studied with Anna Kantor and Tatiana Nikolayeva. Prize-winner at four competitions: Concertino-Prague (1981), the All-Soviet Piano Competition (1985), the Tchaikovsky Competition (1986) and the Sydney International Piano Competition. Performances in Russia, most European countries and the U.S.A.
Batagov met Messiaen, to whom he confessed that his tempi for the Vingt Regards were slower than those indicated. Messiaen smiled and replied, "They can never be too slow!" Batagov recorded the cycle on three CDs. He is the first Russian musician to play John Cage, Morton Feldman, Steve Reich, Philip Glass and Tom Johnson. He performed new Russian music by Vladimir Martyinov, Ivan Sokolov, Sergei Zagny, George Peletsis, Alexander Rabinovitch and others.
His creative position is opposite that of a "philharmonic tuxedo pianist". A focal point of Batagov's concert and recording concepts is its link to the art of performance in the post-Cagean era, which cancels boundaries between the notions performance and composition by viewing all existing musical practices, from ancient music to rock culture, as potential elements which may be used when performing virtually any piece of music regardless of time and style. He composes (for electronic and acoustic instruments) works for movies, theater and other media. His post minimalist aesthetic "might be mapped between Philip Glass' hot urban jungle and Morton Feldman's icy alpine heights". (Moscow Tribune). Batagov's music is a continuation of the old Russian music tradition and may be unmistakably labeled as Russian. He is one of the leaders and organizers of Alternativa , the annual international new music festival in Moscow. arbiter will soon publish batagov's recording of bach's Art of the Fugue
© Allan Evans, 1996