Paul lewis piano biography of albert

Paul Lewis CBE
Birth name	Paul Lewis
Born	() 20 May (age&#;52) Liverpool, England
Genres	Classical
Occupation	Classical pianist
Instrument	Piano
Website

Musical artist

Paul LewisCBE (born 20 May ) is an English classical pianist.^[1]

Early life

Lewis's father worked at the Liverpool Docks and his mother was a local council worker; there were no musicians in his family background.^[1] Lewis began by playing the cello, the only instrument for which his school could offer him tuition.

At the age of 14 he was accepted by Chetham's School of Music in Manchester, where his piano studies blossomed. His teachers included Ryszard Bakst (at Chetham's), Joan Havill (at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama) and Alfred Brendel, whom Lewis acknowledges as a mentor.^[2] His first international achievement was the second prize at the World Piano Competition in London.^[3] He also won the Dudley Piano Competition^[4] and the Royal Overseas League Piano Competition.^[5]

Career

Lewis is strongly affiliated with the Wigmore Hall, London.^[3][6][7]

Lewis performed all 32 of the Beethovenpiano sonatas, on tour in the United States and Europe, between the and seasons, in parallel with his complete recording of the cycle for Harmonia Mundi.

Each of these CD releases has been included in Gramophone magazine's "Editor's Choice", and in August , volume 4 of the series was awarded Gramophone's "Best Instrumental" recording and "Best Recording of the Year".^[8] In July and August Lewis became the first pianist to perform all five Beethoven Concertos in a single season of The BBC Proms.^[9]

In , he succeeded Fanny Waterman as artistic director of the Leeds International Piano Competition, jointly with conductor Adam Gatehouse.

He also chaired the competition's jury.^[2][10]

Lewis was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), in the Birthday Honours, for services to music.^[11]

In , Paul Lewis became an Irish citizen.^[12]

Reviews

Writing in The Daily Telegraph, Geoffrey Norris said, "There is in Lewis's playing a strong physicality, a firm connection between his deep thinking about the music and his articulation of it.

I caught up with him at his Buckinghamshire home. Each of these CD releases has been included in Gramophone magazine's "Editor's Choice", and in August , volume 4 of the series was awarded Gramophone' s "Best Instrumental" recording and "Best Recording of the Year". So tell us a little bit more about the festival. Toggle the table of contents.

He knows and can define its character, and can show how its rhythmic, harmonic and melodic components coalesce. This was playing of intellectual rigour and imaginative vigour."

In a interview with The Guardian, Lewis revealed that his musical guilty pleasure was the single "Paralyzed" by the Legendary Stardust Cowboy.^[13]

Discography

• Harmonia Mundi:
  • Schubert: Piano Sonata No.

    19 in C minor, D. , Piano Sonata No. 14 in A minor ("Grande Sonate"), D. (Op. posth. ) () CD ASIN BQG1F

  • Schubert. Last Sonatas D & D, () CD (HMC) ASIN BO6EO
  • Liszt: Sonata in B minor () CD (HMC) ASIN BIS
  • Beethoven: Complete Piano Sonatas, Vol.1 () CD (HMC) ASIN BA5B25W
  • Beethoven: Complete Piano Sonatas, Vol.2 () CD (HMC, 3 CDs) ASIN BHXDS04
  • Beethoven: Complete Piano Sonatas, Vol.3 () CD (HMC, 3 CDs)
  • Beethoven: Complete Piano Sonatas, Vol.4 () CD (HMC, 3 CDs)
  • Beethoven: Complete Piano Concertos, BBC Symphony Orchestra/Jiri Belohlavek () (3 CDs)
  • Beethoven: Diabelli Variations, Op.

    () CD (HMC)

  • Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin D, Mark Padmore – Tenor
  • Schubert: Winterreise D, Mark Padmore – Tenor
• Hyperion Records:

References

Further reading

External links