Nobuyuki Tsujii 辻井伸行
2009 Cliburn Gold Medalist
2009 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Preliminary Round Recital
May 23, 2009
Bass Performance Hall I Fort Worth, Texas USA
CHOPIN 12 Etudes, op. 10
About Nobuyuki Tsujii 辻井伸行
Described by The Observer as the “definition of virtuosity” Japanese pianist Nobuyuki Tsujii (Nobu), who has been blind from birth, won the joint Gold Medal at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2009 and has gone on to earn an international reputation for the passion and excitement he brings to his live performances.
Nobu’s 2023/24 season opens with a sold-out appearance at the Royal Albert Hall as part of the BBC Proms with Domingo Hindoyan and Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, one of several collaborations with the RLPO this season that will see Nobu perform with them again in Liverpool and on tour in Japan in Spring 2024. Other upcoming collaborations as concerto soloist include the Hong Kong Philharmonic under Vasily Petrenko, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano, and Macau Symphony Orchestra. As a recitalist, Nobu will also return to the Théâtre des Champs Elysées and the Tsinandali Festival, in addition to numerous solo and concerto appearances across his native Japan including a tour with Klaus Mäkelä conducting the Oslo Philharmonic.
Earlier seasons have seen Nobu appear in concert with leading orchestras worldwide including the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, Philharmonia Orchestra, NHK, Seattle and Baltimore symphony orchestras, Münchner Philharmoniker, Filarmonica della Scala, Sinfonieorchester Basel, and Bilbao Orkestra Sinfonikoa. Notable past collaborations also include the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg under Kent Nagano, The Mariinsky Orchestra under Valery Gergiev, NDR Radiophilharmonie Hannover under Andrew Manze, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra under Vasily Petrenko, and BBC Philharmonic under Juanjo Mena. Nobu’s appearances as a recitalist have included performances at prestigious venues worldwide such as Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium, the Théâtre des Champs Elysées in Paris, London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall, Wigmore Hall and Royal Albert Hall, the Berliner Philharmonie, Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Wiener Musikverein, Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, and Singapore Esplanade.
An exclusive recording artist for Avex Classics International, Nobu’s growing album catalogue encompasses the breadth of the piano concerto repertoire. It currently includes Chopin’s Piano Concerto No.2 with Vladimir Ashkenazy and Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Grieg’s Piano Concerto and Rachmaninov’s Variations on a theme of Paganini under Vasily Petrenko with Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No.2 with Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No.1 with Yutaka Sado and the BBC Philharmonic, Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No.5 with Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. Nobu has also recorded several recital programmes of Chopin, Mozart, Debussy, and Liszt.
A live DVD recording of Nobu’s 2011 Carnegie Hall recital was named DVD of the Month by Gramophone, as was his latest DVD release, ‘Touching the Sound – The Improbable Journey of Nobuyuki Tsujii’, a documentary film by Peter Rosen.
Nobu’s international tours are supported by All Nippon Airways (ANA) and he gratefully acknowledges their assistance.