Benjamin Grosvenor facts for kids

Benjamin Grosvenor is a talented British classical pianist. He was born on July 8, 1992. He started playing piano at a very young age. Today, he is known around the world for his amazing piano skills.

Early Life and Learning

Benjamin Grosvenor grew up in Westcliff-on-Sea, England. He is the youngest of five brothers. His dad taught English and Drama. His mom, Rebecca, was a piano teacher.

Benjamin started learning piano with his mom when he was just five years old. He went to Westcliff High School for Boys starting in 2003. He also took lessons from Hilary Coates and Christopher Elton in London.

Studying Music

Benjamin later studied at the Royal Academy of Music. There, he learned about music with Daniel-Ben Pienaar and Julian Perkins. When he graduated in 2012, he received a special award. It was called the Queen's Award for Excellence. This award was for being the best all-around student that year.

Amazing Piano Performances

Benjamin Grosvenor gave his first full concert in May 2003. He played both the piano and the cello at a local church. In the same year, he played with an orchestra for the first time. He performed Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 21.

Winning Young Musician

In 2004, Benjamin won the keyboard section of the BBC Young Musician competition. He played Ravel's Concerto in G in the final round. After that, he played in many famous places. These included the Royal Albert Hall and Carnegie Hall.

Playing Around the World

Since then, Benjamin has become a very famous international musician. He has performed with many top orchestras. These include the London Symphony Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic. He has also played with the Boston Symphony and the Philadelphia Orchestra.

In 2010, Benjamin joined the BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artists scheme. He finished this program in 2012.

Proms and New Music

In the summer of 2011, he played at the BBC Proms for the first time. He was the youngest soloist ever to play on opening night. He performed Liszt's Second Piano Concerto. He also played Britten's Piano Concerto later in the series. He has played at the Proms many times since then. In 2015, he performed at the Last Night of the festival.

A composer named Judith Weir wrote a piano piece just for Benjamin. It was called Day Break Shadows Flee. Benjamin played it for the very first time in September 2014. In 2016, he received a special award from the New York Philharmonic.

For the 2020-2021 season, he was an Artist-in-Residence. This meant he worked closely with Radio France and the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra.

Awards and Recognitions

Benjamin Grosvenor started winning awards very early. When he was 10 years old in 2003, he won four local and national competitions in the UK. He was the youngest person ever to win them. These included the Southend Young Musician of the Year.

At age 11, in 2004, he won the keyboard section of the BBC Young Musician of the Year award.

Influential and Top Briton

In 2011, the Evening Standard newspaper named Benjamin one of its "1,000 Most Influential Londoners." Also, The Daily Telegraph chose him as one of its "Top 10 Britons of the Year."

Gramophone Awards

In 2012, Benjamin won two Gramophone Awards. These awards are very important in classical music. He won the 'Instrumental Award' and 'Young Artist Award' for his first album with Decca. This made him the youngest person ever to win two Gramophone awards. He also won a Classic Brit 'Critics Choice Award' for his Chopin/Liszt/Ravel CD.

His 2020 recording of the Chopin Piano Concertos won another Gramophone award. It also received a 'Diapason d'Or de l'année' from a French magazine. A critic said it was "a version to rank among the best."

Recordings and Media

In July 2005, Benjamin Grosvenor was in a BBC show. It was a documentary called "Being a Concert Pianist." This was part of the Imagine TV series.

Benjamin has recorded many CDs with music by different composers. In April 2011, he signed with Decca Records. He was the youngest artist ever to sign with them. He was also the first British pianist in 60 years to sign with the label.

Album Releases

He has released several albums with Decca. His first album, Chopin Liszt Ravel, won a Gramophone Award in 2012. In 2012, he released Rhapsody in Blue. This album featured music by Saint-Saëns, Ravel, and Gershwin. He played with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.

His 2014 album, Dances, was a solo album. It had music in dance styles by composers like Bach and Chopin. Both the BBC Music Magazine and Gramophone named it "Disc of the Month." His 2016 album, 'Homages', also received high praise. In 2020, he released a recording of the Chopin Piano Concertos. This album won a Gramophone award and a 'Diapason D'Or de l'année'.

In September 2012, Benjamin was featured in the CNN series Human to Hero. In January 2021, it was announced that he had signed a new contract with Decca. His first album under this new contract was dedicated to the music of Liszt.

Discography

• This and That (2009)
• Chopin, Liszt & Ravel (2011)
• Rhapsody in Blue (2012)
• Dances (2014)
• Homages (2016)
• Chopin Piano Concertos (2020)
• Liszt (2021)
• Schumann and Brahms (2023)

See also

In Spanish: Benjamin Grosvenor para niños