Kirill Gerstein

Kirill Gerstein (born October 23, 1979) is a Russian-born American classical pianist acclaimed for his virtuosic interpretations of both canonical and contemporary repertoire, blending rigorous classical technique with improvisational jazz influences.

Born in Voronezh, Russia, to a mathematics teacher father and a music teacher mother, Gerstein began piano studies at age five and attended one of the country's elite special music schools for gifted children, where he developed his classical foundation while self-teaching jazz piano at home by ear from recordings. At age 14, after meeting jazz vibraphonist Gary Burton who offered him a scholarship, he emigrated to the United States, becoming the youngest student ever admitted to Boston's Berklee College of Music to study jazz piano, before switching his focus to classical performance; he earned bachelor's and master's degrees from the Manhattan School of Music by age 16 and later pursued advanced studies with Dmitri Bashkirov in Madrid and Ferenc Rados in Budapest. In 2021, he received an honorary Doctor of Musical Arts from the Manhattan School of Music.

Kirill Gerstein was born on October 23, 1979, in Voronezh, Soviet Union (now Russia), to a Russian-Jewish family. His father was a mathematician, while his mother, Eugenia Gerstein, was a music teacher specializing in early childhood education who served as his first piano instructor.