Rafał Blechacz (; born 30 June 1985) is a Polish
classical pianist
A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, j ...
who rose to fame after decisively winning the
XV International Chopin Piano Competition in 2005.
Biography
Blechacz began piano lessons at the age of five, and enrolled in the National
Arthur Rubinstein
Arthur Rubinstein ( pl, Artur Rubinstein; 28 January 188720 December 1982) was a Polish-American pianist. Music School in
Bydgoszcz
Bydgoszcz ( , , ; german: Bromberg) is a city in northern Poland, straddling the meeting of the River Vistula with its left-bank tributary, the Brda. With a city population of 339,053 as of December 2021 and an urban agglomeration with more ...
three years later.
In May 2007, he graduated from the Feliks Nowowiejski Music Academy in Bydgoszcz with professor
Katarzyna Popowa-Zydroń. He won second prize at the ''Arthur Rubinstein in Memoriam'' Piano Competition in Bydgoszcz in 2002, second prize at the 4th
Hamamatsu International Piano Competition The Hamamatsu International Piano Competition has been held every 3 years since 1991 in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan, and is open to pianists up to 30 years old.
History
The Piano Competition was inaugurated in 1991 to commemorate the 80th anniversar ...
in 2003 (no first prize was awarded), and first prize at the International Piano Competition in
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria ...
in 2004.
On October 21, 2005, he became the sole recipient of all five first prizes at the
15th International Frederick Chopin Piano Competition in
Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is official ...
, taking First Prize and the
polonaise
The polonaise (, ; pl, polonez ) is a dance of Polish origin, one of the five Polish national dances in time. Its name is French for "Polish" adjective feminine/"Polish woman"/"girl". The original Polish name of the dance is Chodzony, mean ...
,
mazurka
The mazurka (Polish: ''mazur'' Polish ball dance, one of the five Polish national dances and ''mazurek'' Polish folk dance') is a Polish musical form based on stylised folk dances in triple meter, usually at a lively tempo, with character de ...
,
concerto prizes, as well as the Special Prize for Audience Approval. No other pianist has achieved this feat.
One of the judges,
Piotr Paleczny
Piotr Paleczny (born 10 May 1946 in Rybnik, Poland) is a Polish classical pianist, winner of the 3rd prize of the VIII International Chopin Piano Competition in 1970.
In 1990 he served on the jury of the Paloma O'Shea Santander International ...
, said that Blechacz "so outclassed the remaining finalists that no second prize could actually be awarded." Another judge,
John O'Conor
John O'Conor (born 18 January 1947) is an Irish pianist and pedagogue, and former director of the Royal Irish Academy of Music.
Early career
Born in Dublin, O'Conor attended Belvedere College in that city. During his early Dublin studies, his ...
, called Blechacz "one of the greatest artists I have had a chance to hear in my entire life". Blechacz was the first Pole to win the prize (given every five years) since 1975, when
Krystian Zimerman
Krystian Zimerman (born 5 December 1956) is a Polish-Swiss concert pianist, conductor and pedagogue who has been described as one of the greatest pianists of his generation. In 1975, he won the IX International Chopin Piano Competition.
Follo ...
won.
Blechacz signed a contract to record for
Deutsche Grammophon
Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family o ...
on May 29, 2006. In addition to his 2005 debut album from CD Accord, he has released seven albums under Deutsche Grammophon as of March 2022. He recorded with the
Warsaw Philharmonic, led by Antoni Wit, for the Chopin Competition in 2005, and with the
Concertgebouw
The Royal Concertgebouw ( nl, Koninklijk Concertgebouw, ) is a concert hall in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The Dutch term "concertgebouw" translates into English as "concert building". Its superb acoustics place it among the finest concert halls ...
, under Jerzy Semkow, for his album of the Chopin piano concertos in 2009. He has also performed with the
Russian National Orchestra
The Russian National Orchestra (russian: Российский национальный оркестр) was founded in Moscow in 1990 by pianist and conductor Mikhail Pletnev. It was the first Russian orchestra to perform at the Apostolic Palace, ...
, the
Tonhalle Orchestra Tonhalle is a German word meaning "tone hall", a concert hall. It may refer to:
* Tonhalle Düsseldorf
* Tonhalle Orchester Zürich
* Tonhalle, Zürich, a concert venue
{{Disambig
German words and phrases ...
, the
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra
The Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra (''Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin'') is a German symphony orchestra based in Berlin. In Berlin, the orchestra gives concerts at the Konzerthaus Berlin and at the Berliner Philharmonie. The orchestra has also ...
, the
Philharmonia
The Philharmonia Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It was founded in 1945 by Walter Legge, a classical music record producer for EMI. Among the conductors who worked with the orchestra in its early years were Richard Strauss, ...
, the
Tokyo Symphony Orchestra
The or TSO, was established in 1946 as the Toho Symphony Orchestra (東宝交響楽団). It assumed its present name in 1951.
Based in Kawasaki, the TSO performs in numerous concert halls and serves as pit orchestra for some productions at Ne ...
, and the
Wiener Symphoniker
The Vienna Symphony (Vienna Symphony Orchestra, german: Wiener Symphoniker) is an Austrian orchestra based in Vienna. Its primary concert venue is the Vienna Konzerthaus. In Vienna, the orchestra also performs at the Musikverein and at the The ...
.
In 2014, Blechacz was named the 2014
Gilmore Artist.
He is the seventh individual to receive this award, and the second Polish pianist.
Blechacz had been studying
philosophy at the
Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, and in 2016, took a sabbatical to complete his doctorate. His thesis explored "aspects of the metaphysics and
aesthetics of music and, as he reflects, his studies have helped him 'understand both the freedoms and limitations of musical interpretations'". He returned to performing in January 2017.
In March, many of his concerts were cancelled or postponed due to illness.
Discography
References
External links
*
Rafal Blechacz Performed in Warsaw - NPR 18OCT2006Rafal Blechacz recorded Chopin's two Piano Concertos - NPR 14FEB2010Rafał Blechaczat culture.pl
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blechacz, Rafal
1985 births
Living people
Deutsche Grammophon artists
People from Nakło nad Notecią
Polish classical pianists
Male classical pianists
International Chopin Piano Competition winners
Recipients of the Silver Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis