Jean-Claude Vanden Eynden Piano Recital

Renowned Belgian pianist Jean-Claude Vanden Eynden performs music by Bach, Franck, and Schubert at the 2024 PYPA Piano Festival in Philadelphia.

J. S. Bach Prelude and Fugue in D-sharp minor from The Well-Tempered Clavier, BWV 877
César Franck Prélude, Choral et Fugue
Franz Schubert Piano Sonata in B-flat Major, D.960

Laureate, Queen Elisabeth International Piano Competition, Brussels

Jean-Claude Vanden Eynden was only 16 years old when he became a laureate of the 1964 Queen Elisabeth Competition, one of the youngest laureates ever to be selected. This precious distinction marked the start of a brilliant career that led him to perform at the world’s most prestigious venues and festivals.

An outstanding soloist, he has been acclaimed from New York to Tokyo. A guest of many symphony and chamber orchestras, Jean-Claude Vanden Eynden collaborated early on with prestigious conductors, Paul Kletzky, Rudolf Barshaï, Yuri Temirkanov, etc. He is also a marvelous chamber-music player much admired by his peers, who plays with first-rate Belgian and international partners such as Véronique Bogaerts, Marie Hallynck, Augustin Dumay, Silvia Marcovici, Michaela Martin, Miriam Fried, Gérard Caussé, Frans Helmerson, José Van Dam, Walter Boeykens, Quatuor Enesco, Quatuor Melos, Quatuor Ysaye, Ensemble César Franck, etc. Sensitive, attentive and always careful to listen to others, his chamber-music concerts are a feast for the ear and the eye.

An international career spanning almost 50 years has confirmed this exceptional pianist in his art and in his mastery. His vast and impressive repertoire includes virtually all the major concertos, a wide range of chamber-music pieces and especially the complete works for piano solo by Maurice Ravel. The press and the public are unanimous: “(the piece) … acquires, under the lively touch of the pianist, subtle variations that, given the richness of detail, hold the listener spellbound. (…) a true lesson in style by the master and virtuoso Vanden Eynden.” - «La Libre Belgique» – October, 22, 2001

Trained entirely by Eduardo Del Pueyo, from the moment he entered the Royal Conservatory of Brussels in 1959 to the completion of his studies at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in 1965, Jean-Claude Vanden Eynden is particularly keen on pursuing the work of his master. He currently teaches at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels and at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel. In 2004 he reorganized the school founded in 1977 by his master as the Eduardo Del Pueyo Musical Center and became its artistic director; in doing so he intended to offer a fuller curriculum and to bring together talented youths. Jean-Claude Vanden Eynden regularly sits on the juries of the Queen Elisabeth Competition and of other international competitions.

The 2024 PYPA Piano Festival is coming back to Philadelphia in the summer of 2024! We have prepared 9 days of in-person events, including concerts, masterclasses, and the Philadelphia International Competition from July 27-August 4, 2024!

PYPA Summer Piano Festival was founded in 2013. For the first five years, the festival took place at the Curtis Institute of Music, and since 2018, it has been in residence at the historic Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia.

Each summer, the piano festival offers an intensive nine-day program that encompasses master classes, lectures, and concerts performed by international renowned pianists, as well as PYPA young artists. The Summer Piano Festival also presents the annual Philadelphia International Piano Competition.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Academy of Vocal Arts, 1920 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, United States