Nikolai Lugansky is a pianist who combines elegance and grace with powerful virtuosity. Recognised as a master of Russian and late romantic repertoire, Lugansky is renowned for his interpretations of Rachmaninov, Prokofiev, Chopin and Debussy. He has received numerous awards for recordings and artistic merit.
He has long standing relationships with top level conductors such as Yuri Temirkanov, Kent Nagano, Gianandrea Noseda, Stéphane Denève and Vladimir Jurowski. He is invited by leading international orchestras including Berliner Philharmoniker, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, London Symphony Orchestra, Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, St Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Orquestra Nacional de España.
2023 marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Rachmaninov, a composer who is very much close to Lugansky’s heart. During 2023, he will perform all of Rachmaninov’s major solo works in a three-recital cycle in Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Paris and London’s Wigmore Hall. Further single performances take place in Vienna, Brussels, Berlin, Prague and the Amsterdam Concertgebouw. In the summer, Lugansky returns to the US to perform Rachmaninov at the Colorado Music Festival and at the Vail Festival with Philadelphia Orchestra and Yannick Nézet-Séguin. A passionate chamber musician, Lugansky performs this season with Maxim Rysanov, Vadim Repin, and embarks on a duo recital tour of Italy with Gautier Capuçon in January 2023.
Described by Gramophone as “the most trailblazing and meteoric performer of all” Nikolai Lugansky is a pianist of extraordinary depth and versatility. He appears at some of the world’s most distinguished festivals, including the Aspen, Tanglewood, Ravinia and Verbier festivals. Chamber music collaborators include Vadim Repin, Alexander Kniazev, Mischa Maisky and Leonidas Kavakos.
Nikolai Lugansky has won several awards for his many recordings. His recital CD featuring Rachmaninov’s Piano Sonatas won the Diapason d’Or, whilst his recording of concertos by Grieg and Prokofiev with Kent Nagano and the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin was a Gramophone Editor’s Choice. Lugansky has an exclusive contract with harmonia mundi and his Rachmaninov’s 24 Preludes, released in April 2018, met with enthusiastic reviews. He was described as having “an ability to enchant the ear… with a deep feeling for the music” (The Financial Times). His recording of solo piano music by Debussy was released in the 2018 anniversary year and his release César Frank, Préludes, Fugues & Chorals (March 2020) won the Diapason d’Or. He most recently released two discs of Beethoven’s Late Piano Sonatas’ and a new recording of Rachmaninov Etudes tableaux comes out in Spring 2023.
