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The French-born pianist, George Lepauw, George grew up in an artistically engaged family: his sister Consuelo Lepauw is a violinist based in Chicago, his father Didier Lepauw was a founding member and First Violin in the Orchestre de Paris, and his grandfather Roger Lepauw was Principal Viola of the Orchestre de Paris and previously of the Orchestre de l’Opéra de Paris; his mother Jane Lepauw is a writer and civic activist. George began his studies at the Rachmaninov Conservatory in Paris, France, at the age of three, and soon was studying with Madame Aïda Barenboim (mother of Daniel Barenboim). He went on to study with Russian virtuoso Elena Varvarova, who prepared him for his first public concert at the age of 10 in Paris, performing L.v. Beethoven sonatas, and furthered his studies with Brigitte Engerer, Vladimir Krainev, Rena Shereshevskaya, Ursula Oppens, James Giles, and Earl Wild, among others. Significant supporters and mentors have included Maestro Carlo Maria Giulini, Maria Curcio, and Maestro Kurt Masur. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. with a double major in English Literature and History (1998-2002), and received his Masters of Music in Piano Performance from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois (2004-2006).
A concert pianist since his formal debut at age ten in Paris (May 1991), George Lepauw has performed ever since as a recitalist, chamber musician, vocal collaborator, and soloist with orchestra. He also occasionally collaborates with musicians from other musical genres, including cabaret, musical theater, traditional Chinese and Persian music, flamenco, blues, and pop. He has taught piano privately for over fifteen years, gives master-classes around the world, and is a frequent guest speaker at universities and “ideas festivals”. He also makes regular appearances as a performer or speaker on radio and television. He is also a founding member of the Chicago Ideas Co-op, a leadership committee of the Chicago Ideas Festival, and recently sat on the Grant Park Music Festival Artistic Vision Committee, to help bring this legendary American festival to the next generation of music-lovers.
In 2008 George Lepauw founded in Chicago the International Beethoven Project (IBP), a radical non-profit organization focused on connecting tradition and innovation in classical music, motivated by L.v. Beethoven’s indomitable spirit as an artist and humanist, through the production of multi-disciplinary festivals, special events, and media. He continues to serve as its President and Artistic Director (since November 2010). He founded the Beethoven Project Trio (BPT) with violinist Sang Mee Lee and cellist Wendy Warner. As part of the BPT, he performed in the World Premiere concert, in Chicago, of a newly-discovered, long-lost piano trio of L.v. Beethoven in 2009 to great acclaim, achieving his New York City debut with the BPT at Lincoln Center, followed by a highly-praised first commercial recording of three rare L.v. Beethoven trios with the BPT on Cedille Records; produced by the legendary Max Wilcox, which reached 24th place on the Classical Billboard charts in 2010. He served as Artistic Director of Beethoven Festival 2011: Man and Muse and Beethoven Festival: Revolution 2012 (running September 8-16, 2012, in Chicago).
Over the course of his life, George Lepauw has been deeply engaged in community-building and education through the arts and culture. In college, he co-founded and served as both Vice-President and then President of the French Cultural Association of Georgetown University (August 2000-May 2002), working hand in hand with multiple university departments as well as with the French Embassy, the Alliance Française, and other organizations in Washington, DC. From January 2007 to December 2010, he founded and published the culture and music magazine, the Journal of a Musician, which featured original articles and interviews with some of classical music’s biggest stars (including Hilary Hahn, Yefim Bronfman, Natalie Dessay, James Conlon, Henri Dutilleux). In 2014-2015, he was Artistic Director of the Chicago Academy of Music, helping to launch an after-school music education program for deserving children of Chicago’s South Side, and between 2016-2018, he served as Executive Director of the Chicago International Movies & Music Festival (CIMMfest), leading two festivals over the course of his term which presented dozens of films, live concerts, and panel discussions.
“A prodigious pianist” (Chicago Tribune) recognized for his “singing tone” (New York Times), and a cultural activist who “likes to shake it up” (Chicago Tribune), George Lepauw uses music and the arts to inspire and bring people together. Named “Chicagoan of the Year (2012) for Classical Music” (Chicago Tribune), George represents the ideal 21st century musician, intensely focused on his art and wholly engaged with the world.
On February 14, 2020, George Lepauw's first major solo album will be released worldwide: the complete Well-Tempered Clavier (BWV 846-869 + BWV 870-893) by J.S. Bach in a box-set of 5 CD's and on all streaming services released by London-based label Orchid Classics distributed by Naxos. The Bach48 Album also includes a full film of the entire recording, and a 33-minute documentary film about J.S. Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier and his journey to record it in J.S. Bach's Germany, directed by Martin Mirabel and Mariano Nante.
His current creative projects include recordings, films, and multimedia explorations on several composers, as George Lepauw believes that in this 21st century musicians must make use of visual content to attract younger audiences. In 2020, he intends to record the complete L.v. Beethoven Sonatas on the occasion of the composer’s 250th anniversary, for audio and film. George occasionally hosts a podcast, Through The Stage Door, with guests including Ton Koopman, Lucas Debargue, Anderson & Roe, and he writes occasional posts for his personal blog.
George Lepauw shares his time between his two homes of Paris and Chicago. |
