Abdel Rahman El Bacha

Born in Beirut in 1958; Abdel Rahman El Bacha is a Lebanese-French pianist and composer. His mother was a singer, his father a composer; from 1967 he received piano lessons from Zvart Sarkissian. From 1974 he studied at the Conservatoire de Paris (CNSMDP) and completed his studies in 1977 with four prizes. In 1978 he won first prize in piano at the Concours Reine Elisabeth in Brussels as well as the audience prize. In 1981 he received French citizenship. In 1983 he was awarded the Grand Prix de l’Académie Charles Cros, in 1998 he became a Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres, and in 2002 and 2007 he received the Order of Merit of Lebanon. He recorded both volumes of the Wohltemperiertes Klavier of Johann Sebastian Bach and the 32 piano sonatas of Ludwig van Beethoven, together with extensive recordings of works by Frédéric Chopin and Sergei Prokofiev. Since 2014 he has lived in Brussels.