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Dimitris Sgouros

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Dimitris Sgouros
Born (1969-08-30) 30 August 1969 (age 55)
Athens, Greece
GenresClassical music
OccupationMusician
InstrumentPiano
Years active1977–present
Websitewww.sgouros-pianist.com

Dimitris Sgouros (Greek: Δημήτρης Σγούρος; born 30 August 1969)[a] is a Greek classical pianist.[1] Widely acclaimed for his prodigious musical talent as a boy, Sgouros is one of the world's leading concert pianists.[2][3]Arthur Rubinstein remarked that he had produced "the best playing I have ever heard;".[4]

Biography

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Dimitris Sgouros is an Aromanian,[5] having declared that "I am Vlach with a capital V", Vlach being the common name for the Aromanians in Greece.[6] Sgouros is the son of Sotirios and Marianthi Sgouros.[7] There was no notable record of musical talent in his family.[4] He began playing the piano when he was six-years old[8] and gave his first public performance a year later.[4] At the age of eight, he entered the Athens Conservatoire, studying under Maria Herogiorgiou-Sigara.[1][4] Sgouros won several competitions between 1978 and 1983, including the UNICEF competition in Bulgaria (1979), a competition in Ancona, Italy (1980), and two competitions in his home city of Athens.[4] He was also the recipient of the 1982 Leonardo da Vinci International Award.[7][9]

In 1982, at the age of 12, Sgouros made his Carnegie Hall debut.[10] He performed Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 3 with the National Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Mstislav Rostropovich.[1] In mid-1983, before he had turned 13, Sgouros graduated from the conservatory with a professor's diploma, teacher's diploma, first prize, and a gold medal.[4] Sgouros continued his studies at the Royal Academy of Music of London and the University of Maryland, College Park, in the United States of America.[1] He graduated from Royal Academy with the highest marks the institution had ever awarded.[1] Besides his musical talents, Sgouros has undertaken postgraduate studies in mathematics at the University of Oxford.[11]

Performances around the world have included concerts in Australia,[12][13] Austria, Bulgaria, China, Cyprus, France, Germany, Hong Kong,[14] Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, New Zealand,[15] Romania, Russia, South Africa, Spain, and Turkey.[16] Sgouros has performed for the royal families of Britain, Monaco,[17][18] and Sweden, and played under the baton of renowned conductors such as Herbert von Karajan, Leonard Bernstein, Emil Tabakov, Kurt Masur, and Yevgeny Svetlanov.[19] He has recorded for various record labels, including Dino Music[20][21] and EMI.[22] Since March 1988, three Sgouros Festivals have been instituted, in Hamburg, Ljubljana, and Singapore.[23][24][25]

Sgouros has featured prominently in the media, having appeared on NBC's The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson[26] and a television concert with Chopin's 1st Piano Concerto.[27][28] He has also been profiled by Oscar-winning director François Reichenbach in a feature-length documentary film.[29][30]

See also

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Notes

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a. ^ Sgouros's name sometimes appears as Dimitrios Sgouros.

