Pianist ALEXANDRE PIROJENKO “has the technical skills to do anything he wants with a piano; better yet, what he wants to do is sensitive, original, and brilliant,” wrote The Washington Post after Mr. Pirojenko’s Washington, DC debut in the Young Concert Artists Series at the Kennedy Center in 2005.

On April 29, 2008, Young Concert Artists presents Mr. Pirojenko’s New York concerto debut with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s conducted by Michael Stern, as part of YCA’s annual gala Irene Diamond Concert.  During the 2007-2008 season, he also appears as soloist with the Fort Smith Symphony (AK) and in recital at Missouri State University.  He has given recitals and educational residencies at Western Michigan University, in the Classical Concert Series of the Arts Council of Moore County (NC), and at the Glenridge Performing Arts Center (Sarasota, FL).  He has performed as soloist with the Naples (FL) Philharmonic Orchestra and the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra.

Mr. Pirojenko won First Prize in the 2004 Young Concert Artists International Auditions.  He was also awarded the Jerome L. Greene Foundation Prize, which sponsored his New York debut in the Young Concert Artists Series at the 92nd Street Y, as well as the Paul A. Fish Memorial Prize, the Saint Vincent College Concert Series Prize, the Naples Philharmonic Orchestra Prize, and the Jean Fergus New Artist and Orchestra Soloist Prizes. 

His international piano competition prizes include First Prize in the 2007 Ettore Pozzoli International Piano Competition in Italy, First Prize in the XVI Ibiza International Piano Competition in Spain, First Prize in The Paula Cussi International Piano Competition to Celebrate the Tercentenary of St. Petersburg, First Prize in the 8th Newport International Competition for Young Pianists in Wales, and Second Prize in the Vendome Prize International Piano Competition, the New Orleans International Piano Competition, and the 4th International Piano Competition in Memory of Vladimir Horowitz in Kiev.

He has appeared on stages in Latvia, Ukraine, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, Japan, Slovenia, Yugoslavia, and Peru, and last season, he gave two concerts in celebration of Hermitage Week at Sotheby’s in New York.  In addition to his incredible breadth in the classical repertoire, he is also a gifted interpreter of new music, having performed the premieres of works by Boris Tishchenko, Pyotr Tchernobrivets and Tatyana Voronina.

A favorite performer in St. Petersburg, Mr. Pirojenko has performed in festivals including the Anton Rubinstein Festival, Virtuosi of the Year 2000, the 5th International Musical Olympus, St. Petersburg Musical Spring, Five Evenings in St. Petersburg, and the St. Petersburg International Piano Festival.

Mr. Pirojenko frequently performs as soloist with orchestras including the St. Petersburg State Symphony Orchestra, the St. Petersburg Conservatory Symphony Orchestra, the Saratov Philharmonic, and the Karelia Philharmonic.  He has also appeared with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, the Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie in Germany, the Gulbenkian Orchestra in Portugal, the Witold Lutoslawski Philharmonic in Poland, and the Contemporary Orchestral Ensemble in France.

Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, Alexandre Pirojenko began his piano studies with Irina Saravayskaya at the age of 5 and studied with Marina Wolf at the Special Music School of the St. Petersburg State Conservatory.  In 1998 he began studies with Alexander Sandler at the St. Petersburg State Conservatory, graduating with highest honors in 2003 and completing postgraduate studies two years later.  He also studied with Arie Vardi at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hannover.  Since 2006, Mr. Pirojenko has taught piano at the St. Petersburg State Conservatory.  He is an avid collector of vintage recordings, of which he has one of the largest collections in Russia.