WPR Music new album of the week: ‘Fusions’

Editor’s note: Email responses from Nikolay Medvedev have been edited for length and clarity.

This week’s new release features some wildly exciting and ear-catching music: Sophisticated and fun jazz in many permutations, challenging classical structures that require almost athletic virtuosity and some gorgeous, deeply emotional lyrical passages.

It’s also a statement of personal freedom.

“Fusions,” from Russian-born pianist Nikolay Medvedev includes several pieces by Russian composer Nikolai Kapustin from the 1980s (the Piano Sonata No. 2, op. 54; excerpts from the 8 Concert Etudes, op. 40; and Variations for Piano, op. 41).

There’s also music by George Gershwin (3 Preludes) and the “7 Virtuoso Etudes after George Gershwin” by the great 20th century pianist and composer Earl Wild.

“For me, Gershwin is one of the brightest representatives of jazz music in the United States,” said Medvedev in an email interview, “just as Kapustin was in the Soviet Union and later in Russia.”

“Fusions” Youtube Playlist

“Since childhood, I have been fascinated by the language of jazz — its harmony, rhythm and style,” said Medvedev. “Like many of my colleagues, I was raised in an academic environment and played exclusively classical music, but I always wanted to try something new.”

Medvedev is a serious pianist and the prizewinner in several international classical competitions. Trying “something new” resulted in an album full of powerful, virtuosic, evocative music that reflects Medvedev’s own newfound freedom after leaving Russia and the regime he opposes for a fresh life and career based in Berlin, Germany.

“I have always believed in democratic values and in what I consider the most important thing in a person’s life: inner freedom — a freedom that is being suppressed in Russia today by every possible means,” he said. “As a member of the LGBTQ community, I could no longer tolerate the discrimination directed at gay people.

“A few years after emigrating to Germany, I began to feel increasingly like a truly free person. I fell in love with Earl Wild’s arrangements. I had admired Wild for a long time, but I did not really know Gershwin’s songs,” said Medvedev.

“These arrangements perfectly reflected my own sense of freedom, energy, joy of life, warmth, tenderness and love. I decided to combine Wild’s Gershwin arrangements with Gershwin’s Preludes and the music of Kapustin. I simply love this music.”

It’s one thing to love it, but the music itself requires incredible strength, emotional depth and technical prowess.

“This was the most difficult preparation I have ever undertaken,” acknowledged Medvedev. “Almost every piece on this album demands extraordinary technical command and a constant state of intense concentration, especially Kapustin’s music, despite its apparent ease.”

The emotional content is equally appealing for Medvedev.

“I feel particularly close to Gershwin,” he said. “His melodies are both simple and ingenious, and they go straight to the heart. Earl Wild reveals this quality brilliantly in his arrangements.”

The title of the album, “Fusions,” doesn’t just allude to those of jazz and classical music.

Bringing together the Kapustin (“with him, there is always a sharply defined idea, a form, a phrase — everything carefully drawn with a sharp pencil, always in motion”) and the Gershwin (“his music is all about feelings, emotions and human warmth”) creates a disparate but complementary soundscape.

And that’s the point Medvedev brought home as he wrapped up his comments: “It is precisely this contrast between them that gives the album ‘Fusions’ its character. Together, they create the combination that has always been closest to me: the combination of mind and heart.”

As an artist, Medvedev expresses that combination exquisitely with stunning athleticism and technical skill, coupled with a deep sense of emotional connection to these pieces.

“Fusions” was released June 19, 2026 on the SOMM label.