References

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Citations

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  1. ^ a b c d e Classical Pianist Dimitris Sgouros: Biography (c. 2008). Retrieved 21 May 2010.
  2. ^ Tommasini, Anthony (18 April 2000). "MUSIC REVIEW; A Onetime Piano Prodigy Returns at 31 to Carnegie Hall (Published 2000)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
  3. ^ McLellan, Joseph. "Dimitris Sgouros' Promising Piano". The Washington Post.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Crankshaw, G. (1983): Angel Debut Recording: Dimitris Sgouros – Brahms/Schumann (notes from record jacket). Retrieved 21 May 2010.
  5. ^ Exarchos, Giorgis (2001). Οι Ελληνοβλάχοι (Αρμανοί) (in Greek). Vol. 1. Ekdoseis Kastaniote. p. 491. ISBN 9789600327847.
  6. ^ Efstathiadis, Stathis (24 November 2008). ""Είμαστε όλοι Βλάχοι"". To Vima (in Greek).
  7. ^ a b World Who's Who: Dimitris Sgouros (2010). Retrieved 22 May 2010.
  8. ^ "Dimitris Sgouros: Portrait of a Genius". sgourosmp3.com. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
  9. ^ Rotary Club Firenze: History of the Leonardo da Vinci Award Archived 19 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine (2009). Retrieved 28 December 2010.
  10. ^ Rockwell, John (17 April 1982). "CONCERT: PIANIST, 12 (Published 1982)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
  11. ^ Dimitris Sgouros: A photographic portrait (c. 2009). Retrieved 22 May 2010.
  12. ^ Newspaper articles on Dimitris Sgouros from Fairfax archive (mainly Sydney).
  13. ^ Dimitris Sgouros Australian tours – Concert programmes & nationwide reviews
  14. ^ Legacy Tobacco Documents Library, University of California, San Francisco – Philip Morris Collection – Dimitris Sgouros in Hong Kong (1989 Cartier Master Series)
  15. ^ Dimitris Sgouros newspaper citations, Auckland Libraries.
  16. ^ Sgouros concert in Ankara – article from NTV MS-NBC (in Turkish)
  17. ^ Hebdo Magazine feature on Sgouros (November 1984) (in French)
  18. ^ Prince's Palace of Monaco – Summer Concerts Archived 12 February 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  19. ^ "ABC Classic FM broadcast schedule – Sgouros & USSR Sym Orch/Svetlanov perform Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No 1". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 13 November 2012. Retrieved 12 September 2011.
  20. ^ "ABC Classic FM broadcast schedule – Dino Music album with Sgouros". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 13 November 2012. Retrieved 27 August 2011.
  21. ^ Dimitris Sgouros album on Dino Music – track listing
  22. ^ 2011 EMI Classics release with Dimitris Sgouros – 'Essential Liszt'
  23. ^ Concert poster – Sgouros with the USSR Festival Orchestra in Singapore, 1990[permanent dead link‍]
  24. ^ Concert advertisement – The Straits Times, 21 October 1990
  25. ^ Sgouros at Victoria Concert Hall. Concert notice, The Straits Times, 22 October 1991
  26. ^ TV guides from Ocala Star-Banner & Chicago Tribune (1982).
  27. ^ The Miami News TV guide[permanent dead link‍] (1986).
  28. ^ – TV Special – Listings. The New York Times Retrieved 3 January 2011.
  29. ^ Google Books citation – Musik in den Medien Retrieved on 3 January 2011.
  30. ^ – Music News Los Angeles Times (1984). Retrieved 3 January 2011.

Bibliography

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  • Tarallo, Alfredo (1993). "Sgouros, Poet of the Piano." Il Mattino. 26 July.
  • Klement, Udo (1991). "Fascinating Sgouros: Gewandhaus Orchestra with pianist Dimitris Sgouros." Leipziger Volkszeitung
  • Ardoin, John (1989). "Pianist Sgouros is an Old Master at 19." Dallas Morning News. 12 January.
  • Crutchfield, Will (1988). "Review/Concert; Young American Choruses." New York Times. April 21.
  • Ardoin, John (1987). "Sgouros Proves Electrifying – Pianist Plays Brilliantly with FW Symphony." Dallas Morning News. 20 October.
  • Guenther, Roy (1985). "Dimitris Sgouros: Flash Without Feeling." Washington Post. 17 July.
  • Rosenberg, Donald (1984). "A Gifted Pianist Who Is Not Yet 15." Philadelphia Inquirer. 27 July.
  • Finn, Robert (1984). "Young Greek Pianist Does Amazingly Well on Mozart." Cleveland Plain Dealer. 15 July.
  • Mclellan, Joseph (1984). "Dimitris Sgouros: Coming of Age." Washington Post. 9 July.
  • Mclellan, Joseph (1982). "Dimitris Sgouros' Promising Piano." Washington Post. 19 July.
  • Mclellan, Joseph (1982). "Pianist's Return." Washington Post. 23 April.
  • Mclellan, Joseph (1982). "Bravo Sgouros." Washington Post. 16 April.
  • Thomas, R. M. (1982). "Boy Vs. Rachmaninoff." The New York Times. 15 April.
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