Anton Dikov

Bulgarian pianist. He was born 29 July 1938 in Sofia, Bulgaria and died 16 October 2004. The prominent Bulgarian pianist, Anton Dikov, grew up in an old family of musicians. His grandmother was among the inaugurators of the Plovdiv Opera House. His mother was a professional pianist, too, who graduated in Munich and with a degree from Vienna. His talent shone at 15. Later he graduated the Sofia music academy in the class of Professor Lyuba Encheva, then specialized in France with famous Nadya Boulanger, Arthur Rubinstein and Robert Casadesus. He was first discovered abroad. At the age of 18, in 1956, he became laureate at the international “Franz Liszt” contest, to be followed by Bach-1960, Rio de Janeiro-1962, and Marguerite Long-1963 to start with.. Being an exceptional interpreter, acknowledged as one of the world’s music elite, Anton Dikov has performed in the world’s most famous concert halls. Anton Dikov has also performed as soloist with all Bulgarian orchestras. He has interpreted some of the best-loved concertos for piano and orchestra and his repertoire was a symbol of the efforts for our becoming part of an old and great world tradition. Anton Dikov had his record-high achievements. He has performed L.v. Beethoven’s 5th concerto over 300 times with different orchestras. With the 3rd and 4th, he has appeared on stage more than 60 times. His Integral of L.v. Beethoven’s piano concertos is selling all over the world. One more Integral adds up to his world fame - in 1973 Balkanton and Harmonia Mundi released all works for piano and orchestra by Béla Bartók, which Dikov performs with the Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by the great Dimitar Manolov. In the jubilee edition for Bartok’s 100th anniversary in 1981 the French Diapason Magazine wrote: “The Bulgarian integral is an example of how performers of the highest class can render Bartok’s music in a virtuoso style. Especially so with the performance of soloist Anton Dikov.” Anton Dikov has performed a great many pieces by Bulgarian composers, as well as less popular works by modern classics. Among his favorites is the Second Concerto by Vesselin Stoyanov. According to Dikov that concerto “is as good as any of the masterpieces of famous Pancho Vladigerov. There are however three composers who have never left me”, he further explains. “These are Bach, Beethoven and Bartók. I also greatly enjoy performing Pancho Vladigerov, for whom one needs a very special kind of piano culture.” As of 1974 he was a professor at the national music academy in Sofia named after Pancho Vladigerov. He has conducted regular master-classes in Korea and has taught in France and Japan. He has been member of the jury at some of the most prominent piano contests of the world like Chopin in Warsaw, Liszt-Bartok in Budapest, Marguerite Long in Paris, Tchaikovski in Moscow, Beethoven in Vienna and Pancho Vladigerov in Shumen.