Alexandre Tharaud is a French pianist signed exclusively to Erato Records, a sister label of Warner Classics. A highly sought-after soloist, he gives regular recitals at prestigious concert halls and has appeared with the world’s leading orchestras. In October 2022, he will perform alongside the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra at Classic FM Live, a celebration of some of the greatest movie music.
Born in Paris, Tharaud grew up surrounded by music; his mother was a dance teacher at the Opéra de Paris, and his father sang in operettas. Alexandre began studying the piano at the age of five and entered the Conservatoire de Paris aged 14.
In a career now spanning 25 years, Tharaud has recorded more than 25 solo albums, featuring the music of Couperin, Bach and Scarlatti, through Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Brahms, and Rachmaninov to the major 20th century French composers. In November 2019, Tharaud released an album Versailles, which paid tribute to composers associated with the courts of the French kings Louis XIV, XV and XVI.
In a 2016 interview, Tharaud revealed that he does not keep a piano in his Paris home, but practises on friends’ pianos, which he said allows him to adapt to new instruments and find balance in his life outside of music. “When a piano is right in front of you, it’s heavy, it’s present and it’s calling you,” he said. “As a pianist, you can’t prevent yourself from heading to the keyboard. So, this is one way in which I can find my own balance,” he said.
Outside of classical music, Tharaud released an album tribute in 2017 to French singer Barbara, which included duets with Juliette Binoche and Vanessa Paradis, marking his debut on the Swiss albums chart.
Did you know?
In 2012, Tharaud played himself in the French film ‘Amour’, but assured this would not mark the beginnings of a film career for him.
