First Prize and Gold Medal. Lyon International Piano Competition (2024): Second Prize. European Piano Competition in Bremen (2024): Third Prize. Moscow Piano Open (2019): First Prize.
Controversial among Schubertians. The B-flat sonata’s first movement is beautifully shaped but lacks the visionary strangeness that pianists like Pollini or Uchida uncover. The Andante sostenuto ’s repeated chords are too evenly weighted – they lose their procession-like despair. However, the Scherzo snaps with rustic energy, and the Rondo finale has a delightful, lopsided waltz quality. Recommended for those who prefer Schubert as “lyrical monologue” rather than “existential theater.”
He has also been a participant in top-tier competitions like the George Enescu Piano Competition (2024) and the Van Cliburn Piano Competition (2025). alexander doronin piano
His most significant achievement to date came in , when he won First Prize at the 7th Hong Kong International Piano Competition . The prize package is impressive: a substantial monetary award, the Gold Medal, a CD recording, and multiple international performance engagements.
: Hong Kong International Piano Competition (2025). First Prize and Gold Medal
The results speak for themselves: Doronin graduated in 2025 with a and is currently pursuing a Master of Music degree under Alexeev's continued mentorship. His academic excellence is matched by substantial institutional support: he is an LSO Scholar (sponsored by the London Symphony Orchestra), an Eileen Rowe Musical Trust award holder, and receives backing from the Drake Calleja Trust and Countess of Munster .
Where does Doronin sit among peers?
Alexander Doronin is a prominent Russian pianist known for his technical precision and mature musicianship
His hands are large, capable of stretching a twelfth, but they rarely lift high from the keys. Efficiency is his religion. Watching him play the octave glissandos in Chopin’s Barcarolle , one sees a stillness in his shoulders and a fluttering, hummingbird-like motion in his wrists. This lack of wasted energy allows him to play for three hours with the same intensity as the first ten minutes. Moscow Piano Open (2019): First Prize
: He frequently collaborates with other musicians, including cellist James Dew for Respighi's Adagio con variazioni and violinist Lucilla Rose Mariotti for Sibelius-themed immersive concerts. Recent Recitals
Doronin’s Schubert (especially the Sonata in B-flat major, D. 960 ) is unhurried and autumnal. A critic for The Guardian noted: “He plays the first movement’s trill as if listening to something far away—memory, not decoration.”