Biography
Like many other amazing musicians, Vlad Girshevich, showed musical aptitude at an early age. At 4 years old, he started playing piano, and by age 7 he had already taught himself to play pop songs with both hands! His mother recognized his gift and took him to audition at The Uspenski School of Music. He was accepted to this prestigious school which has turned out many famous musicians including Aleksey Sultanov. Fortunately, the school was in his home town of Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan. Vlad spent 11 blistering years there, studying classical music. When he started experimenting with jazz in the 11th grade, his instructors gave him a hard time for being too creative with “free” interpretation!
After Uspenski, Vlad spent 2 years at the Tashkent State Conservatory, and then his family emigrated to the United States in the mid-90’s. His first gigs were in Boulder with the Nina Storey Band. Then he moved to Aspen and had a regular gig at The Little Nell Hotel for 5 years. While in Aspen, Herbie Hancock heard Vlad playing at an event and subsequently invited him to participate in the Thelonious Monk Institute at Jazz Aspen/Snowmass.
Vlad has lived in Denver since, where he has been involved in numerous projects, in town with AOA, 5 Points Jazz Festival and out of town with The Santa Fe Jazz Festival, Vail Jazz Festival,Windham Chamber Festival, and Rostov-on- Don Jazz Festival…to name just a few. He has performed with Bob Berg, Stanley Jordan, Ernie Watts, Karen Briggs, and while at the Thelonious Monk Institute, Vlad played with Jerry Gonzales, Arturo Sandoval, and legendary drummer Horacio “El Negro” Hernandez.
Vlad’s composition “Tomorrow” has been named a Top 5 finalist in the 2012 Great American Song Contest (instrumental category) and also received Honorable Mention in The International Songwriting Competition (instrumental category). He and his son, Aleks Girshevich, the drummer, recorded this last year in an album of the same name, when Aleks was just 10 years old!! It has been said that The Aleks Girshevich Piano Trio “evokes an atmosphere reminiscent of classical chamber music; there is colorful intimacy, artful phrasing and careful attention to texture and nuance….Vlad’s phenomenal piano artistry is in constant conversation with David Arend’s innovative double bass work, and Aleks ties it together with prodigious skill and a multi-layered rhythmic concept”.
Bass Players United called Vlad a “thrilling and adventurous talent”. Vlad is much sought-after as a soloist, as well as for his work with jazz trios and quartets.
Press
«Vlad Girshevich is an eloquent pianist with impressive technical facility»
«Pianist and composer Vlad Girshevich is a thrilling and adventurous talent»
«Vlad crafts evocative melodies, classically tinged jazz that is intimate and inviting. He can lure you with a beautiful melody, provoke pondering with contemplative noodling, or captivate with a scholarly musical exploration spanning an expansive array of art and culture»
«Girshevich possesses a high level of stylistic virtuosity… His technique ranges from the fitful, breakneck finger-Olympics on more adventurous tunes to the warm and introspective, melancholic playing of more delicate ones»
«Vlad provides sparkling piano runs that possess an intricate filigree»
«Brilliant harmonic color palette with a subtle yet intense lyrical direction»
Photos
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