David Fray

Fray was named Young Soloist of the Year by the Commission des Radios Publiques Francophones (CRPLF), was awarded a Déclic by the AFAA (Association Française d’Action Artistique) and was named Classical Revelation of the Year by ADAMI in 2004. In the same year, he received both the Second Grand Prize and the Prize for the best interpretation of a Canadian work at the Montreal International Music Competition. He has received bursaries from the Fondation Banque Populaire and the Fondation Meyer for cultural and artistic development.

Fray has collaborated with the Métropolitain du Grand Montréal and Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse with Tugan Sokhiev, Orchestre de Paris with John Axelrod and Christoph Eschenbach, Orchestre National de France and Kurt Masur at the Vienna Musikverein and on tour in the United States (New York, Philadelphia, Boston), Orchestre de l’Opéra National de Paris and Andrew Davis, Orchestre National de Lyon, Orchestre de Monte-Carlo and J-C Spinosi, and the Salzburg Mozarteum. He has also been invited to perform with the orchestras of Cleveland, Boston, San Francisco Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Amsterdam Concertgebouw with Kurt Masur, Cologne WDR, Deutsche Sinfonie-Orchester and Ingo Metzmacher, Accademia Santa Cecilia and Semyon Bychkov, Orchestre National de France and Daniele Gatti, and the NHK Symphony. Under conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen, he has collaborated with the London Philharmonic, Hamburg NDR, New York Philharmonic and Orchestre de Paris. In 2007, he toured Italy with Riccardo Muti and, also with Muti, performed with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. In 2011 he made his debut at the BBC Proms in London with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic and Jaap van Zweden.

Fray has given recitals at a number of prestigious concert halls in Europe, the United States and Asia, including in Paris, Zurich, Berlin, Turin, Rome, Barcelona, London (Wigmore Hall), Madrid and Munich. His return to the Roque d’Anthéron International Piano Festival in summer 2004 resulted in a DVD (Schubert’s Wanderer Fantasy) in the series Les Pianos de Demain (Idéale Audience).

This season sees Fray perform at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées for a programme of Bach with concertos for two, three and four pianos, sonatas with Renaud Capuçon and the Goldberg Variations. He returns to North America with the Chicago Symphony, New York Philharmonic, Dallas Symphony and National Arts Centre Orchestra. He is giving recitals in Amsterdam, Budapest, Dresden, Milan, Istanbul, and is touring South Korea and Russia. He will be reunited with his violinist partner Renaud Capuçon for a series of recitals across Europe. He is also collaborating with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra and the Vienna Radio Symphony, and will be soloist-conductor with the Casa da Musica Orchestra in Porto.

Fray recently completed a tour of Asia with the Dresden Philharmonic and Michael Sanderling, made his debut with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and gave a recital at the Prague Spring Festival. Last summer he was guest of honour at the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, California, where he gave a series of masterclasses as well as recitals. Fray regularly gives recitals in Hamburg, Berlin, New York (Carnegie Hall), Lisbon, Amsterdam, Geneva, Brussels, Cologne and Vienna. He collaborates with the Munich Philharmonic, the Bamberg Symphony, London Philharmonia, Lucerne Symphony, Sao Paulo Symphony and Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen in Paris, Istanbul, Bremen and Hamburg, and has toured the United States. He has also been invited to perform at the festivals of Montpellier, La Roque d’Anthéron, Colmar, Saint-Denis, Bad Kissingen, Ruhr and Rheingau.

David Fray records exclusively with Erato. His first album, of works of Bach and Boulez, received a number of prestigious awards (Newcomer of the Year 2008 / BBC Music Magazine, Best Recording / Echo Preis 2008), as did his recording of Bach concertos with the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen and his Schubert recital. These were followed by recordings of Mozart's concertos with the Philharmonia and Jaap van Zweden, and a Bach recital. Director Bruno Monsaingeon has made two films on Fray, the first featuring Bach concertos, the second two Mozart concerts, broadcast on Arte and Mezzo. His latest recordings are of a Schubert recital (March 2015) and Chopin (January 2017).