Anatole Kitain

Anatole Kitain ( Russian Анатолий Китаин ; born September 17, 1903 in Saint Petersburg , † July 30, 1980 in Orange , New Jersey ) was a Russian- American concert pianist.

The early years

Anatole Kitain was born in Saint Petersburg into a family of professional musicians. His brothers Robert and Boris were violinists and his brother Alexander was also a pianist. He showed talent at an early age when he played his own nocturne to the astonished Alexander Glasunow at the age of six. He began his studies at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory , but the political instability of the time prompted his family to move to Kiev , where he studied at the Conservatory under Sergei Tarnowski . Other pianists who studied at the Kiev Conservatory during this time included Vladimir Horowitz , Alexander Uninsky and Alexander Brailowsky . Finally, Kitain became a private student of Felix Blumenfeld , whose few private students included Simon Barere and Horowitz.

Escape

After leaving Russia with his family in 1923, Kitain won a prize in the first Franz Liszt Competition in Budapest (first prize went to Annie Fischer ). Kitain settled in France , but the outbreak of World War II prompted him to immigrate to the United States . However, the expected success did not materialize. In an attempt to start over, he changed his name to Alexander Karinoff in 1944, but returned to his original name two years later. Despite a certain success with critics, he was overshadowed throughout his life by the omnipresent figure of his former fellow student Horowitz.

Recordings

He made several recordings in the United States, including one with his brother Robert. He gave his last concert on October 22nd, 1963. He died in 1980 in Orange , New Jersey .

From his European recordings only those for Columbia exist . They show a pianist of perfect technique and musicality, with many similarities to his contemporaries Horowitz and Barere. While the latter two became common knowledge, Kitain died in oblivion.

swell

Biographical details about Kitain are rare, and this entry is based on Bryan Crimp's biographical essay in the APR Complete Columbia Recordings, APR 7029 , and on a brief autobiography from 1940.

Individual evidence

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