Daniil Trifonov

A superlative pianist with a probing musical mind, Daniil Trifonov returns to Berkeley in his first solo recital for Cal Performances, with a fascinating program of rarely heard masterpieces penned from the mid-19th to early 20th centuries.

Trifonov made his Cal Performances debut in 2015 in a memorable duo recital with violinist Gidon Kremer, returning as a blazing soloist with the Montreal Symphony the following year—and his star has been rising steadily ever since, culminating in a 2021 Grammy nomination.

He plays Prokofiev’s bittersweet miniatures, Sarcasms; Szymanowski’s bold and technically demanding Piano Sonata No. 3; Debussy’s Pour le piano; and Brahms’ opulent Piano Sonata No. 3, a work of symphonic proportions and scope.

“His white-hot virtuosity is tempered by coolheaded thinking and lyrical sensitivity. Passages of teeming intensity are rendered with wondrous clarity and lightness. Yet, when appropriate, Mr. Trifonov shapes phrases and colors chords with milky richness” (The New York Times).