Sedmara Zakarian Rutstein
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About
Sedmara Zakarian Rutstein is an acclaimed Russian-Armenian concert pianist and educator whose distinguished career has transported her to concert halls, recording studios, and conservatories of music across three continents. Sedmara's remarkable ability to grasp the essence of diverse musical styles, combined with the energy, brilliance, and sensitivity of her performances, have earned her critical acclaim in the United States, Europe, Russia, Hong Kong, and China. Reviewers have consistently ranked her among the foremost piano soloists of her time. Sedmara's students have heralded her as the very rare teacher who can impart both artistry and technique.
Early Years
Sedmara Zakarian Rutstein is a native of Saint Petersburg (then Leningrad), Russia.
She comes from a musical and eclectic family: Her mother, a pianist and choir conductor, was half Russian and half Romanian, while her father, a violinist, was Armenian. She grew up at the intersection of two cultures, Russian and Armenian, absorbing the rich heritage and history – and unique musical traditions – of both.
A child prodigy, she began her piano studies at the age of four and gave her first public recital at the age of six, featuring works by Mozart and Beethoven.
Sedmara was accepted at the Secondary Special Music School (SSMSH) of the Saint Petersburg (then Leningrad State) Conservatory, a renowned program for gifted children. She completed her undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate studies at the legendary Saint Petersburg Conservatory under distinguished professor Nadezhda Golubovskaya (see photo; Sedmara is on the far left).
Sedmara went on to become a well-known recitalist and soloist throughout the former USSR. Often a guest soloist with the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Society, she also performed with the orchestras of Yerevan, Minsk, Tallin, Riga, Kharkov, Saratov, and other cities, and was a frequent guest on radio and television.
She was invited to join the faculty of the Saint Petersburg Conservatory after completing her studies and taught there for 12 years until her family’s immigration to the United States in 1974.
The Saint Petersburg Conservatory was established in 1862 by the Russian Musical Society under the initiative of pianist and composer Anton Rubinstein, marking Russia's first professional music school dedicated to systematic musical education.
Rubinstein envisioned the institution as a center for rigorous training modeled on European conservatories, emphasizing discipline and technical proficiency.
A historic cornerstone of classical music training, the Saint Petersburg Conservatory evolved from a private academy to a public state institution in 1918. During the Soviet era, it was known as the Leningrad State Conservatory. In 1944, the Conservatory added the name Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov to its official title, in honor of the composer who profoundly shaped its distinct methodology after joining the faculty in 1871.
Many eminent musicians have graced its halls. Among the inaugural class of 1865 was seminal Russian composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky; other alumni include composers Sergei Prokofiev and Dmitri Shostakovich.
SSMSH of the Saint Petersburg Conservatory, also known as the "Ten-Year School," is a prestigious institution for educating exceptionally gifted young musicians. It serves as a preparatory pathway for the Saint Petersburg Conservatory. Within its walls, children receive both specialized musical and general education. The primary goal of the school is to educate high-performing musicians whose vocational education is complemented by comprehensive intellectual, artistic, and spiritual development.
Education
Doctor of Music
Piano Performance
Leningrad State Conservatory
Leningrad, USSR
Master of Music
Graduated with honors
Piano Performance, Teaching,
Ensemble, Accompaniment
Leningrad State Conservatory
Leningrad, USSR
Bachelor of Music
Instrumental Music Performance, Pianoforte
The Secondary Special Music School of the Leningrad State Conservatory, Leningrad, USSR
United States Reception
Sedmara Zakarian Rutstein’s distinguished career continued to grow in the U.S., with highly lauded solo appearances around the country. The New York Times hailed her recital at Alice Tully Hall a “radiant success,” and went on to say, “she has forceful interpretive ideas and the technique to carry them out…[and] played with uncommon clarity and a lovely, melting piano sound.” The Washington Post proclaimed that the United States “gained a major artist” and described her as “a contemporary pianist in the best sense of the word.”
The Inquirer and Mirror in Massachusetts ran the headline “EXQUISITE, SUPERLATIVE, MAGNIFICENT”; another reviewer wrote of her rendition of a Chopin waltz, “her fingers seemingly took flight over the keyboard, distilling experience into pure sounds, evoking the timeless and absolute.”
Sedmara’s repertoire encompasses a vast array of compositions, spanning the early 18th to late 20th centuries. In addition, she has been a pioneer in the complete cycle of J.S. Bach’s “The Art of the Fugue,” which she later recorded on both piano and harpsichord. She also presented the world premiere of an early, unpublished piano concerto by Robert Schumann.
Sedmara’s widely praised recordings have been released by Melodia, Orion Master Recordings, Musical Heritage Society, Albany Records, Compositor Publishing House, and SZR Productions. Her recording of Rachmaninoff and Scriabin was lauded as “piano playing of the highest sort; not even Richter or Horowitz excels her at Russian music.”
In 1996, Fanfare magazine named her recording of Sonata No. 5 by Boris Tischenko one of the top five releases of the year.
Teaching
Sedmara is an Emeritus Professor of Pianoforte at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where she taught for 36 years. She has also been invited as a visiting professor at highly regarded musical institutions worldwide, including multiple invites to conduct lessons and master classes at the Shanghai and Beijing Conservatories, and 14 seasons as a faculty member at the Casalmaggiore International Music Festival in Italy.
"What an honor it is to help young artists perfect their technique and to encourage them to find their voice and passion for piano."
Her publications include unique piano arrangements and monographs.
Sedmara continues to play piano and make recordings at her home in Northern Virginia. She also enjoys spending time with her daughter, grandson, and son-in-law, who live nearby.