Dimitri Ashkenazy, born in New York, began playing the piano at the age of six before switching to clarinet under the tuition of Giambattista Sisini, with whom he continued studying at the Lucerne Conservatory. His contemporary interests include such works as Peter Maxwell Davies’ Strathclyde Concerto No 4, which he has performed with the composer conducting, and Krzysztof Penderecki’s own transcription of his Viola Concerto, likewise with the composer.

An active chamber musician, he has performed with the Auryn, Brodsky, Endellion, Heath, Ives and Kodály Quartets; and with partners such as Barbara Bonney, Helmut Deutsch, David Golub, Edita Gruberova, Ariane Haering, Antonio Meneses, Cristina Ortiz, Maria João Pires and...