Sonia Rubinsky

Origin

Campinas, SP

Years Active

1960

Genres

erudite, classical

Instruments

piano

Biography

Sonia Rubinsky is an acclaimed Brazilian pianist born in Campinas, São Paulo, on June 10, 1957. The daughter of teachers, she began her piano studies in childhood and joined the Rubinsky Quintet alongside her siblings, even recording an album and performing early on with major Brazilian orchestras.

Her musical education took her beyond the country's borders, passing through the Rubin Academy of Music in Israel and completing her master's and doctorate degrees at the renowned Juilliard School in New York. Throughout her international career, Rubinsky has performed on prominent stages in Europe, the Americas, and the Middle East, as well as collaborating with prestigious orchestras in Brazil, cementing a solid career as a concert artist and soloist.

Among her most prominent achievements is the recording of the complete piano works of Heitor Villa-Lobos for the Naxos label, an ambitious project divided into eight volumes that received international acclaim. The first volume earned her a Grammy nomination and recognition from Gramophone magazine, while the eighth volume was awarded "Best Recording of the Year" at the 2009 Latin Grammy Awards. In addition to Villa-Lobos, the pianist has recorded works by renowned composers such as Mozart, Debussy, and Messiaen, receiving major awards such as the Carlos Gomes Award and honors from the São Paulo Association of Art Critics.

Discography

• Sonia Rubinsky - Debussy / Villa-Lobos / Olivier Messiaen – Estampes / Rudepoema / Regard Du Pere / Regard de L'Esprit de Joie (1989)
• Villa-Lobos - Sonia Rubinsky – Piano Music Vol. 1 (A Prole do Bebê No. 1 / Cirandas • Hommage à Chopin) (1999)
• Villa-Lobos, H.: Piano Music, Vol. 1 - A Prole Do Bebe, No. 1 / Cirandas (1999)
• Heitor Villa-Lobos, Sonia Rubinsky – A Prole do Bebê No. 2 - Cirandinhas (2001)
• Villa-Lobos, H.: Piano Music, Vol. 2 - A Prole Do Bebe, No. 2 / Cirandinhas (2001)
• Villa-Lobos, Sonia Rubinsky – Piano Music Volume 3 (2003)
• Villa-Lobos, H.: Piano Music, Vol. 3 - Circlo Brasileiro / Choros Nos. 1, 2 and 5 (2003)
• Villa-Lobos - Sonia Rubinsky – Piano Music • 4 - Bachianas Brasileiras No. 4 • Children's Carnival • Simple Song (2004)
• Jorge Liderman - Cuarteto Latinoamericano, Karen Rosenak, Sonia Rubinsky, Berkeley Contemporary Chamber Players – Trompetas de Plata (A Collection Of Chamber Works) (2004)
• Villa-Lobos: Piano Music, Vol. 4 (2004)
• Villa-Lobos - Sonia Rubinsky – Piano Music (Guia Prático Nos. 1 To 9 (Based On Brazilian Traditional Songs)) (2006)
• Scarlatti - Sonia Rubinsky – Sonatas (2006)
• Villa-Lobos, H.: Piano Music, Vol. 5 - Guia Pratico I-Ix (2006)
• Villa-Lobos, Sonia Rubinsky – Piano Music 6 (Rudepoêma • as Três Marias • Saudades das Selvas Brasileiras) (2007)
• Sonia Rubinsky, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – Mozart (2007)
• Villa-Lobos, H.: Piano Music, Vol. 6 - Rudepoema / As tres Marias / Saudades das selvas brasileiras (2007)
• Villa-Lobos, Sonia Rubinsky – Piano Music 7 (Amazonas • Histórias da Carochinha • Valsa Scherzo) (2008)
• Heitor Villa-Lobos, Sonia Rubinsky – Piano Music Volume 8 - Guia Prático, Albums 10 and 11 - Suite Infantil Nos. 1 and 2 (2008)
• Villa-Lobos, H.: Piano Music, Vol. 8 (Rubinsky) - Guia Pratico, Books 10, 11 / Suites Infantil Nos. 1, 2 / Guia Pratico, Vol. 1 (Excerpts) (2008)
• Gabriela Lena Frank, Dmitri Shostakovich, Shem Guibbory, Susanna Eyton-Jones, Sonia Rubinsky, Craig Ketter, Elizaveta Kopelman – Voice Of The People (2009)
• Sonatas de Scarlatti (2016)
• The Itiberês: 80 Years of Brazilian Music (2018)
• Johann Sebastian Bach, Sonia Rubinsky – Magna Sequentia I - A Grand Suite Of Dances (2019)
• Johann Sebastian Bach, Sonia Rubinsky – Magna Sequentia II - A Grand Suite Of Dances (2019)
• Magna Sequentia III (2019)
• Magna Sequentia II (2019)
• Magna Sequentia I (2019)
• José Antônio de Almeida Prado, Sonia Rubinsky, Minas Gerais Philharmonic Orchestra, Fabio Mechetti – Almeida Prado: Works For Piano And Orchestra (2020)
• Prado: Piano Concerto No. 1, Aurora & Concerto Fribourgeois (2020)
• Mozart (2021)
• Explorations (2021)
• Aequilibrium (2021)
• Goldfingers (2024)
• Almeida Prado: Piano Trios, Cello Sonata & Balada (2026)