direct heirs of the European musical tradition. She feels the responsibility and joy of passing this tradition on to young musicians, approaching them with respect, curiosity and wonder.