Born in Lyon, François Dumont studied at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Parus under Bruno Rigutto and then in the prestigious Lago di Como International Piano Academy in Italy with artists such as Murray Perahia, Leon Fleisher, Dmitri Bashkirov, Menahem Pressler, William Grant Naboré, Andreas Staier and Fou Ts'ong. His international career has been launched by his success in major international piano competitions: International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, the Queen Elisabeth Competition, the Clara Haskil Competition and the Montecarlo Piano Masters. He was also nominated for the Victoires de la musique, a major French classical music event. He received the Prix de la Révélation from the Syndicate of Music Critics in France.
Since 2000 François Dumont has been regularly appearing as soloist with orchestras in France (Cannes Symphony Orchestra, Caen Symphony), USA (Cleveland Orchestra, Fortworth Symphony), Belgium (National Belgium Symphony, Orchestre de Chambre de Wallonie), Germany (Trier Theater Orchestra), Latvia (Liepaja Symphony Orchestra), Switzerland (Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne), Poland (Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, Kraków Philharmonic Orchestra), Russia (Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre), Japan (Tokyo Symphony) and China (Wuhan Philarmonic). He has performed recitals at important international festivals: Piano aux Jacobins in Toulouse, Chopin Festival in Nohant, Radio-France Montpellier Festival, Chopin à Bagatelle in Paris, Chopin and His Europe in Warsaw, Journées Ravel in Montfort l’Amaury, at Washington's Kennedy Center and Paris's Salle Pleyel, Théâtre du Châtelet and Salle Gaveau. He regularly tours Japan and China.
His first solo recordings, the Complete Mozart Sonatas (Anima Records) and a Chopin album (Artalinna) both received the Maestro award of the Pianiste magazine. Other solo recordings include a Wagner/Liszt programme (Piano Classics) as well as a double live CD that includes all his performances at the Chopin Competition, published by the Fryderyk Chopin Institute in Warsaw. His recent recording of the complete piano music of Maurice Ravel (Piano Classics) has received both critical (FFF Telerama, 5 Diapason) and public acclaim. The first volume of his B.A.C.H. project has just been released by Artalinna. His recent recordings of Mozart concerti K.271 and K.466 with the Orchestra Symphonique de Bretagne have been praised for their 'clarity of elocution', 'ideal sense of equilibrium' and 'delightful classicism'.
(photo: Jean-Baptiste Millot)
