Igor Levit

With an alert and critical mind, pianist Igor Levit places his art in the context of social events and understands it as inseparably linked to them. The New York Times describes Levit as one of the “most important artists of his generation,” and the New Yorker as a pianist “like no other.” In 2018, he was named the eighth recipient of the prestigious Gilmore Artist Award—recognized as one of the world’s most distinguished music honors. Since the 2022–23 season, Levit has been Co-Artistic Director of the Heidelberger Frühling Musikfestival. And with the Lucerne Festival, he initiated the Piano Fest, which will take place in May 2025 for the third time.

During the 2024–25 season, Levit performs in recital at the Musikverein Vienna, Philharmonie Berlin, La Scala (Milan), Carnegie Hall, Walt Disney Concert Hall, and Concertgebouw (Amsterdam) as well as in cities including Naples, Rome, Stockholm, and Évian. For the inauguration of Christian Thielemann’s term as General Music Director of the Berlin State Opera, Levit opened the new season with the Staatskapelle Berlin. Further highlights of his orchestral season include a full Beethoven cycle with the Cleveland Orchestra and Franz Welser Möst as well as a Prokofiev cycle with the Budapest Festival Orchestra and Ivan Fischer. With the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig and Sir Antonio Pappano and the Orchestra of the Bayerische Rundfunk and Esa-Pekka Salonen he will interpret the monumental piano concerto of Ferrucio Busoni.Born in Nizhni Novgorod, Levit completed his piano studies in Hanover with the highest score in the history of the institute. In spring 2019, he was appointed professor of piano at his alma mater, the University of Music, Theater, and Media Hanover.

For his political commitment, Levit received the 5th International Beethoven Prize in 2019 followed by the award of the Statue B of the International Auschwitz Committee in January 2020. His 53 Twitter (X)-streamed live house concerts during the Covid lockdown in spring 2020 garnered a worldwide audience, offering a sense of community and hope during a challenging time of isolation. In October 2020, Levit was recognized with the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. In Berlin, where he makes his home, Levit plays on a Steinway D Concert Grand kindly given to him by the trustees of Independent Opera at Sadler’s Wells.

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Kristin Schuster, CCM Classic Concerts Management GmbH