Vadim Neselovskyi

The world at large has been inundated with news from the recent Russian incursion into the country of Ukraine. While the storms of war gather, pianist and composer Vadim Neselovskyi chooses to remind people of the country’s beauty and cultural legacy. More specifically, Neselovskyi looks to his hometown on the Black Sea to inspire his new solo recording, Odesa: A Musical Walk Through a Legendary City.

Neselovskyi was born in Odesa in 1977 during the Brezhnev years (commonly referred to as the “Period of Stagnation”). He was still a child when Gorbachev came to power in 1985 and was just 14 years old when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. Neselovskyi was a child musical prodigy who became the youngest person accepted in the Odesa Conservatory. Though he began in the classical world, Neselovskyi became infatuated with jazz music via sailors passing along recordings. He would soon move on to Germany and further to Berklee College of Music in Boston to continue his studies.

Over the years, Neselovskyi continued his ascendancy in the jazz world, performing alongside his mentor Gary Burton during the vibist’s last decade as a recording artist. Burton also became one of the main supporters of Neselovskyi as a composer, recording and performing Neselovskyi’s compositions together with Julian Lage and Antonio Sanchez. Neselovskyi also released a number of albums as a leader and as a partner with French horn and Alphorn master Arkady Shilkloper. Neselovskyi recently began to explore his Jewish musical roots in collaboration with John Zorn on the eclectic composer’s own Tzadik label, recording a duo with Craig Taborn.