About
Born in Munich in 1988, Alice Sara Ott received her first piano lessons when she was four and won a first prize with distinction in the well recognized "Jugend Musiziert" contest at the early age of seven. This was followed by further top medal accomplishments - frequently accompanied by special awards - at the Steinway, Grotrian Steinweg, Bach Coethen and other music competitions as well as in the 4th Epta International Competition.
At the age of 13 she was already well into international music competitions, carrying away "The Most Promising Artist Award" in Hamamatsu, Japan and other major trophies. Two years later, Alice Sara Ott attracted a good deal of attention when she won the first prize in the "Silvio Bengalli" International Piano Competition as the youngest contestant by far, qualifying for the highest number of points ever given in the history of the competition. This again was accompanied by special awards.
Since then, the German-Japanese pianist and student of Karl-Heinz Kaemmerling at the Salzburg Mozarteum has appeared in numerous concert halls in Europe and Japan as for example the Bad Kissingen Summer Festival, the Classix Festival in Brunswick, the Mecklenburg/Vorpommern Festival, the side-events programme staged in connection with the Bayreuth Festival, the Leipzig Bach Festival and the Prize-winners' Concert given at the Salzburg Festival. In 2005 a dazzling performance of Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 given in Sapporo with the Sapporo Symphony Orchestra under the baton of guest conductor Anu Tali followed and directly resulted in return engagements from the orchestra. In April 2006 she was invited by Hiroko Nakamura to inaugurate the final round of the popular ten-year series "The 100 Pianists". Back in Europe, she appeared in Switzerland in September 2006 when she was the soloist in Ravel's Piano Concerto in G Major performed with the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich conducted by David Zinman, a rendering which unleashed passionate enthusiasm from the audience.
In addition to her solo activities she also has performed at chamber music festivals like the Festival "Spannungen" in Heimbach from Lars Vogt or the Zurich Festival, among others together with Lars Vogt, Gustav Rivinius and Tadjana Masurenko.
In the year 2007 she played among others at Herkulessaal of the Munich Residenz and inspired both audience and reviewer at "Klavierfestival Ruhr" jumping in for Elena Bashkirova. Two month later, at the Schleswig Holstein Music Festival, she jumped in again three times for sick colleagues. Here she received the special price of the festival and was winner of the public price. Big resonance in sold out halls she got in Tokyo with the Yumiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra at Opera City Hall und in Suntory Hall with the Kiev Philharmonic Orchestra. Stepping in for Murray Perihia at Stadtcasino Basel she got standing ovations from the whole audience. In Germany the chief editor of the leading music magazine Fono Forum selected Alice Sara Ott as best rising star of the year 2007. Concerts in 2008/2009 will follow e.g. at Munich Philharmonie, Salzburg Festspielhaus and Tokyo Bunkakeikan.
As "fulminante introduction" Sueddeutsche Zeitung praised her first CD, realized in 2004 as a co-production with the Bavarian Broadcasting Corporation and this release has met with wide acclaim throughout Europe and Japan. Since May 2008 Alice Sara Ott ist exclusive artist of Deutsche Grammophon. A first CD with Franz Liszt, 12 Études d’ exécution transcendante, will be released in autumn 2008 in Japan. A second CD with complete waltzes from Frederic Chopin is scheduled for release in Europe and Japan in 2009/2010.
Alice Sara Ott has gained scholarships set up by the Degussa Foundation in Düsseldorf, the PE Promotion Society for Music Students in Mannheim, the Heimbach "Spannungen" Festival, the German Foundation "Musikleben", the "Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes", the Orpheum Foundation in Zurich and the Liechtenstein "Centrum Bank" Foundation for the Advancement of Art and Science.