Paul Lewis
© Kaupo Kikkas
Total fidelity
Piano
Joint Artistic Director, Midsummer Music Festival
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‘Total fidelity to the music’s structure and inner spirit, and an emotional response that never suffocates or distorts’
The Times
Paul Lewis is one of the foremost interpreters of the Central European piano repertoire, his performances and recordings of Beethoven and Schubert receiving universal critical acclaim. He was awarded CBE for his services to music, and the sincerity and depth of his musical approach have won him fans around the world.
This global popularity is reflected in the world-class orchestras with whom he works, including the Berlin Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, London Symphony, Philharmonia, Bavarian Radio Symphony, NHK Symphony, New York Philharmonic, LA Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw and Leipzig Gewandhaus orchestras. His close relationship with Boston Symphony Orchestra led to his selection as the 2020 Koussevitzky Artist at Tanglewood.
Lewis often focuses on specific composers in projects that allow him to take audiences deep inside the works. In 2026 and 2027, he will tour his Mozart+ series around the world, juxtaposing Mozart’s lesser-known piano repertoire with works by composers such as Poulenc, Chopin and Weber, illuminating Mozart’s influences over subsequent generations, as well as shining a light on works that are often overshadowed by his concertos. Previously, between 2022 and 2025, Lewis embarked on a Schubert Piano Sonata Series, presenting four programmes of the completed sonatas at over 40 venues around the world.
‘Every time I play a concert, I treat it as a lesson. You comb through everything and try to be your own best teacher. It’s always changing. Every concert experience is a step in the process’
