"In 1984 when I was 15 years old and ready to take a plane to Genoa, to participate to the Paganini competition, the Soviet authorities would not let me go. It was a devastating moment. It took me one more year of passing all Soviet competitions again in order to come in 1985 to Genoa. It was my first time in Western Europe. Those years were the most important for my development as a musician. I was fortunate to set very high artistic goals, thanks to my wonderful teachers in Leningrad, every day it was a discovery for me and I was growing as a musician. During the competition I was so inspired by that process that I was hardly thinking of winning or losing. But winning the Paganini competition changed my life dramatically. I started concerting in Italy, in the Soviet Union and, later, all over the world. I am thankful to the Paganini competition and to the wonderful Italian public for recognizing my artistic value at the very beginning of my career."

website: www.dmitriberlinsky.com