Ukrainian Pianist Alexey Botvinov Awarded Prestigious French Honor

Alexey Botvinov, the Ukrainian virtuoso pianist from Odesa, received the Platinum Medal of France’s Société Académique Arts-Sciences Lettres for outstanding services to the arts as a pianist and as founder and president of the “Odessa Classics” Festival.

The ceremony took place in Paris, on Oct. 6. During the ceremony, Botvinov played Chopin and Rachmaninov pieces for an audience of more than 600.

There were seven Platinum medalists this year. It’s the highest grade of medals, among 250 winners in other categories.

The Academic Society was founded 1915, and gives the awards every year. Among the past winners were: Olivier Messiaen, Albert Schweizer, Yehudi Menuhin, Jean Paul Belmondo, Robert Hossein, Tibor Varga, and Jacques Yves Cousteau.

“When I was going to the stage to get my award, the Ukrainian anthem was played in the Golden Opera Hall. For me it was a very touching and emotional moment. Because for last two and a half years, every concert of mine or of the Odessa Classics festival is not only art event, but also strong message of support for Ukraine in our fight in this terrible war,” the Ukrainian maestro said.

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When the large-scale invasion by Russia broke out, Botvinov found himself abroad. Since that moment he has performed ceaselessly to raise funds and attention to the Ukrainian cause. Also, his renowned festival of classic music in Odesa was kept alive in a new format, with concerts taking place in different European capitals.

The maestro is one of the world’s premier specialists in Rachmaninoff oeuvre. Botvinov is also the only pianist in the world who performed Bach’s masterpiece Goldberg Variations more than 300 times on stage.