Biography
Pianist Wilhem Latchoumia has built an equally strong reputation across both standard classical repertory and modern works. His recitals often blend the two spheres through inventive juxtapositions, and his discography spans releases on RCA, Dux, and La Dolce Volta.
Born in Lyon, France, in 1974, Latchoumia received most of his training in the same city. He earned a gold medal at the Conservatoire de Lyon before advancing to the Conservatoire National de Musique et de Danse de Lyon, where instruction from Eric Heidsieck and Géry Moutier led to a unanimous first prize. Postgraduate study continued under Moutier, supplemented by master classes with Yvonne Loriod-Messiaen and Pierre-Laurent Aimard; he also completed a bachelor’s degree in musicology. In 2004 he received the Musicians of Tomorrow Award from the Hewlett-Packard Foundation and achieved a high ranking at the Montsalvagje International Contemporary Music Competition held in Girona, Spain. Two years later he collected six prizes at the Orléans International Piano Competition. His first commercial recording appeared in 2008 on RCA Red Seal under the title Impressões, a program devoted to Brazilian repertoire.
He has appeared as soloist in prominent French and international halls, among them Salle Cortot, Musée d’Orsay, and Cité de la Musique in Paris. Contemporary-music festivals that have featured him include the 2007 Beijing Modern Music Festival, the Festival Why Note in Dijon, the Festival of Besançon, and the New York Institute for Contemporary Performance at Mannes College. Several leading composers—Pierre Boulez, Gilbert Amy, and Gérard Pesson—have singled out his interpretations. On La Dolce Volta he joined the ensemble Extase Maxima for the album Wagner, which placed the composer’s own pieces alongside works either inspired by or responding to them. Additional recordings followed on the same label, one of which was the 2021 release This Is America: Adams, Bernstein, Glass, Monk, recorded with pianist Vanessa Wagner. That same year Sub Rosa issued his contribution to Julius Eastman: Three Extended Pieces for Four Pianos.
Born in Lyon, France, in 1974, Latchoumia received most of his training in the same city. He earned a gold medal at the Conservatoire de Lyon before advancing to the Conservatoire National de Musique et de Danse de Lyon, where instruction from Eric Heidsieck and Géry Moutier led to a unanimous first prize. Postgraduate study continued under Moutier, supplemented by master classes with Yvonne Loriod-Messiaen and Pierre-Laurent Aimard; he also completed a bachelor’s degree in musicology. In 2004 he received the Musicians of Tomorrow Award from the Hewlett-Packard Foundation and achieved a high ranking at the Montsalvagje International Contemporary Music Competition held in Girona, Spain. Two years later he collected six prizes at the Orléans International Piano Competition. His first commercial recording appeared in 2008 on RCA Red Seal under the title Impressões, a program devoted to Brazilian repertoire.
He has appeared as soloist in prominent French and international halls, among them Salle Cortot, Musée d’Orsay, and Cité de la Musique in Paris. Contemporary-music festivals that have featured him include the 2007 Beijing Modern Music Festival, the Festival Why Note in Dijon, the Festival of Besançon, and the New York Institute for Contemporary Performance at Mannes College. Several leading composers—Pierre Boulez, Gilbert Amy, and Gérard Pesson—have singled out his interpretations. On La Dolce Volta he joined the ensemble Extase Maxima for the album Wagner, which placed the composer’s own pieces alongside works either inspired by or responding to them. Additional recordings followed on the same label, one of which was the 2021 release This Is America: Adams, Bernstein, Glass, Monk, recorded with pianist Vanessa Wagner. That same year Sub Rosa issued his contribution to Julius Eastman: Three Extended Pieces for Four Pianos.
Albums
