Christian Blackshaw

An English pianist, born in Cheshire, who studied with Gordon Green at the Royal Northern College of Music and the Royal College of Music, taking the gold medal at both, then became the first British pianist to study at the Leningrad Conservatoire, with Moisei Halfin. Back in London he worked closely with Sir Clifford Curzon. His complete Mozart piano sonatas for Wigmore Hall Live were issued in four volumes; the fourth was named one of the New York Times's best classical recordings of 2015 and the set appears in Gramophone's fifty greatest Mozart recordings. He founded the Hellens Music Festival in 2013 and directs it, and was appointed MBE for services to music in the 2019 New Year Honours.