Japanese pianist Nobuyuki Tsujii (Nobu), who has been blind from birth, won the joint Gold Medal at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2009 and has gone on to earn an international reputation for the passion and excitement he brings to his live performances.
In concert, Nobu has appeared with leading orchestras worldwide including The Mariinsky Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic, NHK Symphony, Yomiuri Nippon Symphony, Tokyo Symphony and Japan Philharmonic, Seattle and Baltimore symphony orchestras, Filarmonica della Scala and Sinfonieorchester Basel under the baton of conductors such as Valery Gergiev, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Vladimir Spivakov, Juanjo Mena and Vasily Petrenko.
As a recitalist, Nobu has performed at prestigious venues across the world such as Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium and regularly appears at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées in Paris, London Wigmore Hall, Royal Albert Hall, Berlin Philharmonie, and Musikverein in Vienna.
In the 2020/21 season, Nobu returns to Seattle Symphony Orchestra under Gemma New and to Royal Liverpool Philarmonic Orchestra under Vasily Petrenko. After a successful debut with Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra last season, Nobu embarks on a tour to Japan in Spring 2021 with the Orchestra, under their Chief Conductor Klaus Mäkelä. He also performs recitals in St Polten, Austria and Hulencourt in Belgium.
Last season, Nobu worked successfully with Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg under Kent Nagano and NDR Radiophilharmonie Hannover under Andrew Manze. His concerts and recitals at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw and Théâtre des Champs Elysées were critically acclaimed.
An exclusive recording artist for Avex Classics International, Nobu’s latest album is Chopin’s Piano Concerto No.2 with Vladimir Ashkenazy and Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin. He also recorded Grieg’s Piano Concerto and Rachmaninov’s Variations on a theme of Paganini under Vasily Petrenko with Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No.2 with Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No.1 with Yutaka Sado and the BBC Philharmonic, Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No.5 with Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, and recital discs of Chopin, Mozart, Debussy and Liszt.
A live DVD recording of Nobu’s 2011 Carnegie Hall recital was named DVD of the Month by Gramophone, as was his latest DVD release, ‘Touching the Sound – The Improbable Journey of Nobuyuki Tsujii’, a documentary film by Peter Rosen.
Nobu’s international tours are supported by All Nippon Airways (ANA) and he gratefully acknowledges their assistance.