The piano world has seen some truly great legends like Mozart and Beethoven shined through for decades.
But is the history of the piano and its legacy saturated only with male composers and musicians? What about the female pianists who contributed to its incredible legacy?
That is what we are here to answer. Right now, we will talk about the 10 best female pianists of all time. Let’s start.
10 Best Female Pianists of All Time
All these female legends that we are about to mention in our list started out quite young.
Some started learning the piano at the age of 3, which begs the question – What is the right age to learn the piano?
And by the time they were teenagers they had already earned worldwide fame for their abilities and performances. So if you wish to learn about the queens we stan, get on with reading the list.
1. Martha Argerich
Martha Argerich was born in 1941 and was dubbed “the Greatest Living Classical Pianist.” Even at the age of 80, she still performs with the same energy as in her prime. She earned this incredible reputation with a career that spans over seven decades.
Martha’s career has rewarded her with awards, honors, and accolades, including being honored by the Kennedy Center.
She has performed with the best orchestras and musicians around the globe and has had solos at the prestigious Carnegie Hall – this shows you that she has nothing left to achieve in the world of music.
Martha mesmerizes her audience with her rendition of classical piano pieces and her love for music.
She won three 3 different international competitions that put her on the map:
- Ferruccio Busoni International (1957) piano competition
- the Geneva International music competition (1957)
- Chopin piano competition in Warsaw
Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli and Friedrich Gulda mentored Martha in 1955 to improve her skills in Europe.
2. Hélène Grimaud
Hélène was born in 1969, hailing from Aix-en-Provence, a university town in the South of France. She’s a classically trained pianist who discovered her love for the piano at seven.
But what made her so much more special than any other pianist is that she suffers from a rare condition called “Synesthesia.”
Yes, it is a disease, but something incredible if you ask me. The condition allowed her to see music in different colors. Epic! Right?
She had naturally visible music sheets, which she used and memorized different compositions much easier than other people.
Hélène journey into the world of piano can be mapped onto a neat little timeline:
- At 13 – she joined the Conservatoire de Paris (Paris Conservatory), a college of music and dance in France
- At 16 – She won her first piano competition
- At 18 – she gave her first recital in Japan
Her brilliant performance caught the eye of Mr. Daniel Barenboim, one of the world’s most famous conductors, who invited her to perform with the Orchestra de Paris.
This moment proved to be the spark that ignited her career. She has performed with Rolando Villazon, Sol Gabetta, Jan Vogler, Gil Shaham, and a slew of other renowned conductors and best orchestras worldwide.
The French government recognized her valuable contributions to music by admitting her to the Order National de la Legion d’Honnneur – the Legion of Honor, the highest decoration awarded in France, and the rank of Chevalier (Knight) in 2016.
She is almost 50 years old now, but that has not stopped her from delivering mesmerizing performances for her countless fans.
3. Khatia Buniatishvili
Born in 1987, Khatia is a young classical pianist with an undeniable ability. She started her journey at the age of 3, but she proved her natural gift for the piano and performed her first professional concert.
Her performance captured the hearts of people worldwide, and she was 10 during her first international performance.
However, her rapid rise to worldwide fame did not begin until 11 years later. In 2010, she participated in the Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition in Tel Aviv.
The personality and force of her performance moved them so much that they awarded her the Public prize for the competition. After the competition, people began to notice her talents and invited her to play at the Carnegie Hall that same year.
A year later, she was invited to France to perform at the Festival de la Roque – d’Antheror.
4. Clara Schumann
Clara was born in 1819 in Germany. She’s regarded as one of the best pianists in the Romantic Era of Music. She started at the age of 5, becoming a composer and pianist later in life.
By 11, she started performing and managed to establish herself in Europe. However, the sad truth is – she was known as the wife of Robert Schumann. After she got married and had 8 children, her career faced challenges, but she still pushed through with composing and teaching.
Her impact on music goes far beyond her virtuosic talents. As a woman in a predominantly male-dominated Classical music industry, she paved the way for more people than she ever knew.
As a pianist, her abilities were plain to see through, but she developed an insurmountable talent for composition later in life. Many consider her to be the most important female musician in history.
5. Yuja Wang
Yuja Wnag was born in 1987 to a musical family in Beijing. She started learning at age 6. By 15, she was in Philidelphia, where she got the opportunity to study with pianist Garry Graffman who was inspired by her talent.
