Freddy Kempf

A child prodigy of the piano, Freddy Kempf has led an international career punctuated by concerts and recordings. Born of a German father and Japanese mother in Croydon, south London, on October 14, 1977, Frederick Albert Kempf learned to play from the age of four, and showed such an aptitude for the instrument that, at the age of eight, Ronald Smith's pupil at the Royal Academy of Music performed Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 12, accompanied by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, at London's Royal Festival Hall, before being invited to Germany. After winning the first International Mozart Competition in 1987, the pianist was named Best Young Musician of the Year in 1992 for his performance of Rachmaninov's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. Four years later, his victory at the Young Concert Artists International Auditions enabled him to perform at New York's Carnegie Hall, but in 1998, he was at the heart of a controversy at the Tchaikovsky International Competition in Moscow, where he won third prize after the jury had negotiated in favor of their former students. This episode did little to prevent the pianist from performing to full houses at recitals in Moscow the following year. Freddy Kempf's career continued around the world, between recordings of the Romantic repertoire for Bis Records. Winner of a Brit Award in 2001, in 2006 he formed the Kempf Trio with Pierre Bensaid and Alexander Chaushian, performing in concerts and festivals. His discography includes works by Chopin, Liszt, Rachmaninov, Schumann, Beethoven, Prokofiev, Ravel and Mussorgsky, as well as Bach and Gershwin. In 2024, collections dedicated to contemporary composers Tom Woods and Matt Dibble (died 2021) were published.

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