Benjamin Grosvenor

Benjamin Grosvenor was just 11 years old when he won the piano section of the BBC’s Young Musician of the Year competition in 2004. Already a phenomenal talent, Grosvenor spent his teenage years in Westcliff-on-Sea, studiously avoiding the early burnout that so often afflicts musical prodigies. He waited seven years before releasing his debut album, a mesmerising anthology of pieces by Chopin, Liszt and Ravel (2012), played with a rare combination of fieriness and gleaming poetry. A string of albums followed in his twenties, cementing his reputation as an old-school player more interested in conveying emotional nuance than being a showy virtuoso. The scintillating collection Dances (2014) added Bach, Scriabin and Granados to Grosvenor’s discography, while Liszt (2021) includes the formidable Sonata in B minor. This peak of the piano repertoire is conquered by Grosvenor’s outstanding technical ability, and his instinct for the heart and soul of a composer’s inspiration.