Olivier Cave was born in Switzerland on 18 December 1977. He studied piano at the conservatory in Sion and then at the Lausanne Conservatory where he earned a diploma with a special prize and honors. He also participated in master classes with Maria Lilia Bertola in Milan and with Nelson Goerner in Geneva. In 1995 he met Maria Tipo and entered her class at the Fiesole School of Music. Moreover, he has also benefited from the counsel of Aldo Ciccolini.
Olivier Cave gave his first concert accompanied by the Camerata Lysy under the direction of Yehudi Menuhin in September 1991. He has collaborated with artists such as Alexis Weissenberg, Menahem Pressler, Arie Vardi, Howard Griffiths, Tibor Varga, Barbara Hendricks and Isabelle Huppert. He has performed as soloist with the Dusseldorf Symphony Orchestra, the London Soloists Chamber Orchestra, the Galileo Galilei Orchestra of Fiesole, the Zurich Chamber Orchestra and the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra.
Olivier Cave was a finalist at the Clara Schumann Competition in Dusseldorf in June 2000. In 2002 he performed Beethoven?s first piano concerto for a radio broadcast by RAI as part of a special series featuring all of the composer?s concertos for piano and orchestra in honor of Maria Tipo?s 70th birthday. He was invited by La Scala in Milan on the occasion of the reopening of the Theater?s museum and library in 2003; he performed opera transcriptions by Liszt on the composer?s piano.
Olivier Cave?s first recording, ?Reflexions?, was released by Deutsche Grammaphon in May 2004; it featured works by Beethoven, Schubert, Scarlatti and Schumann. His career took a new turn upon the release of his first recording for the aeon label featuring sonatas by Domenico Scarlatti. Critics from throughout Europe praised the Swiss (with Neapolitan roots) pianist?s ?return to the sources?. Dedicated to Muzio Clementi, Cave?s second recording is even more striking than his first. Released in the autumn of 2010, it has been decorated with a ?5 Diapason?, a ?4 Etoiles Classica? and the highest award from the Japanese magazine Geijutsu Records. This success also led to invitations to perform at the most prestigious locations throughout the world: the Teatro Olimpico in Rome, the Tonhalle in Zurich, the Phillips Collection in Washington, as well as an extended concert tour under the direction of Rinaldo Alessandrini. Olivier Cave?s next projects include a Bach album for aeon and a concert tour spotlighting ?Italian piano music? on the East coast in the United States.
Olivier Cave est ne en Suisse le 18 decembre 1977. Il fait ses etudes de piano au Conservatoire de Sion, puis au Conservatoire de Lausanne, ou il obtient son diplome de piano avec un prix special et les felicitations du jury. Il suit egalement des cours de maitres avec Maria Lilia Bertola a Milan et Nelson Goerner a Geneve. En 1995, il rencontre Maria Tipo et entre dans sa classe a l?Ecole de Musique de Fiesole. Il a la chance enfin de beneficier des conseils d?Aldo Ciccolini.
Olivier Cave donne son premier concert en septembre 1991 accompagne de la Camerata Lysy sous la baguette de Yehudi Menuhin. Il collabore avec des artistes comme Alexis Weissenberg, Menahem Pressler, Arie Vardi, Howard Griffiths, Tibor Varga, Barbara Hendricks et Isabelle Huppert. Il se produit en soliste avec l?Orchestre symphonique de Dusseldorf, le London Soloists Chamber Orchestra, l?Orchestra Galileo Galilei de Fiesole, le Zurcher Kammerorchester et l?Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne.
En juin 2000, Olivier Cave est finaliste du concours Clara Schumann a Dusseldorf. En 2002, il interprete le Premier Concerto de Beethoven, retransmis par la RAI a l?occasion de l?integrale des concertos pour piano et orchestre du compositeur, donnee en l?honneur des 70 ans de Maria Tipo. En 2003, il est invite par la Scala de Milan a l?occasion de la reouverture du Musee et de la Bibliotheque du theatre. Il y interprete des transcriptions d?operas de Liszt sur le piano du compositeur.
En mai 2004, Olivier Cave sort son premier disque, intitule ?Reflexions?, sous le label Deutsche Grammophon: un recital dedie a Beethoven, Schubert, Scarlatti et Schumann. En 2008, sa carriere prend un nouvel essor dans le sillage de la sortie de son premier album chez aeon, dedie aux sonates de Domenico Scarlatti. Aux quatre coins de l?Europe, la presse specialisee salue ce ?retour aux sources? du pianiste suisse d?origine napolitaine. Consacre a Muzio Clementi, son deuxieme enregistrement frappe plus fort encore: sorti a l'automne 2010, il decroche 5 Diapasons, 4 Etoiles Classica et la plus haute distinction de la revue japonaise Geijutsu Records. Ces succes lui ouvrent les grandes scenes de la planete: il se produit au Teatro Olimpico de Rome, a la Tonhalle de Zurich, a la Phillips Collection de Washington, et prepare une grande tournee sous la direction de Rinaldo Alessandrini. Parmi ses projets: un album Bach chez aeon et une tournee sur la cote est des Etats-Unis autour du ?piano italien?.
