Florian Noack

Imagine a map of the world, turned upside down. When such a world is your point of reference, the terms ‘obscure’ and ‘well-known’ do not necessarily apply. Much in the same way, Florian Noack (1990, Belgium) discovered the world of repertoire for piano. Even as a teen, composers like Alkan, Medtner, Lyapunov were studied next to Chopin and Beethoven, thanks to the highly inspirational book ‘Piano Music’ by Guy Sacre.

Sources of inspiration
Out of love for Russian literature and studies with pianist-composer Vassily Lobanov, Florian developed a natural affinity with Russian heritage. His piano transcriptions, based on orchestral works by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov and Rimsky-Korsakov, have attracted the attention of musicians such as Boris Berezovsky and Dmitri Bashkirov. ‘It is a form of creativity and ingenuity that forces me to approach my instrument differently; searching for new textures, richness, colours or ways to combine my ten fingers’, Florian says. Praise for the recording of these works include the ECHO Klassik Award ‘Emerging Artist of the Year 2015’, the International Classical Music Award, the Octave de la Musique, a nomination for Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik and the Diapason d’Or of the Year 2017.

‘Virtuosity’ being a word regularly connected to Florian, the press and his peers acknowledge it as a means to an end. With his interpretation and programmatic innovation, Florian strives to keep audiences on their toes. Le Figaro commented on a recent recording: ‘A portrait of Prokofiev in Noack’s own image: contrasting but authentic. Restless and bright. Tender but incisive.’

Background
Formative experiences have been the studies with Claudio Martinez-Mehner at the Musikhochschule Basel, and Academy masterclasses with the socratic teachings of Ferenc Rados in Prussia Cove, Cornwall. Florian Noack has won numerous prizes including the International Rachmaninoff Competition, the international Robert Schumann Competition and the International Piano Competition Cologne.

Invitations from around the world keep building his presence in festivals and concert halls, allowing meaningful collaborations with other musicians, conductors and orchestras. Florian has recorded six well-received CDs with various off-the-beaten-track repertoire and with his own piano transcriptions.

He joined the Fratres Trio with violinist Fedor Rudin (Konzertmeister of the Wiener Philharmoniker) and saxophonist Hayrapet Arakelyan in 2016. A particular interest is repertoire typical from the 1920s and beyond, merging the world of jazz and classical.

Florian Noack was a tutor at the Musikhochschule in Cologne, teaches at the Miami Piano Festival Academy 2020, and gives master classes on a regular basis.

CV of Florian Noack, pianist — A selection

1990: Born in Brussels, Belgium
1994: Start of piano studies
2002: Enters the ‘Young Exceptional Talents’ section of the Queen Elisabeth Chapel Brussels, studies with Yuka Izutsu
2005: Wins 8 Belgian piano competitions (including Concours Excellentia, Concours Grétry, Concours EPTA, Concours Rotary Breughel, Concours Belfius)
2006–2013: Studies at the Musikhochschule in Cologne, with Russian pianist and composer Vassily Lobanov
2006–2009: Wins several prizes in France (Concours International Vibrarte, Concours International de Mérignac, Concours International Adilia Alieva, Piano Campus)
2009: Wins scholarship from the Belgian Vocational Foundation
2013–2018: Studies at the Musikhochschule in Basel, with Claudio Martinez-Mehner
2018–2020: Academy masterclasses Prussia Cove, Cornwall with Ferenc Rados and Rita Wagner
2010–2015: Receives grants and scholarships from Spes, Fondation Banque Populaire and Mozart Gesellschaft
2010: Wins 2nd Prize and the Public’s Prize at the International Rachmaninoff Competition Moskou
2011: Wins 3rd Prize at the International Piano Competition Cologne and the 2nd Prize at the international Robert Schumann Competition
2013: Wins 1st Prize at the Karlrobert Kreiten Piano Competition, 1st Prize at the Lions Club Competition, and winner of the Steinway Förderpreis
2015: ECHO Klassik ‘Emerging Artist of the Year’ (Transcriptions & Paraphrases)
2017: Diapason d’Or de l’Année (Lyapunov Volume 2)
2017: International Classical Music Award (Lyapunov Vol 2)
2017: Octave de la Musique ‘Artist of the Year’ (Lyapunov Vol 2)
2017: Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik Nomination (Lyapunov Vol 2)
2018: Diapason d’Or (Album d’un Voyageur)
2019: Octave de la Musique (Album d’un Voyageur)

Festivals
Florian Noack receives regular invitations from festivals in France (e.g. La Roque d’Anthéron, La Folle Journée, Piano aux Jacobins, L’esprit du Piano, Festival Radio France Montpellier), the United States (Miami Piano Festival), Germany (Husum Piano Festival), China, South Korea, Mexico and Belgium.

Concert halls
Florian Noack has notably performed at the Kölner Philharmonie, BOZAR Brussels, Beijing Concert Hall,
Shanghai Oriental Arts Center, Xinghai Concert Hall Guangzhou, the Liège Philharmonie, Konzerthaus Dortmund, Konzerthaus Berlin, Musashino Shimin Bunka Kaikan Tokyo, and in Paris: Salle Gaveau, Philharmonie de Paris, Auditorium du Louvre and Comédie des Champs-Elysées.

Orchestras
As a soloist, Florian Noack has performed piano concertos by Rachmaninov, Schumann, Ravel, Beethoven,
Grieg and Mozart with orchestras such as the Orchestre Philharmonique Royal de Liège, WDR Rundfunkorchester, Philharmonie Südwestfalen, Charlemagne Chamber Orchestra and the Budapest Strings.