Radu Lupu 1945 – 2022
One of the most admired pianists of his generation, Radu Lupu was born in Romania in 1945 and studied in Moscow before gaining international attention with wins at three major competitions in the late 1960s: the Van Cliburn, George Enescu and Leeds. He made recordings until the mid 1990s, primarily for Decca and concentrating on a core repertoire of Austro-German Classical and Romantic composers, both in solo works and in chamber music with a select group of collaborators. Always publicity shy, he became increasingly reclusive and retired from performing in 2019 due to ill health, having gained an almost legendary status among piano aficionados. He leaves a recording legacy distinguished by supreme sensitivity and refinement and a position secure as one of the greatest poets of the piano.