LEON McCAWLEY

'a master of tone and articulation'
Philadelphia Inquirer July 2008

Leon McCawley is firmly established as one of England’s finest young pianists. Championing core classical repertoire together with the unknown, McCawley’s CD releases have been impressing critics far and wide. Awarded a Diapason d'Or in March 2007, his recording for Avie Records of Mozart’s Complete Piano Sonatas is no exception: “This boxed set of these perfect gems is special. The playing of Leon McCawley, one of Britain's brightest young pianists, is not just technically flawless, it also has a freshness” (Album of the Week- 5 Stars, The Independent) and “This superb set should propel McCawley towards the greater prominence he deserves” (The Observer).

In 2006 he made his New York recital debut at the Frick Collection, praised by the New York Times as a “lyrical, heartfelt performance”. Other highly acclaimed recitals in recent seasons have been given at the Queen Elizabeth Hall (International Piano Series), Wigmore Hall in London, Philharmonie and Konzerthaus in Berlin, Miami International Piano Festival, Prinzregententheater in Munich, Musikverein in Vienna, Rudolfinum in Prague, Kennedy Center Washington DC and the Tonhalle in Zurich. He is often broadcast on BBC Radio 3 both in recital and music programmes.

As a concerto soloist, McCawley is frequently heard with many of the leading British orchestras including the Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields, London Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic, City of Birmingham Symphony, Bournemouth Symphony, Hallé, Royal Scottish National and Ulster Orchestras. He will make his fifth appearance at BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall in July 2009 performing Finzi's Grand Fantasia and Toccata with BBC Philharmonic and Vassily Sinaisky. Further afield, McCawley has made concerto appearances with, amongst others, Adelaide Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, Dallas Symphony, Malaysian Philharmonic, Minnesota Orchestra, Netherlands Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra and Vienna Symphony and worked with conductors such as Mark Elder, Daniele Gatti, Paavo Järvi, Andrew Litton, Kurt Masur, Gianandrea Noseda, Sakari Oramo and Simon Rattle. In July 2008 McCawley returned to the Philadelphia Orchestra with great acclaim for his Mann Music Center debut.

In 1993 McCawley leapt into prominence at the age of nineteen when he won First Prize in the Ninth International Beethoven Piano Competition in Vienna and Second Prize in the Leeds International Competition, building on his earlier success in 1990 as the winner of the Piano Section of the BBC Young Musician of the Year. McCawley studied at Chetham’s School of Music, Manchester with Heather Slade-Lipkin before continuing his studies at the Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia with Eleanor Sokoloff. He also acknowledges the late Nina Milkina for her inspiration and guidance.

A keen chamber musician, he has enjoyed fruitful collaborations with The Belcea, Brodsky and Emperor Quartets, Michael Collins, Steven Isserlis and David Pyatt at many prestigious concert venues including BBC Proms Chamber Series, BBC Radio 3 Lunchtime Series at the Wigmore Hall and Brighton, Cheltenham and Edinburgh festivals.

McCawley’s discography includes: Barber’s Music for Solo Piano for EMI/Virgin; Beethoven: Piano Works on Sanctuary Classics; a 2-disc set of Schumann’s piano music for Avie Records selected as "Editor's Choice" in Gramophone; a world premier 3-disc recording of the Complete Piano Works of Hans Gál on Avie, also a Gramophone "Editor's Choice"; and his third release for Avie is a 5-disc box set of The Complete Mozart Piano Sonatas. His latest disc for Naxos Records is Beethoven’s 9th Symphony arranged by Liszt for Two Pianos with Ashley Wass.

Leon McCawley is professor of piano at London's Royal College of Music. He is married to the fine-art painter Anna Hyunsook Paik.