Kholodenko plays Mozart: Requiem (arr. solo piano) (London, 2024)
Vadym Kholodenko
“Kholodenko was introduced as one of the most technically brilliant pianists of his generation. After this celebrated performance, one can only agree with that. On the one hand extremely powerful playing, whilst on the other imbued with every degree of subtle piano shades – both of which are readily available to this winner of the Van Cliburn Competition.”
Die Presse (Austria), 2024
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About
Combining fierce pianism, an unrivalled breadth of repertoire, and a level of interpretative refinement that ascends to the realms of poetry, Vadym Kholodenko rises as an artist the likes of which the world has rarely seen since the great pianists of the Golden Age.
Gold Medallist of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, Kholodenko’s distinguished pianism and profound artistic gifts have led to invitations from many of the world’s finest orchestras and concert halls.
Recent and forthcoming concerto highlights include those with leading orchestras of North America (Atlanta Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony, and the Philadelphia Orchestra); Europe (Budapest Festival Orchestra, Danish National Symphony Orchestra, Filarmonica della Scala, London Philharmonic, and the Vienna Symphony Orchestra); and Asia & the Far East (National Symphony Orchestra of Taiwan, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, and the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra). In recent seasons, he has held the position of Artist-in-Residence with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra (Texas, USA), and the SWR Symphonieorchester (Stuttgart, Germany), and in 2025 made his debut at London’s BBC Proms.
Kholodenko has forged strong musical partnerships with many of the world’s leading conductors, including Karina Canellakis, Myung-Whun Chung, Christoph Eschenbach, Iván Fischer, Marie Jacquot, Cristian Măcelaru, Susanna Mälkki, Gemma New, Sir Antonio Pappano, Dima Slobodeniouk, Thomas Søndergård, Krzyzstof Urbański, and Kazuki Yamada, amongst others.
In recital, Kholodenko appears on the world’s leading stages – from London, Paris, and Vienna, to Boston, Chicago, and New York – where he is praised for his “iron-clad technique, capable of moments of crystalline delicacy” (The Guardian). He is also a thoughtful and committed chamber musician, enjoying rewarding collaborations with an array of such artists as Clara Jumi-Kang, Anastasia Kobekina, Vadim Repin, and the Belcea and Jerusalem string quartets. He has made numerous recordings with violinist Alena Baeva, with whom recent and forthcoming appearances include concerts in the cultural capitals of Florence, London, and Paris.
Possessing an extraordinary facility for the assimilation of music, the sheer scale of Kholodenko’s knowledge and command of the piano literature is unrivalled, and he holds a vast array of active repertoire. His discography to date encompasses solo piano works by a diverse list of composers (J.S. Bach, Balakirev, Beethoven, Chaplygin, Kurbatov, Liszt, Medtner, Prokofiev, Rachmaninov, Rzewski, Schubert, Scriabin, Siloti, Stravinsky, and Tchaikovsky, amongst others). Recordings for the Harmonia Mundi record label include the Grieg Piano Concerto, Saint-Saëns Piano Concerto No.2, and the complete cycle of Prokofiev’s piano concertos.
Kholodenko’s recordings have been described as “truly outstanding” (Gramophone Magazine), and received such accolades as Editor’s Choice Award (BBC Music Magazine), and the much-coveted Diapason d’Or de l’année. His latest release – a pairing of Beethoven’s Diabelli Variations and Rzewski’s The People United Will Never Be Defeated! for the Quartz Music label (2022) – met with tremendous critical acclaim, described as “carefully contoured and impactful” (BBC Music Magazine), and “playing that pulls no punches: Kholodenko is in the elite of classical pianists” (Norman Lebrecht, for The Critic).
Born in Kyiv, Ukraine, Vadym Kholodenko took his first piano lessons at the age of six, and began touring internationally at thirteen years old. He was educated at the Kyiv Lysenko State Music Lyceum and the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatoire, under the renowned pedagogues Natalia Gridneva, Borys Fedorov, and Vera Gornostaeva. He won First Prize at the Sendai International Piano Competition (2010) and Schubert International Piano Competition (2011), before taking the Gold Medal at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition (2013). He is now resident in Luxembourg.
Photos
© Tim Iliasov
© Tim Iliasov
© Tim Iliasov
© Tim Iliasov
© Tim Iliasov
© Tim Iliasov
© Jean-Baptiste Millot
© Jean-Baptiste Millot
© Jean-Baptiste Millot
© Jean-Baptiste Millot
News
Press
“With his astonishing, varied playing, Vadym Kholodenko wrested riches from Liszt’s Second Piano Concerto that one would not have expected. The 38-year-old Ukrainian blasted blocks of granite from the toughly tuned Steinway, only to immediately astonish with diamond-glittering tonal gems. An excellent man.”
