Viacheslav Apostel - Pankratowsky - piano/Germany

Moscow-born pianist Viacheslav Apostel-Pankratowsky received intensive musical training from an early age. By the age of ten, he was already performing regularly at regional competitions and giving numerous concerts.

During his studies at the Moscow Gnessin Institute, Apostel-Pankratowsky earned degrees as a pianist, chamber musician, piano teacher, and accompanist. Among his teachers were renowned artists such as Naum Shtarkman and Vera Nosina. Even during his studies, he regularly participated in national and international competitions and performed solo and chamber music concerts in Russia, Ukraine, Italy, and Portugal.

In 2006, Apostel-Pankratowsky passed the entrance exams for the postgraduate piano program at the University of Music and Theatre "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" in Leipzig, where he studied under Christoph Taubert.

From 2008 to 2013, he pursued a teaching degree at the University of Music "Franz Liszt" in Weimar, with a focus on organ as his artistic major. This period was also marked by a wide range of artistic activities. In addition to holding a teaching position as a piano instructor and accompanist in the school music department of the Weimar University of Music, Apostel-Pankratowsky performed regularly as a soloist and chamber musician and participated in various projects and workshops.

In 2020, his debut CD „Impromptus, Songs and Consolations“, featuring works by Franz Schubert and Franz Liszt, was released by the label Genuin classics. The recording received high praise, including a review in PIANO News (Issue 3/2020): “In his interpretation, these are ‘songs without words’: the entire articulation aims at storytelling, creating a ballad-like tone. In the process, the pianist (like a gifted lieder interpreter) manages to do without exaggerated theatrics. He succeeds wonderfully in bringing out inner melodies…” and in MusicWeb International (July 2020): “Apostel-Pankratowsky plays the [...] Impromptus [...] with considerable skill and empathy for the music.”

In 2022, his second CD „Poetic Narratives“, featuring works by Frédéric Chopin, was released. In this recording, the pianist explores his deep connection to Chopin’s music, shaped by his teacher and mentor Naum Shtarkman, offering a highly personal musical reflection on these works.

Viacheslav Apostel-Pankratowsky is a piano teacher and accompanist at the State Music School (Landesgymnasium für Musik) in Wernigerode. In addition to his teaching activities, he regularly performs in concerts.