Lukáš Vondráček prizes his longtime artistic bond with maestra Marin Alsop

Pianist Lukáš Vondráček and conductor Marin Alsop have become a classical-music tag team.

She was on the podium, leading the National Orchestra of Belgium, when Vondráček won the Queen Elisabeth Competition in 2016.

When Vondráček made his CSO debut at Ravinia in 2021 and in 2022, when he made his Orchestra Hall debut, Alsop again was his conductor. And they will be reunited when Vondráček joins the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, under Alsop, for concerts Oct. 10-11 (he will be the soloist in Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2).

Now 37, the Czech pianist has a longstanding artistic partnership with Alsop. “She has been a good friend since I was 18,” he said. Both share a fervent dedication to their music. 

“Music should be played only if you can’t spend your life without it,” Vondráček said in an interview with the blog Pianistique. “I couldn’t, it’s essential to my soul. To do these things, you need a certain amount of charisma!”

Now three decades into his career, Vondráček views the piano as an extension of himself. 

“I am happy when people see me as a musician first and then as a pianist,” he said. “The piano is just a beautiful box to realize your ideas. Many people indulge in the possibilities of the piano, and there is nothing wrong with that, but sometimes I wonder whether the essence of music shouldn’t be more universal. Music is all encompassing, and the piano has probably most possibilities. I wouldn’t say I am in love with the instrument, but I am in love with music.”

And each performance remains an adventure — and a blessing. He has no regrets. “It’s still one of the best decisions to play the piano! I wouldn’t call it a job; sometimes members of the orchestra say that they need to get ‘the job done,’ I find that a horrible attitude; for me it’s always a pleasure!”