Der Standard, Austria, 2025
“Dreaminess and booming sounds are in close, almost disturbing proximity in this piano concerto. Vadym Kholodenko spared no expense, letting it creak and rumble, oscillating between proto-Rachmaninoff and austerity, and impressing with his elegant touch in passages of Satin-Saëns-esque lightness.”
Die Presse, Austria, 2025
“Kholodenko is simply one of the best classical pianists working today, a superb technician and the most stylish – if least flamboyant – of players.”
The Herald, Scotland, 2024
“The chemistry was electrifying. Kholodenko’s probing intensity, the sheer physicality of his delivery, was a constant driving force, mesmerising from start to finish. Hahn set the tone with a biting orchestral opening, responded to pugnaciously by the pianist, whose ensuing dialogues with successive instrumentalists were as intoxicating as the rhapsodic opulence of his own solos. Inner volatility made every upcoming moment an exhilarating and unpredictable revelation.”
The Scotsman, 2024
“Brilliant: Kholodenko replaces Bronfman Yefim Bronfman was announced as the soloist of Brahms’ Second Piano Concerto. He withdrew, so Vadym Kholodenko (born in Kiev in 1986) stepped in. He was introduced in the programme as one of the most technically brilliant pianists of his generation. After this celebrated performance, one can only agree with that. Kholodenko defied the immense manual challenges of the concerto with playful ease, and always relied on the highest level of transparency. His primary interest was not in the breadth of melodic invention, but in the many details that he vividly highlighted – accompanied by unexpected, idiosyncratic changes in tempo and unorthodox phrasing. On the one hand extremely powerful playing, whilst on the other imbued with every degree of subtle piano shades – both of which are readily available to this winner of the Van Cliburn Competition (2013).”
Die Presse, Austria, 2024
“Ground-cleaving dynamic power and scorching virtuosity”
South Florida Classical Review, 2023
“In Handel, Kholodenko evoked varied expression with a masterful control that encompassed crisp refined rolls and florid ornamentations. His approach to dynamics was period-influenced, and his touch was in fact so refined that the piano seemed to more resemble the timbre of a harpsichord.”
South Florida Classical Review, 2023
“Kholodenko’s playing is extraordinarily effective, with crisp articulation, a rigorous dynamic palette, and phrasing that prioritises larger musical ideas.”
South Florida Classical Review, 2023
“Remarkable articulation, coupled with a lyrical expressiveness that is vibrant yet tender, imbuing Beethoven with both beauty and grace.”
Hyde Park Herald, 2023
“In Liszt, Kholodenko found his inner demon and was formidable in continuously heightening the tension. The rumbling descent down the keyboard induced shivers, while the moments of more quiet reflection in the music only offered brief calm before the pyrotechnics of Liszt’s score once again exploded. A dramatic and rewarding performance.”
Hyde Park Herald, 2023
“Vadym Kholodenko barely broke a sweat under the heavy demands of Rachmaninov’s Fourth Piano Concerto. His fingers, hands, arms, and body were loose, ready to engage with every swerve and acceleration in the music. His technique was clean and impeccable but never cold or precise. Rather it had a warm and easy feeling, reactive. Keep an eye out for this pianist!”
Culture OC
“Carefully contoured and impactful”
BBC Music Magazine
“Kholodenko cast a new light on Prokofiev’s Third Piano Concerto – delicately precise, rather than savage. The Finale still had bite, but it was a Siamese cat’s needle-sharp nip rather than a bear’s giant chomp. This was all to the good: he revealed a poised, almost neo-classical side to the piece, which normally stays hidden.”
The Telegraph, 2023
“Playing that pulls no punches: Kholodenko is in the elite of classical pianists”
The Critic (Norman Lebrecht)
“Kholodenko demonstrates an iron-clad technique, capable of moments of crystalline delicacy”
The Guardian
“A passionate musician with an inherent muscularity and weight to his touch, Kholodenko plays with great colour, poetry, and verve.”
New York Classical Review
“Magnificent polish and beauty”
La Voce de Mantova
“Technically phenomenal”
CultureMap, Fort Worth
“A deep connection to the music, Kholodenko plays with conviction and purpose, with a delicate and wistful side to his artistry that is utterly charming.”
New York Classical Review
“A musician of gigantic technical accomplishment and generous poetic gifts”
The Orange County Registry
“Kholodenko discovers each new note and idea, with every moment full of surprise whilst fulfilling the complex logic of late Beethoven. Pianist and composer sounded as one, with the performance closer to an experience of absolute improvisation than one will ever find in the classical repertoire.”
New York Classical Review
“A powerful sound and fearsomely accurate fingers, bringing an unexpected touch of soulfulness to the music”
Rochester City Newspaper
“Vadym Kholodenko unleashes limitless virtuosity”
Hoy, Guardianes de la Verdad
“The heir to the great pianists of the Soviet School”
Giornale della Musica
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Knight Classical represents Vadym Kholodenko for worldwide general management.
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Artist Services Manager