LEFKI KARPODINI, PIANIST
The greek-born pianist Lefki Karpodini after graduating with distinction
from the Athens Music Conservatoire and receiving the first price and gold
medal at the Filon Piano Competition in her home country, she moved to London
to pursue her Bachelor studies at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama with
Paul Roberts and Prof. Emeritus James Gibb. As recipient of the most
prestigious scholarship in Greece given by the State Scholarship Institution
IKY, she continued her Master studies and Advanced Instrumental Studies under
the guidance of the reknown pianist and piano professor Ronan O’Hora.
While studying she developed a great interest in Chamber music making and
song accompaniment. which lead her to winning the Sir Henry Richardson Award
(MBF) and the Schubert best Accompanist Price (GSMD). She was the pianist in
residence at the Paxos Chamber Music Festival for two years and at the chamber
music festival „Musique printaniere a Beaucaire“ in France. One of the
highlights of music making during that time was the Interpretation of the
Messiaen’s cycle „Chants de Terre et de Ciel“
with soprano Ruby Hughes in Banff Centre Summer Festival in Canada which brought the public to an exstatic standing
ovation. A well sought-after music partner, she has collaborated with various
musicians and Ensembles such as Daniela Lehner, Ruby Hughes, Claire Booth,
Trioskop, Trio Fibonnacci and others.
As a soloist,
chamber musician and Lied accompanist Lefki Karpodini has appeared in many
countries such as Germany, United Kingdom, Greece, Switzerland, France, Barbados, Canada
and Spain and has performed in Mecklenburg Vorpommern Festival, Brighton
Festival, Cheltenham Festival, Banff, Chichester, Symi Festival, Cully
Classique, Tel-Hai and Paxos Festival and in halls such as Wigmore Hall,
Purcell Room, Bolivar Hall, St. Martin-in-the-fields, St. John’s Smith Square,
Meistersaal, Kubus and others. In 2006 she was invited to give a solo debut
recital at the Carnegie Hall Weill Concert Series in New York.
She has
collaborated with various ensembles and orchestras and has recorded live for the BBC Radio3
and the Greek Radio. Her interest in contemporary music took her to Germany, where she got offered a scholarship
to study at the prestigious Ensemble Modern Akademie
in Frankfurt. She has appeared in the Park Lane Series in Purcell Room and in
Dresden festival with the Ensemble Modern. She has worked with composers such
as Dai Fujikura, Jens Joneleit, Anastassios Karpodinis and Christina
Athinodorou and she has recorded in collaboration with Ensemble Modern for
Deutsch
Musikrat.
Highlights of her recent activity include a
series of solo recitals in Theocharakis Foundation dedicated to Chopin, Debussy
and Beethoven, receiving enthusiastic reviews in the press as well as a chamber
music concert with works by Brahms together with violinist Apollon
Grammatikopoulos and cellist Asterios Pouftis.
Future plans include „Invitation to the Dance III“ – a series with
dances for four hands and two pianos, devised and performed together with her
piano duo partner Michael Brownlee Walker, a violin and piano recital with
Apollon Grammatikopoulos and a solo recital with works from the german romantic
repertoire.
Lefki Karpodini
is a dedicated piano teacher. After working in London and in Berlin, she
returned to her homeland and since 2010 she has been teaching piano at Moraitis
School. Her students have received distinctions from ABRSM and awards from the
well known music competition „Jugend Musiziert“. She is writing her own music
and makes transcriptions of works for different learning levels. She is
currently working on her first piano book for early learning levels.
www.lefkikarpodini.com
www.lefkikarpodini.com