Cyril Guillotin

His sound production is rich and elegant. His sensitivity is intense and quite remarkable. Cyril Guillotin is an unusual pianist. Some will call him a poet, for his performances invite us to dream. His main masters are Brigitte Engerer and Aldo Ciccolini, and he also worked with the most talented artists and teachers: from Dominique Merlet to Pascal Devoyon, from Dimitri Bashkirov to Mikhael Voskressensly, and also Olivier Gardon, Billy Eidi, Chantal Fraysse, Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Jacques Rouvier, John O?Conor... Although there were no musicians in his family, Cyril Guillotin was discovered very early on by prestigious musicians and won many awards in national and international competitions for young artists from asearly as the age of 8 years old. He gave his first performance as a soloist at 11 years old during the ?Mozart European Festival?, under the guidance of the Hungarian pianist Gabriella Torma. He establisched himself as a child prodigy with performances in main concert halls in Paris (Salle Pleyel, Maison de Radio-France, sale Cortot, Theatre du Chatelet) and in Museums (Musee Carnavalet). He gave numerous concerts and performances in prestigious festivals as soon as he won his 1st prize with Honours (mention ?Tres bien? with the warm congratulations from Yvonne Loirod-Messiaen) also in chamber music and conducting from the National Music Academy of Paris (Conservatoire National Superieur de Musique de Paris). There, he studied with Brigitte Engerer and Emmanuel Mercier. The same year, he also won the Grand First Prize for Virtuosity in the ?International Contest of Arcachon?. He performed in France (Salle Cortot, Cite Internationale, Ecole Polytechnique de Palaiseau, Ecole des Mines de Paris, Archives Nationales, Atrium Magne, Palais des Congres d'Arcachon, Abbaye de Royaumont) as well as abroad (Allemagne, Autriche, Japon), as a soloist ("Festival Chopin" in Bagatelle, "Festival Jeunes Talents" in Paris, "Festival Radio France de Montpellier-Languedoc Roussillon", "Journees Lyriques de Chartres") or in chamber music with celebrated artists (Viorica CORTEZ, Elena VASSILIEVA, et Shigeko HATA ? Soprano, Pierre VAELLO -Tenor, Paul MEYER - Clarinet, Magali MOSNIER et Jean FERRANDIS - Flute, Fabrice MORETTI - Saxophone, Nicolas STAVY et Nima SARKECHIK ? Piano, Patrice FONTANAROSA ? Violin, Quatuor de Chartres, Quatuor Parisii, Orchestre National d?Ile de France, UNESCO, Orchestre de Picardie and Pascal VEROT, Collegium Instrumental Mediterranee and Daniel TOSI) and composers, namely Laurent Lefrancois who dedicated to Cyril Guillotin a piano triptych ?Les Visages ? (Faces) that Cyril Guillotin played for the first time in 2007 during the Festival Radio France de Montpellier-Languedoc Roussillon). In 2007, he was subject to a violent attack and as a result was kept away from the keyboard for more than 8 months and away from the world of music for more than 2 years. During this time, he graduated brilliantly in his high teaching exams. This painful experience resulted in a much more mature style of playing and a new vision of his position and mission as an artist. He returned to the music scene by recording his first CD ?Sortileges? (Magic Spells, 2013-Les Belles Ecouteuses)) one year after the premature death of Brigitte Engerer. This record with ti's strong Russian touch as a tribute won critical and other pianists' acclaim and received the prestigious ?Choix de France Musique? label. The following year, he recorded ?Balneaire? (2014-Evidence Classics), chamber music pieces by composer Laurent Lefrancois, performed with prestigious artists?: Paul et Francois MEYER, Gilbert AUDIN, Magali MOSNIER, Quatuor Parisii, Ria IDETA and Nima SARKECHIK. Cyril Guillotin is presently teaching piano and chamber music in the Conservatory of Narbonne (South of France).