“Given his well-tried combination of penetrating intelligence, scrupulous musicianship and a technique capable of meeting any challenge with unruffled aplomb, it should come as not surprise that Aimard's Art of Fugue is a masterly achievement. The polyphony, no matter how complex, is unfailingly clear throughout, the tone beautifully modulated at every level, and the fugues are deftly characterised in such a way that one feels a kind of continuity, as in a suite . . . Alternately grave, dancing, processing, lamenting, playful, declamatory and intimate, the playing leaves the listener in no doubt that this is deeply expressive, not merely cerebral music . this is simply superb.”
(Piano, London, March 2007)
Pierre-Laurent Aimard was born in Lyon, France, in 1957. He studied at the Paris Conservatory with Yvonne Loriod and in London with Maria Curcio. At the age of twelve he was introduced to Olivier Messiaen and within a few years became the composer’s preferred interpreter. He is widely acclaimed as a key figure in contemporary music, and collaborated closely for more than 15 years with György Ligeti, recording his complete works. He is also celebrated as a leading interpreter of the standard repertoire, and has appeared all over the globe with the world’s major orchestras and conductors such as Pierre Boulez, Christoph von Dohnányi, Christoph Eschenbach, Daniel Harding, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Jonathan Nott, Seiji Ozawa, Sir Simon Rattle, Esa-Pekka Salonen and Franz Welser-Möst. Aimard also gives solo recitals and chamber-music performances, and regularly appears at all the important music festivals. He holds professorships at the Hochschule für Musik in Cologne and at the Paris Conservatory, and gives lectures and masterclasses worldwide.
1973
Wins first prize in the Olivier Messiaen Competition, which launches him on his international career
1976
Appointed first solo pianist with the Ensemble Intercontemporain by Pierre Boulez; he remains with the ensemble for 18 years
1994
His recording of Ligeti's Piano Concerto (coupled with the Violin Concerto and Cello Concerto) is released on Deutsche Grammophon and wins the Prix Caecilia (Brussels) in 1994 and the Cannes Classical Award, Edison Prize, and Gramophone Award in 1995.
1997
CD release on the Yellow Label of his recording of Messiaen's Réveil des oiseaux with The Cleveland Orchestra conducted by Pierre Boulez.
2000
His recordings of Webern’s Piano Quintet and Concerto op. 24 are released in Deutsche Grammophon’s 4-CD set of Webern’s complete works, which is awarded the Prize of the German Record Critics
2001
Debut recital at New York’s Carnegie Hall to exceptional acclaim
2003
Echo Award for his recording of the complete Beethoven Piano Concertos with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe under Nikolaus Harnoncourt.
2004
Echo Award for his recording of Debussy’s Images and Etudes
2005
Named “Instrumentalist of the Year” by the Royal Philharmonic Society in London. CD release: Boulez’s Notations, Structures and . . . explosante-fixe . . . with the Ensemble Intercontemporain and conducted by the composer himself
2006
Performs his own seven-concert “Perspectives” series at Carnegie Hall, New York (2006/07 season) during which he gives the world premiere of Caténaires, a new solo piano work composed for him by Elliott Carter and performed as a celebratory greeting to the composer on his 98th birthday. Begins position as pianist-in-residence with the Berliner Philharmoniker and opens his “Carte blanche” series at the Konzerthaus, Vienna. Named “Instrumentalist of the Year” by Musical America. Digital release of his recording made at the Styriarte Festival of Mozart’s Piano Concertos nos. 17 and 18 with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe
2007
Joins the roster of artistic partners of the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. Innovative song and chamber-music recital series at the Palais Garnier, Paris. “Artiste étoile” at the Lucerne Festival (solo recitals, chamber music with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, concerts with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, the Ensemble Intercontemporain, and the Boston Symphony Orchestra under James Levine). Appears at the London Proms as soloist and conductor of the Mahler Chamber Orchestra and also performs with them in New York’s Carnegie Hall. Appears at the Ojai Festival in California, of which he is also this year’s artistic director. Further concerts with the Boston Symphony Orchestra under Levine in Berlin, the London Symphony Orchestra under Daniel Harding at the Barbican, and with the San Francisco Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic under Philippe Jordan. Signs an exclusive recording contract with Deutsche Grammophon; makes his first recording under the new contract for DG, Bach’s The Art of Fugue
2008
Continues as artistic partner of the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, playing and conduct¬ing works ranging from Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven to Ravel, Stravinsky and Ligeti. Artistic director of the year-long Messiaen Festival at London’s Southbank Centre; artist-in-residence at the Salzburg Mozarteum (concerts with the Wiener Philharmoniker and Camerata Salzburg) and with the Cleveland Orchestra during which he gives the world premiere of a new piano concerto by George Benjamin in Lucerne. Residency at the Cité de la musique in Paris (concerts with the Orchestre national de Lyon, the Ensemble Intercontemporain and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe). Tours with the Berliner Philharmoniker and Sir Simon Rattle with Messiaen’s Turangalîla-Symphonie, appearing at the Salzburg Festival, the Berlin Festival, and in the UK; performances of the Turangalîla-Symphonie in Japan, and with the Orchestre de Lyon in France. Performs Bach’s Art of Fugue at the Cité de la musique in Paris, London’s Wigmore Hall, New York’s Carnegie Hall, Vienna’s Konzerthaus, Berlin’s Philharmonie, at the Ruhr Klavier-Festival and at the Roque d’Anthéron International Piano Festival; Bartók’s Concerto for Two Pianos and Percussion with the London Symphony Orchestra under Boulez at the Barbican; Messiaen’s Oiseaux exotiques with the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra in Germany and Switzerland, with the Los Angeles Philharmonic in LA, and with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France in Paris; Mozart Concertos with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe at the Styriarte Festival in Austria. His interpretation of Bach’s Art of Fugue
5/2008
