A brilliant Argentinian pianist endowed with great technical mastery and a charismatic
interpretative personality, Martha Argerich is unanimously considered by her peers to be the best pianist in the world.


Born in Buenos Aires (1941) of Catalan and Russian-Jewish origin on her father and mother’s sides respectively, she begins her piano studies at 3 years-old, performs her first public recital at 4, becomes professor and pianist Vincenzo Scaramuzza’s pupil at 5 and gives her first formal concert, interpreting Mozart, Beethoven and Bach at 8. At 14 she leaves with her parents to Vienna, where she studies under Friedrich Gulda (by her admission her most influent mentor), having also studied under other prestigious pianists of the day, such as Nikita Magaloff and Stefan Askenase. At 16 she gains notoriety by winning, within a period of three weeks, both of the most important European piano competitions (Genebra and Bolzano), which catapults her into an intense concert schedule that culminates, in 1960, with the recording of her first record (for Deutsche Grammophon). Winning the Warsaw Chopin Competition at 24 years-old is a decisive step towards her career and international acclaim.


Famous for interpreting pieces from the great piano repertoire (Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, Schumann, Liszt, Debussy, Ravel, Bartók, Prokofiev), having worked as a soloist with the most famous maestros and orchestras, Martha Argerich gains an interest, beginning in the 1980’s, in chamber music (discovering a vast field of exploration and interaction with other musicians, which allows her to counter the loneliness which the stage had always afforded her), multiplying collaborations with names such as Gidon Kremer, Mischa Maisky, Itzhak Perlman, Nelson Freire or Daniel Barenboim (her countryman and childhood friend). Involved in supporting young musicians, she creates three festivals/competitions: the Beppu Festival (in Japan), the Martha Argerich International Piano Competition of Buenos Aires, and the Martha Argerich Project, in Lugano, Switzerland. In 2002 she stars in the documentary Martha Argerich, conversation nocturne, directed by Georges Gachot, where she shares her memories, discusses her doubts, and speaks of her passion for the piano and for the music which she embodies through her playing, making her an incontrovertible name in the history of musical interpretation.


In 2012, her youngest daughter, Stéphanie Argerich, directs Bloody Daughter, an intimate look at her mother and a family portrait, collecting footage spanning two decades and shot all over the world. The 10 th edition of the Lisbon & Estoril Film Festival will exhibit Bloody Daughter with Stéphanie and Martha Argerich attending as guests.