The New York Times has called LEIF OVE ANDSNES “a pianist of magisterial elegance, power, and insight.” With his commanding technique and searching interpretations, the celebrated Norwegian pianist has won acclaim worldwide. He gives recitals and plays concertos in the world’s leading concert halls and with the foremost orchestras, besides being an active recording artist. An avid chamber musician, he served as co-artistic director of the Risør Festival of Chamber Music for nearly two decades, and was music director of California’s 2012 Ojai Music Festival.

Beethoven’s music figures prominently in Andsnes’ programming for 2012/13 and beyond, in concerto performances, recitals, and recordings. In September 2012, Sony Classical released the pianist’s label debut, The Beethoven Journey, on which he directs the Mahler Chamber Orchestra from the keyboard in performances of the composer’s First and Third Piano Concertos. As “The Beethoven Journey” project enters its second year, it is Beethoven’s first four concertos that dominate Andsnes’ repertoire, performing them with the New York and Los Angeles Philharmonic orchestras under Alan Gilbert and Gustavo Dudamel, respectively, and with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra under Riccardo Muti. He also takes “The Beethoven Journey” to Europe and Japan, performing with the Munich Philharmonic and the Philharmonia Orchestra. Additional highlights of Andsnes’ 2012/13 season include a ten-stop European solo recital tour with a program of Beethoven, Bartók, Liszt, and Chopin, and duo recital tours with two leading violinists: Christian Tetzlaff in Europe and Akiko Suwanai in Japan.

Leif Ove Andsnes has received Norway’s most distinguished honor – Commander of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav – as well as the prestigious Peer Gynt Prize, the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Instrumentalist Award, and the Gilmore Artist Award. Saluting his many achievements, Vanity Fair named Andsnes one of the “Best of the Best” in 2005.

Leif Ove Andsnes was born in Karmoy, Norway, in 1970, and studied at the Bergen Music Conservatory under the renowned Czech professor Jirí Hlinka. Over the past decade, he has also received invaluable advice from the Belgian piano teacher Jacques de Tiège who, like Hlinka, has greatly influenced his style and philosophy of playing. Andsnes cites Dinu Lipatti, Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, Sviatoslav Richter, and Géza Anda among the pianists who have most inspired him. He currently lives in Copenhagen and Bergen, and also spends much time at his mountain home in Norway’s western Hardanger area. He is a Professor at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo and a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music. Andsnes occasionally contributes written commentaries to NPR’s “Deceptive Cadence” blog, and in June 2010, he achieved one of his proudest accomplishments to date, becoming a father for the first time.