Leon McCawley piano

Praised for his unfailingly communicative playing, British pianist Leon McCawley has been delighting audiences worldwide since winning, in 1993, first prize at the International Beethoven Piano Competition in Vienna and second prize at the Leeds International Piano Competition. His many concert performances and extensive discography have established him as a pianist of great integrity and variety, bringing freshness and vitality to classical, romantic and 20th century repertoire.

Notable solo recitals in past seasons include Wigmore Hall (where he is a regular performer and in the 2021/22 season was Artist in Residence), International Piano Series at London’s Southbank Centre, Hong Kong Arts Festival, New York’s Lincoln Center, Singapore International Piano Festival and Piano Visions series at the Academy of Fine Arts in Stockholm. He can frequently be heard on BBC Radio 3 both in performance and interview, with recent broadcasts including In Tune, Wigmore Hall Lunchtime Series and Performance on 3.

As a concerto soloist, Leon performs with many of the leading British orchestras. He has made several appearances at the BBC Proms. Further afield he has made concerto appearances with, amongst others, the Cincinnati, Dallas, RTÉ National and St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestras, the Malaysian and Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestras and the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Leon 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 received invaluable guidance from Nina Milkina in London. He has been professor of piano at London’s Royal College of Music since 2008. He is married to the painter Anna Hyunsook Paik.