Hélène Grimaud

Hélène Grimaud, piano

Renaissance woman Hélène Grimaud is not just a deeply passionate and committed musical artist whose pianistic accomplishments play a central role in her life. She is a woman with multiple talents that extend far beyond the instrument she plays with such poetic expression and peerless technical control. The French artist has established herself as a committed wildlife conservationist, a compassionate human rights activist, and as a writer. 

Grimaud’s musical career is characterized by concerts with most of the world’s major orchestras and many celebrated conductors, as well as extensive tours she undertakes as a soloist and recitalist. Her prodigious contribution to and impact on the world of classical music were recognized by the French government when she was admitted into the Ordre National de la Légion d’Honneur (France’s highest decoration) at the rank of Chevalier (Knight). 

Hélène Grimaud has been an exclusive Deutsche Grammophon artist since 2002. Her recordings have been critically acclaimed and awarded numerous accolades, among them the Cannes Classical Recording of the Year, Choc du Monde de la musique, Diapason d’or, Grand Prix du disque, Record Academy Prize (Tokyo), Midem Classic Award and the Echo Klassik Award. Recent releases include Perspectives (2017), a two-disc personal selection of highlights from her DG catalogue, and Memory (2018), which explores music’s ability to bring the past back to life. In her latest recording The Messenger, released in October 2020, Grimaud has created an intriguing dialogue between the composers Silvestrov and Mozart. 

In 1999, Grimaud established the Wolf Conservation Center, her love for the endangered species sparked by a chance encounter with a wolf in northern Florida. She is also a member of the organization Musicians for Human Rights. For a number of years she also found time to pursue a writing career, publishing three books that have appeared in various languages: Variations Sauvages (2003), and the semi-autobiographical novels Leçons particulières (2005) and Retour à Salem (2013).