But even before that, she was already a famous concert pianist performing all over the world.
She became an in-demand soloist performing with some of the biggest names in the world, including the Academy of St. Martin in the Feilds and Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and even the Youtube Symphony Orchestra.
Unfortunately, she was asked to cancel the performance because of over exhaustion and declining health.
Yuja replaced her to deliver an intelligent and energetic Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1. She was only 20 years old, with a hit performance that propelled her to stardom. Her most notable talent is her ability to play incredibly fast.
Ms. Wang can play ridiculously intricate pieces at haunting speeds without committing a single error. This talent has awarded her the moniker – “Flying Fingers.”
6. Dame Myra Hess (1890 – 1965)
Myra started studying piano at the age of five. She brought music to people when they needed it the most.
During World War II, she performed over 150X in the National Gallery, London. Her performances served as the short break people needed to experience bliss in an otherwise horrendous reality of war.
She had already performed with well-respected conductors and musicians like Sir Thomas Beecham by her late teens. Myra is particularly known for her interpretations of Mozart, Beethoven, and Schumann’s works.
7. Mary Lou Williams (1910 – 1981)
An American Pianist who began her career at the age of 2 and has been known as “the little piano girl” ever since. She has influenced every musician who ever played with her, yet her contributions are vastly under-appreciated.
At 25, Mary had already made a name for herself with Andy Kirk and Hid Cloud of Joy (A famous band from Kansas City). Her talent for blending ideas from different playing styles was second to none.
Although she wasn’t immediately credited, her talent as a composer started presenting itself during her big band career.
During her days as a novice, she lacked confidence in her arrangement skills, so she would give her ideas to band leader Andy Kirk. As a composer, her talents were summoned by iconic bandleaders like Louis Armstong, Duke Ellington, and Benny Goodman.
8. Olga Kern
Olga was born in 1975 in Russia to a musical family; both her parents were pianists, and she is known as a modern-day classical master. She has incredible stage presence and charisma that sets her apart from other pianists.
She stands out so much that people deem her the best of her generation.
After many awards and accomplishments, she won the introductory Rachmaninoff International Piano Competition at 17. Olga has a reputation for taking on the most complex compositions while making them look effortless.
She entered music history by winning the Nancy Lee and Perry. R. Bass, Gold Medal after male dominance for over 30 years.
9. Mitsuko Uchida
Mitsuko was born in 1948 in Atami, Japan. She later moved to Vienna, Austria, with her family at 12 and began training in piano. She performed for the first time at 14 after taking lessons from the Vienna Academy of Music.
After spending nearly 10 years, she moved to London, which started her golden era. Mitsuko gained fame for her recording of Mozart’s Sonatas and Debussy’s etudes. She was naturalized as British and awarded the title of DBE (Dame of the most excellent order of the British Empire) and several other awards like the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Gold Medal.
10. Beatrice Rana
Beatrice Rana is a famous Italian pianist born in 1948 in Cupertino, Italy. She began at the age of 4 ( So little! And Adorable.)
However, she got her due diligence after winning her first award at the Montreal International Competition. She transitioned her career to a whole new level after being awarded the Audience Award and a Silver Medal in 2013.
Beatrice now collaborates with James Conlon, Emmanuel Krivine, and Riccardo Chailly, who are all international musicians.
FAQs
Who is the greatest pianist of all time?
Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff is considered to be the greatest pianist of all time. Unlike his other Russian counterparts, he wanted to continue the era of romanticism from the 19th century into the 20th century.
Who was the first female pianist?
The first female pianist would be Martha Argerich, born in 1941 in Argentina. She was the first female classical pianist.
How do I become great at piano? Where do I start?
The first and the most important thing you can do is start playing the piano and get familiar with the fundamentals of piano. Don’t worry about sitting for hours, just 30 minutes a day as a start is good enough. This is a good place to start learning piano as an adult.
When you get used to being acquainted with the piano, you can consider taking piano lessons that will help you progress further.
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Conclusion
The female superstars that we mentioned here were just off the top of our heads, but many more female pianists have paved the way and become legends in their own right.
So if you feel like the world of the piano could use some of your personality too, then what is stopping you?
Go out there and shine bright.