Well known to the audiences of nearly fifty countries on six continents, Professor Berman regularly appears with leading orchestras, on major recital series, and in important festivals. He studied at the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory with the distinguished pianist Lev Oborin.

An active recording artist and a Grammy nominee, he was the first pianist to record the complete solo works of Prokofiev. Other acclaimed releases include all piano sonatas by Alexander Scriabin and a recital of Shostakovich piano works, which received the Edison Classic Award (the Dutch equivalent of the Grammy). He also recorded three Prokofiev concertos with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra with Neeme Jarvi conducting, as well as works by Mozart, Beethoven, Weber, Schumann, Brahms, Franck, Debussy, Stravinsky, Janácˇek, Schnittke, Shostakovich, Joplin, and Cage.

In 1984 Professor Berman joined the faculty of the Yale School of Music, where he is Professor in the Practice of Piano, coordinator of the piano department, and music director of the Horowitz Piano Series. He was the founding director of the Yale Summer Piano Institute and of the International Summer Piano Institute in Hong Kong. He also gives master classes throughout the world and is a frequent juror of international competitions. In 2005 he was given the title of Honorary Professor of the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.

In 2000 Yale University Press published Professor Berman’s Notes from the Pianist’s Bench, which has been translated into several languages. In 2008 the same publisher released his book Prokofiev’s Piano Sonatas: A Guide for the Listener and the Performer. He is the editor of the new critical edition of Piano Sonatas by Prokofiev (Shanghai Music Publishing House).