& Ei tert n e Roman Rabinovich: "The Rachmaninoff concerto is one of my favorite pieces." From Russia With Love 25-year-old Roman Rabinovich tackles Rachmaninoff's famed piano concerto. Suzanne Chessler Special to the Jewish News Ann Arbor A 'though Roman Rabinovich's family left Uzbekistan for Israel before he turned 10, the touring concert pianist remains drawn to the cul- ture of the part of the world he knew first. Besides regularly performing the pieces of Russian composers, Rabinovich enjoys reading the works of 20th-century Russian poets. The musician, who appeared with the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra in 2006, returns to play Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor in a program titled "Russian Romance." The concert, slated for March 12 at the Michigan Theater, also includes orches- tra interpretations of Mikhail Glinka's Ruslan and Ludmilla Overture and Sergei Prokofiev's Symphony No. 5 in B-flat Major, Op. 100. A lecture at 7 p.m. introduces the 8 p.m. concert. "The Rachmaninoff concerto is one of my favorite pieces:' says Rabinovich, 25, whose early instrumental lessons were given by his parents, both music teachers. "I love playing it because of its incred- ible beauty. It's a challenging piece for both pianist and orchestra and often is the highlight of any pianist's repertoire. "My first language is Russian; and I grew up with works by Rachmaninoff, Tchaikovsky and Prokofiev so I feel very connected to them." The piano concerto, known for its deep melodies, demonstrates mastery of high technical difficulty because of the scales and arpeggios, explains Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra conductor Arie Lipsky "I have had the pleasure of mentor- ing Roman for a long time,' Lipsky says. "Now, he is a winner of the 2008 Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition and is returning to Ann Arbor to perform the most dazzling concerto ever written. It will be a tremendous event." Glinka, influential for Russian musi- cians of the 19th and 20th centuries, was thought of as the patron of Russian clas- sical music, according to Lipsky. Glinka's overture is known for its exuberance and excitement. The conductor describes the Prokofiev symphony as being about the human spirit, capturing the essence of strength, generosity and purity of soul found in free and happy individuals. Rabinovich, whose career has taken him to stages throughout Europe and the United States as well as Israel, considers his career a very natural process. "My parents started teaching me piano when I was 5 or 6, and I quickly fell in love with it," he says. "I started performing in concerts when I was 9, and my first big performance was the next year with the Israel Philharmonic as Zubin Mehta did the conducting." Rabinovich, who studied at the Rubin Academy of Music in Tel Aviv, moved to the United States when he was 17 and went to the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. His master's degree was earned at the Juilliard School in New York. "I feel very comfortable on stage Rabinovich says. "I'm really very excited to be there." Carnegie's Weill Hall in New York, Glazunov Hall in St. Petersburg and the Salle Cartot in Paris are among the many venues where Rabinovich has worked. His time is divided among orchestras, cham- ber groups and festivals. "I met Arie Lipsky when I was 10, on tour with a group of young musicians from Israel," the pianist says. "One of the cities in which we performed was Buffalo, where Arie was working. We played together a few times, and that's a wonder- ful thing for me." Rabinovich's talents have taken him from sound to sight with projects in draw- ing and painting. Some recent concerts have been linked with exhibits of his work. Refaeli, 25, who became famous worldwide when she graced the cover of the 2009 Sports Illustrated swim- suit issue; (12) actress Emmanuelle Chriqui, 33, voted No.1 on last year's Askmen list; (11) actress Natalie Portman, 29; (7) actress Scarlett Johansson, 26; and (2) actress Mila Kunis, 27. On the website, there are bios of all these women, plus photos and a short video Mila Kunis about each of them. reviews but strong box office. In real life, Agron started dating her co- star, Brit actor Alex Pettyfer, soon after their movie began filming. However, Dianna Agron they officially broke up a few weeks ago. Agron mostly grew up in a San Francisco suburb. Recently, I received a letter from the religious school coor- dinator of the Bay Area synagogue that Agron, her parents and her broth- er attended. The coordinator described both parents as "true mentshes" and Dianna as "very sweet and lady-like." Dianna's father was born Jewish and her mother is a convert to Judaism. Dianna was a bat mitzvah. "My mom took me to museums when I was very young and showed me art books:' he recalls. "I loved what I saw and wanted to try doing similar work myself. "I started drawing when I was 9 or 10, and now I draw whenever I can. I keep a sketchbook with me everywhere I go. I just had a show in Arizona for a month." Rabinovich, who does both represen- tational and abstract projects shown on his website, www.romanrabinovich.net , is going high-tech. "I recently started drawing on my phone',' explains the musician-artist, who visits museums as he lands in new cities sched- uled in his concert career. "There's a draw- ing application, and it's fascinating to me." Although Rabinovich has not done recordings as yet, there are some plans to change that aspect of his career. "I chose the piece for the Ann Arbor concert, and I'm looking forward to per- forming it," says Rabinovich, who regularly returns to Israel to see family as well as perform. "When I was in Ann Arbor a few years ago, I played a Mozart concerto, and that was a wonderful experience. I would like to keep doing what I'm doing now as a pianist and artist." Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra's "Russian Romance" concert will be performed 8 p.m. Saturday, March 12, preceded by a 7 p.m. lecture, at the Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty St., in Ann Arbor. $10-$53. (734) 994-4801; www.a2so.com . Jews Nate Bloom Special to the Jewish News Shayna Punims The very popular website Askmen. corn is out with its annual list of the "World's 99 Most Desirable Women" and Jewish "lookers" grabbed about 10 percent of the spots. The number preceding the woman's name is her ranking; the number following is her age: (97) businesswoman Ivanka Trump, 29, a convert to Judaism who recently announced she and her husband, Jared Kushner, are expect- ing their first child; (91) actress Lea Michele, 24, the star of TV's Glee; (83) actress Rachel Bilson, 29; (81) actress and Glee co-star Dianna Agron, 24; (55) actress Rashida Jones, 34; (19) Israeli model Bar 32 March 3 2011 More On Agron Agron (Quinn Fabray on Glee) is now co- starring in her first major feature film, I Am Number Four, a sci-fi film with so-so Rango Opening on Friday, March 4, is the animated film Rango. Johnny Depp stars as the voice of Rango, a cha- meleon who lives in a terrarium and magically finds himself transported to the Old West, where he is sheriff of a town called "Dirt." Various desert animals, fill the human roles found in most westerns. Isla Fisher, 35, co- stars as the voice of Beans, a desert iguana. Australian Jewish actress Claudia Black Claudia Black, 38 (TV's Farscape), has a supporting voice role as Angelique, a red fox. I I