Full Biography
Pianist Ilya Poletaev is quickly becoming recognized as one of today’s most original and compelling artists. In July 2010, he captured First Prize at the prestigious XVII International Johann Sebastian Bach Competition in Leipzig and, as the winner, will appear in recital at the Leipzig Gewandhaus.
A pianist with an inquisitive mind who explores a wide range of repertoire choices, Mr. Poletaev leads a multifaceted career as both a classically trained pianist and as a performer on early keyboards. He makes his debut at Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in both C.P.E. Bach’s Harpsichord Concerto in D Major, Wq. 23 and Mozart’s Piano Concerto in D minor with Symphony in C, under Rossen Milanov, and appears with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra in June 2011 in Medtner’s Piano Concerto No. 3, under Peter Oundjian. As a solo pianist, he has appeared with the Toronto and Hartford symphony orchestras as well as with Romania’s Filarmonica “Mihail Jora” di Bacau and Orchestra J-Futura of Trento, Italy. He was the First Prize winner of the XX Concorso Sala Gallo Piano Competition in Monza, Italy, where he also received the Audience Prize, the Bach Prize, and the Orchestra Prize. He also captured First Prize at the 2009 Grieg International Competition, and was a laureate of the 2008 National Stepping Stone Competition in Canada. He joined the Astral Artists roster as a winner of its 2009 National Auditions.
As a harpsichordist, Mr. Poletaev was a top prizewinner at the 2007 Southeastern Historical Keyboard Society harpsichord competition, and has been heard in such venues as Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall, New York City’s Pierpont Morgan Library, the Aston Magna Early Music Festival, the Amherst Early Music Festival, and Yale’s Collection of Musical Instruments. As a continuo player, he has performed under Masaaki Suzuki, Andrew Lawrence-King, Steven Stubbs, Nicholas McGegan, Simon Carrington, Graham O’Reilly, and Helmuth Rilling. As a chamber musician, he has performed alongside such distinguished artists as Robert Mann, Donald Weilerstein, Gary Hoffmann, Boris Berman, Paul Hersh, Susan Narucki, and Miah Persson. He has also appeared at the Moab, Caramoor, Sarasota, Norfolk, Yellow Barn, Banff, Orford, and Stratford Summer Music festivals.
Recently, Mr. Poletaev gave an acclaimed performance at the Caramoor Festival with renowned mezzo-soprano Susan Graham and the Orchestra of St. Luke’s. Other recent performances include recitals at Italy’s Festival Lago Maggiore, the Giuseppe Verdi Conservatory in Milan, and a concerto performance at the Accademia Filarmonica Romana. Upcoming engagements include the opening concert at the Liszt Festival in Grottamare, Italy, and his recording of the complete works of George Enescu for violin and piano will be released for the Naxos label.
Mr. Poletaev began studying in Moscow at the age of six and continued his studies in Israel until he moved to Canada at the age of 14. He holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Toronto, where he studied with pianist Marietta Orlov and harpsichordist Colin Tilney. He holds both a Doctorate and a Master’s degree from Yale, where he studied with Boris Berman. Between 2005 and 2010 he also served on the faculties of the Yale Institute of Sacred Music, the Yale Department of Music, and the Yale School of Music as a lecturer in early music.
Updated: JULY 2010
