Lola Astanova () is an Uzbek-born American pianist.

Early life

Astanova was born in

Tashkent Tashkent (), also known as Toshkent, is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uzbekistan, largest city of Uzbekistan. It is the most populous city in Central Asia, with a population of more than 3 million people as of April 1, 2024. I ...

, USSR. Her mother was a piano teacher and her father was a

mechanical engineer Mechanical may refer to: Machine * Machine (mechanical), a system of mechanisms that shape the actuator input to achieve a specific application of output forces and movement * Mechanical calculator, a device used to perform the basic operations o ...

. At age six, Astanova entered the V. Uspensky Specialized School of Music for Gifted Children, studying under Professor Tamara Popovich. She later studied under

Lev Naumov Lev Nikolayevich Naumov (; 12 February 1925, Rostov, Yaroslavl Oblast, Rostov – 21 August 2005, Moscow) was a Russians, Russian classical pianist, composer and educator. Received a title of People's Artist of Russia and was nicknamed the "Go ...

. Astanova began touring at the age of 8 and at 10 became a laureate of the Second Moscow International F. Chopin Competition for young pianists. At 12, she was featured in the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

documentary ''Prodigies of the 20th Century''. When she was 17, she moved to Houston where her brother lived, and studied for her master's degree at Shepherd School of Music at

Rice University William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University, is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. Established in 1912, the university spans 300 acres. Rice University comp ...

Career

Astanova was featured in the 2007 Classical Superstars Fantasy Concert hosted by

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

's television host

Regis Philbin Regis Francis Xavier Philbin ( ; August 25, 1931 – July 25, 2020)Archived aGhostarchiveand thWayback Machine was an American television presenter, comedian, actor, and singer. Once called "the hardest-working man in show business", he held th ...

. The concert was featured in the 100th anniversary issue of the

Neiman Marcus Neiman Marcus is an American department store chain founded in 1907 in Dallas, Texas by Herbert Marcus, his sister Carrie Marcus Neiman, and her husband Abraham Lincoln Neiman. It has been owned by Saks Global, a Corporate spin-off, spin-o ...

Christmas Book and offered for $1.6 million. In August 2008, the

National September 11 Memorial & Museum The National September 11 Memorial & Museum (also known as the 9/11 Memorial & Museum) is a memorial and museum that are part of the World Trade Center complex, in New York City, created for remembering the September 11 attacks in 2001 which k ...

announced Astanova's performance on the famed

Steinway Steinway & Sons, also known as Steinway (), is a German-American piano company, founded in 1853 in New York City by German piano builder Henry E. Steinway, Heinrich Engelhard Steinweg (later known as Henry E. Steinway). The company's growth le ...

concert piano of

Vladimir Horowitz Vladimir Samoylovich Horowitz (November 5, 1989) was a Russian and American pianist. Considered one of the greatest pianists of all time, he was known for his virtuoso technique, timbre, and the public excitement engendered by his playing. Life ...

at the "Notes of Hope" benefit hosted by Mayor

Michael Bloomberg Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman and politician. He is the majority owner and co-founder of Bloomberg L.P., and was its CEO from 1981 to 2001 and again from 2014 to 2023. He served as the 108th mayo ...

and Senator

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

. The performance raised funds for the

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. On 19 January 2012 Astanova made her

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...

debut, with the ''New York Times'' noting that "Her taste for drama and her extreme physical abandon end up emphasizing that there isn't a great deal of emotion in her playing". Horowitz's student, American pianist

Byron Janis Byron Janis (né Yanks; March 24, 1928 – March 14, 2024) was an American classical pianist. He made numerous recordings for RCA Victor and Mercury Records, and occupies two volumes of the Philips series ''Great Pianists of the 20th Century''. ...

, was among the concert's attendees. All proceeds from the performance were donated to the

American Cancer Society The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a nationwide non-profit organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. The ACS publishes the journals ''Cancer'', '' CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians'' and '' Cancer Cytopathology''. History The society w ...

. In March 2012, Astanova appeared on the cover of Palm Beach Society magazine ahead of her performance with

Jahja Ling Jahja Ling () is a conductor, music director and pianist. From 2004 to 2017, he was the music director and conductor at the San Diego Symphony. Following his retirement in 2017, he plans to do guest conducting, as well as teaching and volunt ...

at the

Kravis Center The Kravis Center for the Performing Arts (often referred to as the Kravis Center) is a not-for-profit, professional performing arts center in downtown West Palm Beach, Florida. History 1978–1992 In 1978, the Palm Beach County Council of the ...

. On 30 May 2012 she performed a duet with Byron Janis during his Lifetime Achievement Award ceremony at the

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 ...

. Astanova's performance of Gershwin's "

Rhapsody in Blue ''Rhapsody in Blue'' is a 1924 musical composition for solo piano and jazz band by George Gershwin. Commissioned by bandleader Paul Whiteman, the work combines elements of classical music with jazz-influenced effects and premiered in a concer ...

" with

Gerard Schwarz Gerard Schwarz (born August 19, 1947), also known as Gerry Schwarz or Jerry Schwarz, is an American symphony conductor and trumpeter. As of 2019, Schwarz serves as the Artistic and Music Director of Palm Beach Symphony and the Director of Orc ...

and the

All-Star Orchestra All-Star Orchestra is an orchestral music project created by Gerard Schwarz, former music director and conductor laureate of Seattle Symphony. It is a television and DVD project, filmed by 18 high definition video cameras without an audience f ...

, was featured in the "Visions of New York" television special on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

and received the 2016

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

for Special Event Coverage (Other than News or Sports). In 2018, Astanova appeared in ''The Journey to the Theater of Silence, a'' documentary about her collaboration with Italian tenor

Andrea Bocelli Andrea Bocelli (; born 22 September 1958) is an Italian tenor. He rose to fame in 1994 after winning the newcomers' section of the 44th Sanremo Music Festival performing " Il mare calmo della sera". Since 1994, Bocelli has recorded 15 solo st ...

. During the same year, Astanova's collaboration with

Stjepan Hauser Stjepan Hauser (; born 15 June 1986), known professionally as HAUSER, is a Croatian cellist. He was a member of 2Cellos, 2CELLOS, along with Luka Šulić, and continues to perform solo. Early life and musical training Hauser was born in Pula, ...

of the band 2Cellos came out under the name "Lola and Hauser".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Astanova, Lola 1982 births Living people American classical pianists 21st-century American composers Uzbekistani classical pianists American women classical pianists Uzbekistani pianists Rice University alumni 21st-century classical pianists 21st-century American pianists 21st-century American women composers Moscow Conservatory alumni Uzbekistani emigrants to the United States