Anastasia Rizikov facts for kids

Anastasia Rizikov (born December 8, 1998) is a talented Canadian classical pianist. She started playing piano at a very young age and has won many awards around the world.

About Anastasia Rizikov

Early Life and Training

Anastasia Rizikov was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She started learning piano when she was just five years old. She studied with Maia Spis at the Nadia Music Academy in Toronto. Later, from 2017 to 2019, she studied at the École Normale de Musique de Paris in Paris, France. There, she earned a special diploma for concert performers.

Anastasia has also learned from many famous pianists and teachers. She attended special master classes with artists like Sergei Babayan and Vladimir Feltsman. She also worked with other well-known musicians such as András Schiff and Emanuel Ax.

Winning Piano Competitions

Anastasia has won many important piano competitions. In 2017, she won third prizes at the 6th Tbilisi International Piano Competition. She also won third prize at the 63rd Maria Canals International Music Competition. At these events, she received special awards for her performances.

Earlier, in September 2015, she won first place at the International Ettore Pozzoli Piano Competition in Italy. She also received prizes for playing a piece by E. Pozzoli and an audience award. On April 17, 2015, when she was only 16, Anastasia won the Gold Medal at the 57th Jaén International Piano Competition in Spain.

In November 2013, she won first prize at the 13th "Giuliano Pecar" International Piano Competition in Italy. In May 2011, she won first prize at the Rotary International Piano Competition in Spain.

Performances and Early Awards

In 2012, Anastasia performed Edvard Grieg's Piano Concerto with an orchestra in Spain. In 2010, she won first place at the Thousand Islands International Piano Competition for Young People in New York. She also won first place at the American Protégé 2010 International Piano and Strings Competition. This allowed her to perform at Carnegie Hall in New York City.

She had performed at Carnegie Hall before, in 2009. That year, she won first place at the Bradshaw and Buono International Piano Competition. In 2008, Anastasia represented Canada at a festival in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia. This festival was organized by Vladimir Spivakov's International Charity Foundation.

In 2006, Anastasia won first place at The Vladimir Horowitz International Young Pianists Competition in Ukraine. She also received a special award for her artistic performance. At just seven years old, she played with an orchestra for the first time. She performed with the National Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine.

Canadian Achievements

In Canada, Anastasia Rizikov has also won many top awards. She won first prize at both the Canadian Music Competition (CMC) and the Canadian Chopin Competition. The Chopin Competition happens every five years. After winning, Anastasia performed at a special concert in Koerner Hall in Toronto.

In her first five years of playing, Anastasia won many local competitions. These included festivals like Markham Music Festival and the Kiwanis Music Festival of Greater Toronto.

In June 2012, Anastasia was chosen for the 2013 "Debut Atlantic" concert tour.

Special Recognition

In December 2012, The Glenn Gould Foundation gave Anastasia a special gift. They provided her with a Yamaha baby grand piano. This was to help her with her artistic growth and career. The piano was given to her on a long-term loan.

In 2014, at the age of 15, Anastasia performed a very challenging piece. She played the Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 3 with the Orchestre symphonique de Laval in Quebec.

A music critic named Renée Silberman wrote about Anastasia in 2014. She said that Anastasia is an "extraordinary virtuoso." She also wrote that Anastasia is "more than the sum of ten fingers." She called her "a consummate artist, born to play."

In 2015, Ms. Rizikov performed at major international music festivals. These included the Orford Music Festival and the Verbier Music Festival.

Concerts and Collaborations

Anastasia Rizikov performs concerts all over the world. She has played in Asia, Europe, the United States, and Canada. Some famous places she has performed include Carnegie Hall in New York and Roy Thomson Hall in Toronto. She has also played at the Kremlin in Moscow.

Anastasia has performed with many different orchestras. These include the National Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine and the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. She has also worked with many conductors, such as Mykola Diadiura and Alain Trudel.

Anastasia has also been featured in interviews and performances. She has appeared on Canadian radio stations like Jazz FM 91 and Classical 96.3 FM. She has also been on CBC Television news and CBC Radio. An excerpt from one of her videos was even shown on The Oprah Winfrey Show. It was part of a segment about gifted children.

Discography

• "WSKG Sessions" (2011)

  Anastasia Rizikov, piano

  DVD & CD

  WSKG-TV, Binghamton, NY, United States

• "Piano Recital" (2015)

  Anastasia Rizikov, piano

  CD

  Released on December 2, 2016

  Naxos Records, Jaén, Spain