Biography

Pianists Katia and Marielle Labèque’s musical ambitions started at an early age. They rose to international fame with their recording of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue (one of the first gold records in classical music) and have since developed a thriving career with performances worldwide. Daughters of pianist Ada Cecchi (who was, herself, a pupil of Marguerite Long), the duo had a childhood filled with music.

The 2017-18 season includes performances with the New York Philharmonic, Dallas Symphony, Chicago Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Vienna Konzerthaus with Camerata Salzburg, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg with Bryce Dessner, a European tour with the Concertgebouw Orchestra and Semyon Bychkov, Easter Festival Salzburg with Dresden Staatskapelle, and the world premiere of Bryce Dessner’s Concerto for Two Pianos with the London Philharmonic. In 2019 they will premiere a new concerto written for them by Nico Muhly.

Katia and Marielle Labèque’s commitment to contemporary music has led to collaborations with many composers, including Louis Andriessen, Luciano Berio, Pierre Boulez, Philip Glass, Osvaldo Golijov, György Ligeti, and Olivier Messiaen. The two have also appeared with Baroque music ensembles such as the English Baroque Soloists, Il Giardino Armonico, Musica Antiqua Köln, Venice Baroque, and on tour with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.

The duo’s KML Recordings label recently joined with Deutsche Grammophon. Their most recent recording is Invocations, featuring Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring and Debussy’s Épigraphes Antiques. Other releases include Sisters, a DVD of the documentary The Labèque Way, a Gershwin and Bernstein album, and their project Minimalist Dream House (celebrating fifty years of minimalist music). Upcoming releases include Moondog Minimalist Dream House.

Katia and Marielle Labèque made their San Francisco Symphony debut in 1985 and performed most recently here in an April 2014 recital.

(May 2018)