About
Katinka von Richter
What the press has said
“A pianist who does not so much perform as inhabit the music.”
Le Monde2025 “Cerebral precision with the heat of a storm underneath.”
Financial Times2024 “Rewrites the concert-hall contract between pianist and audience.”
Süddeutsche Zeitung2024 “A luminous, fiercely intelligent reading of Ravel.”
Gramophone2023 “Performance-Recitals that dissolve the frame between stage and room.”
Diapason2023 “Every note carries the weight of a room listening back.”
The Guardian2022
Biography
Katinka von Richter is a concert pianist and performance artist based in Paris. Born in Hamburg to a German father and a Finnish mother, she began her musical life in the drawing rooms of her grandparents' house and has been looking for that same intimacy between player, room, and listener on concert stages ever since.
She trained at the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler in Berlin and at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris, where she graduated with first prize in piano and chamber music. Her repertoire spans Bach and the French baroque through Schönberg, Ligeti, and the contemporary composers she regularly commissions.
Alongside her concert work, Katinka founded the Orion Concerts series in 2021 — a roving programme of Performance-Recitals in unconventional venues across Europe and Japan. She has played salons for Chanel, opening ceremonies at Art Basel, and the candlelit library of the Villa Medici in Rome.
She records for Rondeau Production. Her debut solo album 'Nocturnes' was nominated for a Gramophone Award in 2023; her second album, 'Paris–Kyoto', is released in spring 2026.
Private performance
Book Katinka for your event
Collaborations
Recent and ongoing partnerships with the houses, institutions, and festivals that share a way of listening.
- Chanel
Chanel
High Jewelry Gala · 2024
Private recital at the Venice unveiling.
- Art Basel
Art Basel
Opening Ceremony · 2024
Performance-Recital in the fair's Champagne Lounge.
- Villa Medici
Villa Medici
Nuit de la Musique · 2023
Candlelit library concert for invited guests.
- Hermès
Hermès
La Montre Hermès Gala · 2023
Live score for a private watchmaking event in Paris.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Katinka von Richter?
Katinka von Richter is a German-French concert pianist and performance artist based in Paris. She is the creator of Orion Concerts and the Performance-Recital format, which combines live piano with art installations, cinematic lighting, and immersive staging.
What is a Performance-Recital?
A Performance-Recital is an immersive concert format created by Katinka von Richter. It combines live piano performance with contemporary art installations, short films, and stage design in a single evening. Each event transforms a unique venue into a gallery of sound and light.
Where is Katinka von Richter based?
Katinka von Richter is based in Paris, France. She performs across Europe and internationally, with regular concerts at venues including Salle Cortot in Paris and the Staatsgalerie in Stuttgart.
Press Kit
Biographies, high-resolution photographs, and the current technical rider for press and bookers.
Press materials will be published here shortly. Please write to press@katinkavonrichter.com in the meantime.