Stravinsky is one of the greatest composers of our time and I truly love many of his works. My earliest and most vivid impression of Stravinsky’s music is related to the ballet Petrouchka. I saw the Kirov Theatre of Leningrad production many times, and I tried never to miss a performance. (Unfortunately, I haven’t heard the new edition of Petrouchka for a smaller orchestra; I’m not sure that it is better than the earlier one.) Since then this marvellous composer has invariably been at the centre of my attention, and I not only studied and listened to his music, but I played it and made my own transcriptions as well. << less