Take a sparkling musical talent, infuse it with unyielding spirit, then add beauty, elegance and passion and the result can be called Lola Astanova. Born in Tashkent in the former USSR, Lola’s music career began at the age of six when her mother gave Lola her first music lesson. A few months later, Lola set on a professional music path, working with renowned professors Tamara Popovich, Mark Rusak and the "godfather” of the Russian piano school Lev Naumov whose pianistic lineage traced back to Franz Liszt.
Her rare gift was instantly obvious. By the age of eight, Lola began appearing as a performer achieving international note and becoming a laureate of the International Chopin Competition for young pianists before she turned twelve. Lola’s effortless power, speed and precision, combined with emotional depth and lyricism have won her the hearts of European audiences, and her 1996 performance in Paris was featured in a UNESCO documentary Prodigies of the 20th Century.
Ms. Astanova’s young career took an unexpected turn when, confronted with bureaucratic challenges in her country, she was precluded from traveling and performing for two years. Fighting to break the barriers of professional isolation, Lola made a decision to move to the United States and start everything anew. She arrived in Houston, Texas with just $200 in her pocket, and having no connections or prospects. Since her first days in America, Ms. Astanova started charting a new path for her professional career, and, in the process, redefining what it means to be a modern-day virtuoso. Performing the most difficult compositions of Rachmaninoff, Chopin, and Liszt with flair and ease heretofore unseen in the classical field for decades, Lola quickly became a sensation among the Texas music aficionados. But her big American break came in 2007, when Lola starred in a $1.6 million Classical Superstars Fantasy Concert alongside the Kirov Orchestra and Valery Gergiev, and hosted by ABC’s Regis Philbin. The concert as a “fantasy holiday gift” was included in the 100th anniversary edition of the famed annual Neiman Marcus Christmas Book. Lola garnered unprecedented attention from mainstream American media making her debut on network television at NBC’s TODAY, and earning a nickname “the million dollar pianist”.
The Neiman Marcus project became a testament to Lola’s unique entertainment appeal and her ability to attract the imagination a wider and younger audience with classical repertoire. Today, the pianist who “plays like Rachmaninoff and looks like a supermodel” continues to change the face of classical music. She has built a global following via interactive social media networks stirring strong emotions from her fans and critics alike. With millions of views, Lola’s online videos are among the most watched virtuoso performances in the world, and her own original piano arrangements of pop tunes are attempted by thousands of pianists.
Since achieving initial acclaim, Ms. Astanova has used her talent, time, and influence to bring attention and raise funds for various charitable causes such the National September 11 Memorial, Haiti earthquake relief efforts, and cancer research. She also constantly encourages her fans to support local art and education initiatives. The subjects of personal freedom and women’s rights have also always carried a special significance for Lola both as a person and as an artist.
Outside of her music career and charitable work, Lola is a fashionista, a foodie and a lifelong fan of AC Milan. She currently resides in Manhattan, New York.
(Photo credit: Arthur Garcia)
