Irina Chukovskaya

Irina Chukovskaya is a renowned Russian pianist with experience in both Russia and the USA. Currently, she teaches in Japan as a visiting professor at Aichi Prefectural University of the Arts. Irina is recognized for her outstanding performances in the romantic style of music and has achieved success as a prize winner in various international piano competitions, including the International Frederic Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, Poland.

Ms. Chukovskaya also won spurs as an exceptional performer of modern piano music (Irina is playing the compositions by Dmitri Shostakovich, Mikhail Kollontay, Galina Ustvolskaya, and Mieczyslaw Weinberg). As far back as in 80’s, her playing was described by Mstislav Rostropovich as “remarkable for its virtuosity, sound musicianship, and true artistry. She performs music of different styles”.

Irina has performed in solo recitals and with chamber ensembles throughout: the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, Poland, Italy, UK, Israel, South Korea, Greece, Hungary, Taiwan, the United States and Canada. She has performed in such concert venues as the Great and the Small Halls of the Moscow Conservatory, the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall, the Great Hall of the Budapest Conservatory, the Great Hall of the St. Petersburg Philharmonia, Palais Montcalm concert Hall (Quebec, Canada), Megaron Hall (Aphens, Greece), Weill Recital Hall, Cami Hall (New York, USA), Denki Bunka-kaikan (Japan), and in many others.

She has collaborated with such notable conductors as Urii Simonov (Russia), Maxim Shostakovich (USA), Vahtang Djordania (USA), Kazuhiko Komacu (Japan), Pierre-Dominique Ponnelle (Germany), David Gilbert (USA), Janush Kovach (Hungary), Vladimir Ponkin (Russia), Sergei Scripka (Russia), Beatrice Brown (USA) and many others.Irina Chukovskaya

A masterful collaborator, Irina Chukovskaya has worked with the Shostakovich Quartet, with cellists Victor Spiller, Mariya Tchaikovskaya, Ksenija Jankovic, Kate Dillingham, Maya Beiser, with the famous soprano Galina Pisarenko, and others.

The past festival highlights include Caramoor, Kristianstad (Sweden), ‘Patras – the Cultural Capital of Europe’ (Greece), Russian Music Festival (Quebec, Canada), ‘Pokrov's Autumn’ (Novosibirsk, Russia), ‘Moscow – to European cities’, 'December evenings’, Andrey Sakharov International Art Festival (Nizhniy Novgorod, Russia), International music festival named after V.Gavrilin (Vologda, Russia), International Rachmaninov Music Festival (Tambov, Russia), International Musical Festival named after I. Sollertinsky (Vitebsk, Byelorussia), Festival named after Heinrich Neuhaus and Stanislav Neuhaus (Moscow, Russia), and many others.

Irina has earned a reputation as a perceptive musician, passionately interpreting a wide range of composers from J.S. Bach to Dmitri Shostakovich and Mikhail Kollontay. Her extensive repertoire encompasses forty concertos with an orchestra. Ms. Chukovskaya has demonstrated a remarkable ability to convey the essential essence of each composer. Her playing is characterized by vivid expressiveness, a rich palette of tone colors, and delicate pianism.

In 1989 Irina moved to the USA and her artistic career was developing rapidly in the United States. Irina had worked as a soloist under "Community Concerts", a division of "Columbia Artist Management". With the well-known Maxim Shostakovich as the conductor, she gave a critically acclaimed performance, in March 1991 as a soloist with the New Orleans Symphony Orchestra, USA. Altogether, Irina performed both solo and with orchestra in over half of the 50 states.

Due to family reasons, Irina returned to Russia, where she embarked on a successful teaching career and sustained her performances. She shared her expertise at esteemed institutions, including the Moscow Conservatory, where she served as an assistant to Professor Naumov. Simultaneously, Irina had her own class of students at the Russian Gnesins Academy of Music. Her dedication and contributions led to her appointment as a professor in 2014.

Irina's teaching reputation extends to Japan, where she currently holds the position of visiting professor at Aichi University of the Arts since 2019.

Irina has been giving masterclasses in the USA, South Korea, Hong Kong, Montenegro, Serbia, Greece, Italy, the UK, and various other countries.

In 2010 Ms. Chukovskaya was awarded by the Russian Government with the title “Distinguished Service to the Arts of Russia”.

Irina has released five CDs featuring works by Chopin, Schumann, Schubert, Shostakovich, and Kollontay. Currently, she is in the process of completing the recording of CDs showcasing the Complete Mazurkas of Chopin at the Kawai studio in Hamamatsu, Japan. The CD set is anticipated to be released in 2024.

In 1980, Ms. Chukovskaya gained recognition as a prizewinner in the Frederic Chopin International Piano Competition in Warsaw, Poland (under the name Irina Petrova) and was subsequently invited to perform concerts worldwide alongside other winners. However, the Soviet Ministry of Cultural Affairs would not permit her to stay in Poland and continue performing with other prizewinners. Consequently, Irina had to return to Moscow immediately. Despite receiving numerous invitations to perform in Europe and Japan, she was denied permission to leave the country.

From 1980 to 1989, Irina conducted over 400 concerts in major cities of the USSR, including Moscow, Leningrad, Sverdlovsk, Odessa, Tashkent, and others. It was only in the late '80s that Irina gained the ability to perform internationally.

Ms. Chukovskaya studied in Moscow at the famous Central Music School and at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory. Her professors there were renowed Vera Gornostaeva and StanislavNeuhaus. She completed her postgraduate course under the tutelage of Professor Dmitriy Bashkirov. In addition to this, she took lessons from Professor Theodor Lettvin at Rutgers University (1990-1993, USA).

Born in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Irina began her studies at the age of 6 with the legendary piano teacher Tamara Popovich in Central Music School at Tashkent Conservatory.

At the early age of seven, she toured through the cities of Uzbekistan with the Tashkent Philharmonic Orchestra performing the concerto of Haydn in D-major. She gave her first full recital at the age of thirteen.

Irina was born into a family of musicians. Her mother was a violin player in the Tashkent Opera and Ballet Theater, and as a result, Irina spent a significant amount of time in a musical atmosphere.

In 2014, Irina Chukovskaya won the first prize in the International competition “The 21st Century Art” (Lempäälä, Finland) and was awarded the Grand Prix at II International Master competition for Music Teachers (Warsaw, Poland) and XV International festival-competition “Musica Classica” (Ruza, Russia).