Leonid Chizhik: Piano Solo

"Jazz is for me, a way of thinking," says the Moldavian born jazz pianist Leonid Chizhik – and for many years, under Soviet rule, he was prevented from touring abroad and even from playing jazz at all. When he was finally able to perform in the West, he found musical admirers as diverse as Herbie Hancock and Gidon Kremer – all astonished by the very personal voice of an artist whose influences range from Shostakovich to Art Tatum. This historic Munich recital – one of Chizhik’s earliest solo appearances in the West – helped make his international reputation and proved a turning point in his career.