About this Artist

Katia and Marielle Labèque are sibling pianists renowned for their synchronicity and energy. Their musical ambitions started at an early age and they rose to international fame with their contemporary rendition of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue (one of the first gold records in classical music) and have since developed a stunning career with performances worldwide.

They are regular guests with the most prestigious orchestras of Europe and America, led by conductors including Semyon Bychkov, Lionel Bringuier, Sir Colin Davis, Gustavo Dudamel, Charles Dutoit, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Kristjan Järvi, Paavo Järvi, Zubin Mehta, Seiji Ozawa, Antonio Pappano, Georges Prêtre, Sir Simon Rattle, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Leonard Slatkin, Michael Tilson Thomas, and Jaap van Zweden.

The 2017/18 season includes performances with the New York Philharmonic led by Jaap van Zweden, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Vienna Konzerthaus with Camerata Salzburg, Elb Philharmonie Hamburg with Bryce Dessner, a European tour with the Concertgebouw Orchestra and Semyon Bychkov, Easter Festival Salzburg with Dresden Staatskapelle, and the creation of Bryce Dessner’s Concerto for Two Pianos with the London Philharmonic and Dresden Philharmonic orchestras, among others.

Katia and Marielle have had the privilege of working with many composers, including Thomas Adès, Louis Andriessen, Luciano Berio, Pierre Boulez, Philip Glass, Osvaldo Golijov, György Ligeti, and Olivier Messiaen. On May 26, 2015 they presented the world premiere of Philip Glass’ Concerto written for them with the Los Angeles Philharmonic led by Gustavo Dudamel. A new concerto by Nico Muhly, written especially for the Labeques, will be ready in 2019.

For their own label, KML Recordings, they recorded Sisters (2014), featuring a selection of musical pieces from their personal and professional lives. Fall 2015 saw the DVD release of the documentary The Labèque Way produced by “El Deseo” (Pedro Almodóvar) and filmed by Félix Cábez. Previous releases include a Gershwin and Bernstein album, and their project Minimalist Dream House (50 years of Minimalist music). The Labèques’ KML Recordings recently joined the historical label Deutsche Grammophon. Their most recent recording features Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring and Debussy’s Epigraphes Antiques. Their next album, Moondog, will be released in Spring of 2018. For more information, visit labeque.com