Igor Lovchinsky, Piano

Biography

Hailed by Gramophone as a "star of the future" and acclaimed by Germany's Piano Magazine for the "elegance and rapturous beauty" of his music-making, pianist Igor Lovchinsky has performed at the Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, the Bushnell Center, the Eastman Theater and the Ohio Theater. Internationally, he has presented recitals at the National Philharmonic Hall in Warsaw, the American Embassy in Beijing, and the Rosza Centre in Calgary. Recent tours have included performances in Poland and Lithuania.

With a repertoire ranging from the Renaissance to the 21st century, Mr. Lovchinsky is a multi-faceted performer whose innovative programs - often combining the classical repertoire with jazz - reflect his diverse musical interests. An avid exponent of new music, Mr. Lovchinsky has championed works by Norman Dello Joio, Rodion Schedrin, Heather Schmidt, Avner Dorman, Nikolai Kapustin and Earl Wild. After hearing his Etudes on Themes of Gershwin performed by Lovchinsky, Mr. Wild immediately offered to produce the young pianist’s debut disc on the composer’s label, Ivory Classics. In addition to Earl Wild's set of Etudes, the record features music by Chopin and Scriabin. The debut album was selected as one of the top five recordings of 2008 by Time Out International.

As concerto soloist, Mr. Lovchinsky has performed with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, the Minnesota Sinfonia, the Pila Classical Orchestra, the Florida International University Symphony Orchestra and others. In addition, his performance of Chopin’s First Concerto with the Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra was broadcast on WQXR radio in New York and was featured as the soundtrack of the independent film "Romance Larghetto" by director Pablo Goldbarg.

Born in Kazan, Russia in 1984, Igor Lovchinsky began playing the piano at the age of two. Very quickly, he showed extraordinary promise – not only as a pianist, but as a composer and improviser as well - and by the age of four, was already playing recitals for his friends and family. In 1989, he entered the Kazan Special Music School for Gifted Children and after coming to the United States in 1994, garnered first prizes at the Eastman International Piano Competition and the National Chopin Piano Competition of the Kosciuszko Foundation.

Mr. Lovchinsky holds a Bachelor’s degree from the Juilliard School and a Master's degree from the New England Conservatory in Boston.  His previous teachers have included Nina Polonsky, Steven Glaser, Jerome Lowenthal, Patricia Zander, and Wha-Kyung Byun.  In addition to music, Mr. Lovchinsky is doing a PhD in Physics at Harvard University.