Ever since Kit Armstrong stepped onto the international stages nearly twenty years ago, he has fascinated the music world. Few other young artists – Kit Armstrong turned 30 in 2022 – are as accomplished and universally trained in so many areas as he is. Hailed by the New York Times as a »brilliant pianist« who »combines musical maturity and youthful boldness in his exceptional playing,« Kit Armstrong has developed an artistic signature all his own. His intensive involvement with music is closely related to other arts as well as to science and mathematics in a natural way. His repertoire goes back to the 16th century, to the beginnings of keyboard music with the great English virginalists, and extends into the 21st century. His programs are a unique blend of musical discoveries with the great masterpieces of the piano literature.

Thus, it was a logical step for Kit Armstrong to present works by William Byrd and John Bull, the founding fathers of keyboard music, on his debut album with Deutsche Grammophon, contributing to a greater awareness of this music. With their contrasting musical personalities – pure, complex beauty on the one hand and passionate self-expression on the other – Byrd and Bull together created the universe that has defined instrumental music ever since. The album was released in July 2021.

For the coming seasons, Kit Armstrong has developed a cycle of 500 years of piano music. In five programs, he will take his listeners on a journey through five centuries of piano music from 1520 to 2020, from William Byrd to the 21st century. The chronology he has conceived unfolds the musical currents, influences and cross-references for the listeners in a particularly impressive way. Kit Armstrong will also continue to deepen his preoccupation with Mozart and his love of his work. The piano concertos will play a central role, as will the cyclical performance of all the piano sonatas. There will also be a focus on performing the complete violin sonatas with violinist Renaud Capuçon.

Armstrong has worked with many of the world’s most sought-after conductors, including Christian Thielemann, Herbert Blomstedt, Riccardo Chailly, Kent Nagano, Manfred Honeck, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Mario Venzago and Robin Ticciati, among others. He has performed with some of the world's finest orchestras, including the Vienna Philharmonic, Dresden Staatskapelle, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, NHK Symphony Orchestra, and Academy of St Martin in the Fields. He was artist-in-residence at the 2018 Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Festival and artist-in-residence at the Musikkollegium Winterthur, and is a long-time partner of the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin.