Leff Pouishnoff

Lev Nikolaevich Pouishnoff (; 28 May 1959) was a Russian-born pianist and composer, who made his home in the United Kingdom and whose career was largely in the West, from the 1920s onwards. He was especially associated with performances of the works of Frédéric Chopin, though he also played works by Franz Schubert, Robert Schumann, and Franz Liszt. His was among the earliest recordings of Schubert's Sonata in G major, D 894, made for English Columbia around 1928.

Childhood and early studies Pouishnoff, born into an aristocratic Russian family in either Kiev or Odessa, was drawn to the piano as a young child, and, having acquired some aptitude before the age of ten, gave two public concerts. His parents, not wishing him to be exploited, discouraged this, but after his father's death (when Lev was 9), financial constraints led to his accepting concert engagements, and he rapidly gained a reputation. Special arrangements were made for his schooling, where he had a particular interest in chemistry. At the age of 14 he joined the State Opera Company orchestra, but a chance meeting with Feodor Chaliapin persuaded him to pursue his piano studies.

His career now burst upon the European scene. He made numerous orchestral appearances in Britain, in London at the Queen's Hall and Royal Albert Hall, with the Hallé Orchestra in Manchester and with the Scottish Orchestra. His many compositions for orchestra, violin and piano were still in MS in 1924, but his piano pieces were by then being published. He began to make regular visits to the principal cities of France, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands, and was in the United States in the seasons of 1924-25 and 1925-26, when he toured major cities. His career eventually became world-wide. On 2 December 1928 he gave the first performance in Britain of Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No 4 in Manchester, broadcast by the BBC. In recordings he is heard around 1930 as an extremely articulate and intelligent accompanist to Frank Titterton in Schubert song repertoire. He was among the earliest pianists to broadcast from Savoy Hill in 1925, and in 1938 he became the first to be broadcast on television, from Alexandra Palace. During World War II he gave concerts to factory workers, miners and dockers, and made extensive tours among the forces in the Middle East.