Krystian Zimerman

Emerging in the closing decades of the twentieth century, Krystian Zimerman ranks among the most perceptive and precise pianists of his generation. Holding an exclusive lifetime agreement with Deutsche Grammophon, his repertoire spans from Beethoven through to Witold Lutosławski.

Born December 5, 1956, in Zabrze, Poland, Zimerman received intensive instruction from his pianist father and began appearing in public while still a child. He later enrolled at the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice, where Andrzej Jasinski guided his studies. His decisive breakthrough arrived in 1975 when he captured first prize at the International Chopin Competition in Warsaw. The next year brought a performance with the Berlin Philharmonic led by Herbert Blomstedt, followed in 1979 by his first appearance with the New York Philharmonic.

Deutsche Grammophon signed him soon after his initial successes, and he issued his debut LP for the label in 1977, devoted to Chopin. Alongside concert work, Zimerman also trained as a piano builder and has always preferred to play his personal Steinway instruments, sometimes adapting them for specific repertoire. This preference has curtailed his touring schedule; after two of his pianos suffered serious damage at New York’s Kennedy Airport, he declined further engagements in the United States, whose foreign policy he has publicly criticized. Nevertheless he has worked with many eminent conductors, among them Daniel Barenboim, Leonard Bernstein—whom he deeply respected despite contrasting artistic approaches—and Simon Rattle.

In 1999 Zimerman assembled the Polish Festival Orchestra to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Chopin’s death, and his fresh readings of that composer’s music have drawn particular notice. His broad repertoire encompasses Romantic and early-twentieth-century literature as well as occasional contemporary scores; he served as dedicatee of Witold Lutosławski’s Piano Concerto (1988) and presented its premiere at the Salzburg Festival.

Zimerman’s discography exceeds forty titles. Recording activity slowed markedly from the late 1990s through the late 2010s, though reissues issued during those years met with strong approval. He resumed studio work in 2017 with an album of Schubert sonatas. In 2021 he delivered his second recorded cycle of Beethoven’s piano concertos alongside the London Symphony Orchestra; the sessions, conducted under social-distancing protocols, involved exchanging the keyboard mechanism of his Steinway for each concerto.