Pianist Ivan Gusev was born in Karaganda, Kazakhstan. At age four, he moved with his family to greater Moscow, where he began his piano studies at the Korolev School of the Arts at age six. He twice won the school's competition, then the Moscow regional competition, and soon won an award in a national competition. At age nine he was invited to continue his studies with Elena Kaminskaya at the Moscow College of Instrumental Performance. Later, at Moscow's Gnessin College of Music, he received top marks for his graduate piano performance exam and won the Jyväskylä International Competition (Finland). Studying with Mikhail Voskresensky and Eliso Virsaladze at the Tchaikovsky Moscow Conservatory between 2008 and 2015, he earned bachelor's, master's, and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees with highest honors.

After moving to New York, he won the Third Gershwin International Music Competition (NYC), the Mauro Monopoli Competition Prize (Barletta, Apulia), the Benditsky Russian Piano Competition (Saratov), the IKIF's Dorothy MacKenzie Artist Recognition Scholarship Award (NYC), the Third International Stanislav Neuhaus Piano Competition (Russia), and the 20th-century composition performance prize of the New York Festival and Piano Competition. He also earned a Masters in piano performance at Mannes School of Music in New York City.

Ivan has played many solo recitals, as well as performing with orchestras and in collaboration with other instrumentalists in chamber music.

Currently based in Boston, Ivan serves as a church organist, in addition to his teaching and accompanying positions.

He is a passionate music teacher and the author of an acclaimed series of educational concert-lectures for adults and children. The late musicologist Allan Evans said of Ivan Gusev, "He is a profound, genuine musician who makes each note live and transports you to another existence".  

Ivan invites you to visit his website, www.ivan-gusev.com.

We are honored to welcome Ivan to his fifth appearance on our Historical Piano Concerts series.