Maria João Pires

Maria João Pires, one of the world's foremost and most sought after pianists, was born in Lisbon. She began studying piano at an early age, and by the time she was five years old was already performing Mozart concertos in public. At the age of nine she received Portugal's top prize for young musicians. Between 1953 and 1960 Maria João Pires studied with Professor Campos Coelho at the Lisbon Conservatory, and also took courses in composition, theory and history of music with Francine Benoit. She continued her studies in Germany, first at the Musikakademie in Munich under Rosl Schmid, then in Hannover with Karl Engel.

Maria João's discography is large and varied and includes Moonlight, featuring Beethoven sonatas, Le Voyage Magnifique Schubert Impromptus, and the complete set of Chopin Nocturnes, together with chamber music and orchestral repertoire. Her latest recording with Claudio Abbado and the Orchestra Mozart is due for release in autumn 2012.

Since 1970 Maria João Pires has dedicated herself to reflecting on the influence of art on life, community and education, and in trying to develop new ways of implementing pedagogic theories within society. She has researched new forms of communication that respect the development of the individual, as opposed to the destructive and materialistic logic of globalisation. In the last ten years she has held many workshops with students from all around the world, and this year she takes her philosophy and teaching to Japan, Switzerland and France.

In 2005 she formed an experimental theatre, dance and music group, Art Impressions, and together they have produced two major projects - "Transmissions" and "Schubertiade".

Photo © Felix Broede/Deutsche Grammophon