Alexei Rumiantsev has become adept at bridging cultures. Born in St. Petersburg (then known as Leningrad), Alexei went to the Cologne Conservatory, in Germany, where he studied both classical music and jazz. He found the true synthesis of the European and Afro-American musical traditions in ragtime. While in Germany, he also met Hiromi, a young woman from Yokohama who was studying to be a Japanese-English and Japanese-German translator. She became his partner, not only in life but on the stage, singing to his accompaniment.
Alexei says it is his destIny to play music that has been almost forgotten by audiences. In addition to rags, he mixes tunes featuring stride piano, Dixieland and other early jazz styles into his repertoire. And Hiromi joins him to sing rarely performed but phenomenally entertaining ragtime songs. It will be an entertaining and enlightening evening reaching back deep into the roots of jazz.