Corinna Simon

In recent years, Corinna Simon has made herself “an excellent name as a staunch defender of piano rarities” (as Frank Siebert wrote in magazine Fono Forum). Her recordings of works by Reinhold Glière (2011), Jean Franςaix (2013) und George Gershwin (2013) were released on CD to first-class reviews. Born in Berlin, she had her first piano lessons at the age of five. She was accepted as a young advanced student at the renowned Julius Stern Institute in Berlin at the age of twelve. She then went on to study at Berlin University of the Arts in the class of professor Ingeborg Wunder, and at Munich Musikhochschule with professor Ludwig Hoffmann. She perfected and completed her training as a concert pianist by attending masterclasses imparted by György Sebok, Maria Curcio, Halina Czerny-Stefánska, Karlheinz Kämmerling and Malcolm Frager. In 1984 she gave her début as soloist at the Berlin Philharmonie, followed by an extensive and successful career as soloist and chamber musician. She has made appearances in many European countries, as well as in the US, Asia and South Africa, guesting in a number of outstanding music venues in Paris, Vienna, Brussels, Stockholm, Oslo, Jakarta, Singapore, Johannesburg, Washington DC, San Francisco, and New York. Corinna Simon has worked with conductors of the likes of Jakov Kreizberg, Marc Piollet, Lior Shambadal, Cristóbal Halffter, Lukas Karytinos and Walter Weller, as well as with composer Hans Werner Henze. Her chamber music partners include cellist Alban Gerhardt, violinist Rainer J. Kimstedt and tenor Peter Maus. In collaboration with Wolfgang Thierse (the former President of the Federal Republic of Germany), she conceived and performed a literary and musical project on the theme of German division and reunification, featuring works by composers from what was formerly called East and West Germany. Ms. Simon and Mr. Thierse performed the project together in 2015 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of German reunification. Corinna Simon teaches an advanced class of selected young pianists in Berlin. A great number of professional musicians, including First Prize laureates at national and international competitions, have been her students – including Sophie Mautner, Martin Helmchen and the Lorenz Piano Duo.