The double album "Growing up with Rachmaninoff" contains "Etudes-Tableaux" by the great Russian pianist and composer. The performers are students of Antonina Boneva -  mentor of the project, a renowned piano teacher and performer. This is the first integral album of "Etudes-Tableaux" recorded in Bulgaria. The project will be presented in three consecutive concerts - on August 24 in the “Bulgaria” chamber hall in Sofia, on August 27 in the hall of the library in Stara Zagora, and on August 29 - in Sozopol during the International Arts Festival "Apollonia". 

Sergei Rachmaninoff wrote his "Etudes-Tableaux" in the years before he chose the life of an emigrant. It is known that the great composer and pianist, a hereditary nobleman, left Russia at the beginning of 1918 together with his family, leaving all his property. He first lived in Europe and then in the USA, where he died at the age of 69. He created the first series of “Etudes-Tableaux” opus 33 in 1911 and the second, which he completed in 1917, turned out to be his last work written in his homeland. These pieces are an integral part of a pianist's repertoire but full performances and recordings are rare worldwide.

“The etudes from Op. 39 are extremely difficult and I have reached out to three of my students who are currently in different parts of the world, but we continue to work together, although not as often. Elvis Vassilev is in Kuwait, teaching. He will start giving concerts soon. The other two are Teodor Pazov, who is in Hamburg and Roberto Iliev in Madrid. They accepted the idea with pleasure and play the etudes from the second cycle. The credit and the idea for the album goes to Daniela Kalaidzhieva, who is actually the project manager. She also prepared the documents for application to the National Culture Fund. We are extremely grateful that they approved it. Without their help we would have never succeeded. Such integral albums worldwide are rare. That is why this is a good contribution of the Bulgarian piano school. This integral turned out beyond my expectations and I am very happy."

English translation: Alexander Markov