Alexander Zlatkovski

Russian-Alaskan pianist and storyteller Alexander Zlatkovski eagerly collects anecdotes about composers and their music, but his own life story merits attention in its own right. Zlatkovski, who was born in Moscow, started playing piano at age seven, but health problems (he had scoliosis as a child) took him away from the instrument. At age 17 he was able to resume his playing, which he pursued "in parallel" with an interest in science(Zlatkovski studied radio engineering and genetics). After finishing his studies in genetics, though, he made up his mind to pursue music exclusively. "I decided that I loved music more than anything else." Zlatkovski entered the Practical Department of the Moscow Conservatory, where he studied standard piano repertoire. Soon after he finished, his life took another turn as he moved with his wife to a kibbutz in Israel. "It was interesting," Zlatkovski said,a bit wanly, of the commune-style life on the kibbutz, "but I found it's not for me. They tell you what to do... Instead of playing music, I had to pick oranges, work on some odd jobs with turkeys or with cows." After six years in Israel, the couple won a visa to emigrate to the U.S. in a lottery program. Free to move to any state, they chose Alaska. "My wife is a real winter person," Zlatkovski said, adding that she was eager to escape Israel's hot summers. For his part, "I had read Jack London, and Alaska sounded interesting." Zlatkovski soon established a musical home for himself in his adopted country. For years he and flautist Markus Bishko played together as the Alaska Klezmer Duo, and today he works as a pianist for the Alaska Dance Theater. He also prepares an annual series of solo concerts, which continues this Sunday with "Moscow Nights," a selection of Russian pieces he'll perform at the Alaska Museum. At his concerts, Zlatkovski introduces each piece with a story about the composer or the work itself. He researches extensively, but he's not trying for an academic lecture (he mentioned the famously bubbly Liberace as an inspiration); his goal is to entertain without being "too lightweighted." "I always try to find unexpected facts about the compositions" Zlatkovski said. For example, he said, the song "Moscow Nights" was a "dismal failure" at first. "No one liked it, including the composer and poet who made it." Once nearly forgotten, the song is now a global symbol of Russian culture; Zlatkovski said it could be considered a second Russian national anthem. What saved it? Zlatkovski alluded to "a fortunate chain of circumstances" (about which concertgoers can doubtless expect to hear more).