„Maybe they still exist, the sound artists of a younger genera-tion, who have gained an audience through their musical talent and not through non-musical yellow-press sensationalism. Alex-ander Schimpf could be one of these future heroes of the re-form-yearning classics …” (Süddeutsche Zeitung)
From an early age, Alexander Schimpf was counted among the exceptional pianists of the highest caliber by the specialist press. In 2020, his long-awaited first CD recording with an orchestra was released by CAvi music, documenting his longstanding collaboration with the Bavarian Chamber Philharmonic. For this transparent recording of Mozart’s piano concertos KV 413-415 with a flexible string ensemble (under the direction of concertmaster Gabriel Adorján), Alexander Schimpf contributed his own stylistically confident cadenzas, making his personal approach to Mozart particularly audible.
Following significant competition successes in Bonn (German Music Competition 2008), Vienna (1st Prize International Beethoven Competition 2009), and Cleveland/USA (1st Prize Cleveland International Piano Competition 2011), Alexander Schimpf established himself as a sought-after soloist on several continents. Despite his rapid international success, he maintains a refreshing composure. Alexander Schimpf himself says: „I am not in too much of a hurry with these things; they should always be given the time they need.“
He bases his artistic career, like his interpretations, on the aspiration of lasting expressiveness. In addition to his engagement with the classical repertoire, Alexander Schimpf regularly advocates for modern and contemporary music; he has frequently collaborated with composers from Europe, Asia, and America at festivals for contemporary music and has participated in around 30 world premieres of solo and chamber music works in recent years. Born in Göttingen (1981), Alexander Schimpf completed his studies with, among others, Wolfgang Manz and Bernd Glemser and was later significantly supported by pianists Cécile Ousset and Janina Fialkowska. Since 2009, three solo CDs have been released by the labels GENUIN and OehmsClassics, featuring works by Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms, Debussy, Ravel, and Scriabin. In 2013, Alexander Schimpf was awarded the Bavarian Art Promotion Prize in Munich.
Invitations to piano recitals and solo performances with orchestras have taken him to numerous German cities (including Gasteig Munich, Konzerthaus Berlin, Alte Oper Frankfurt, Cologne Philharmonie, NDR Hanover, Beethovenhaus Bonn, Heidelberger Frühling, Ludwigsburger Schlossfestspiele) as well as to Zankel Hall/Carnegie Hall in New York, Auditorium du Louvre and Salle Cortot in Paris, Konzerthaus Vienna, the Mariinsky Concert Hall in St. Petersburg, and the Auditorio Nacional in Madrid. Broadcast recordings of his concerts have been made for BR, NDR, SWR, ORF, Radio France and more.
In the course of his extensive activities in the United States, he has worked as a soloist with numerous symphony orchestras there, and he has been invited to piano recitals in New York City, Washington D.C., Boston, Chicago, and Indianapolis, among others. In 2024, he was featured in Chattanooga with Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5. In addition to performances in most European countries, he has given concerts in China, Taiwan, and Vietnam, as well as multiple times in South America.
As a chamber musician, he has collaborated with violinist Christian Tetzlaff, violist Nils Mönkemeyer, cellist Julian Steckel, baritone Thomas E. Bauer, and the Armida Quartet, among many others.
In 2016, he was appointed Professor of Piano at the HMTM Hannover.