Sir András Schiff is world-renowned as a pianist, conductor, pedagogue, and lecturer. Called “one of the most penetratingly serious masters of the keyboard before the public today” (The Boston Globe), Sir András continues to awe audiences and critics alike. Born in Budapest, Hungary, he studied piano at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music with Pál Kadosa, György Kurtág, and Ferenc Rados; and in London with George Malcolm.
Sir András has performed cycles of Beethoven’s sonatas and the complete works of J. S. Bach, Haydn, Schubert, and Bartók. Having collaborated with the world’s leading orchestras and conductors, he now focuses primarily on solo recital, play-conducting appearances, and exclusive conducting projects. In the 2022–2023 season, he was named artist-in-residence by the New York Philharmonic, with whom he performed nine concerts. His Bach interpretations have become an annual highlight at the BBC Proms, and he regularly performs at the Verbier, Salzburg, and Baden-Baden festivals, as well as at Wigmore Hall.
In the 2023–2024 season, Sir András plays recitals presented by the Celebrity Series of Boston, Chicago’s Symphony Center Presents, Washington Performing Arts, Club Musical de Québec, Toronto’s Royal Conservatory of Music, and The Friends of Chamber Music Kansas City. He now prefers announcing each recital program from the stage; as The New York Times has pointed out, “He has an impish streak and likes to surprise.” He also joins The Philadelphia Orchestra to direct and perform piano concertos by Haydn and Mozart in addition to conducting Schubert’s Second Symphony.
Founded in 1999, Cappella Andrea Barca is Sir András’s chamber orchestra comprising international soloists, chamber musicians, and friends. He curates an annual festival in Italy at the Teatro Olimpico, and also enjoys close relationships with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and Budapest Festival Orchestra. In 2018, he accepted the role of associated artist with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, complementing his interest in performing on period keyboard instruments. In 2024, he conducts the ensemble in the complete symphonies of Felix Mendelssohn and directs the composer’s two concertos from the keyboard.
With a prolific discography, Sir András established an exclusive relationship in 1997 with producer Manfred Eicher and ECM New Series. Highlights have included Beethoven’s complete piano sonatas recorded live in Zurich; solo recitals of works by Schubert, R. Schumann, and Janáček; and J. S. Bach’s partitas, Goldberg Variations, and The Well-Tempered Clavier. His most recent albums, a two-disc set of works by J. S. Bach performed on the clavichord, were released in early 2023.
Sir András continues to support new talent, primarily through his Building Bridges series, which offers performance opportunities to promising young artists. He also teaches at the Barenboim-Said and Kronberg academies, and gives frequent lectures and master classes. His memoir Music Comes Out of Silence features essays and conversations with Martin Meyer.
In addition to being knighted by Queen Elizabeth in 2014 for his services to music, Sir András’s honors include the International Mozarteum Foundation’s Golden Medal (2012), Germany’s Great Cross of Merit with Star (2012), the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Gold Medal (2013), and a doctorate from the Royal College of Music (2018). He was awarded the Jean Gimbel Lane Prize in Piano Performance in 2021 from the Bienen School of Music at Northwestern University.
