Music is about singing, dancing, life, and death.
These are the kinds of things I learned from my teacher
and mentor, the incredible Ukrainian pianist Mikhail
(Misha) Alperin. Misha turned my world upside down from
the moment we met. I was 19 then, and he continued to
have a huge influence on me ever since. We didn’t see
each other very often in later years, but every time we did,
I was filled with energy and inspiration. And in every
meeting, he said at least one little thing that I would think
about for months afterwards, whether it was during a
brief conversation in the academy hallway, or a two-hour
monologue in his office. He was intense. He celebrated life
and love. He was singing, dancing and certainly living
through his music. His death has left a void in our world
that can never be filled, and he is sorely missed.
Helge Lien, December 2022
Funeral Dance
OZ106CD
9/1/2023