A musician renowned for his intellectual curiosity, his taste for all kinds of musical adventures and his commitment to society, David Grimal regularly performs on the world’s greatest stages: Tokyo’s Suntory Hall, Philharmonie de Paris, Vienna’s Musikverein, Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, Berlin’s Konzerthaus, London’s Wigmore Hall, Zurich’s Tonhalle, New York’s Lincoln Center, Moscow’s Tchaikovsky Conservatory, Budapest’s Liszt Academy, Geneva’s Victoria Hall, Madrid’s Auditorio Nacional, Théâtre des Champs Elysées, Taiwan’s National Concert Hall, Brussels’ Bozar…

David Grimal has collaborated as soloist with numerous orchestras such as the Orchestre de Paris, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Orchestre de Chambre d’Europe, Berliner Symphoniker, Russian National Orchestra, New Japan Philharmonic, English Chamber Orchestra, Salzburg Mozarteum Orchestra, Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, Prague Philharmonia, Gulbenkian Foundation Orchestra Lisbon, Sinfonia Varsovia. He has performed alongside conductors such as Christoph Eschenbach, Heinrich Schiff, Lawrence Foster, Emmanuel Krivine, Mikhail Pletnev, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Peter Eötvös, Andriss Nelsons, Jukka Pekka Saraste, Christian Arming…

Numerous composers have dedicated their works to him: Marc-André Dalbavie, Brice Pauset, Thierry Escaich, Lisa Lim, Jean-François Zygel, Alexandre Gasparov, Victor Kissine, Fuminori Tanada, Ivan Fedele, Philippe Hersant, Anders Hillborg, Oscar Bianchi, Guillaume Connesson, Frédéric Verrières, Eric Montalbetti, Richard Dubugnon, Menachem Zur, Graciane Finzi…

For 20 years, David Grimal has devoted part of his career to developing Les Dissonances, of which he is the founder and musical and artistic director. David Grimal has brought together musicians from some of Europe’s finest orchestras, as well as many young talents at the start of their careers, to experience music as a rediscovered joy, tackling the great symphonic repertoire in the spirit of chamber music under his musical direction. The orchestra has been a regular guest on major European stages and international festivals. Films of concerts given by Les Dissonances have been broadcast in over 60 countries.

Today he works as soloist and conductor on the Dissonances model with numerous orchestras: Orchestre national de Lyon, Orchestre national de Strasbourg, Orchestre National de Lorraine, Sinfonica de Galicia, Budapesti Vonosok, Anima Chamber Orchestra, Cracovia, Bilbao, Moscow Chamber Orchestra, Radio Bucarest, Murcia, Taipei Symphony Orchestra, Neojiba, Kuopio, Sonderjylland, Trondheim, Enescu Philharmonic, Orchestre national de Lille…

David Grimal has recorded for EMI, Harmonia Mundi, Aeon, Naïve, Transart, Dissonances records and is currently recording for La Dolce Volta. His recordings have been acclaimed by the press: BBC choice, Choc de l’année Classica, Arte selection, ffff Telerama, diapason d’or etc. A sought-after chamber musician, David Grimal is a guest at the greatest international festivals. Today, he regularly performs in piano trio with Philippe Cassard and Anne Gastinel, and in recital with pianists Itamar Golan and Ricardo Castro.

David Grimal, for whom the transmission of knowledge to young musicians has always been essential, created in 2022 the Lumières d’Europe academy festival under the presidency of Serge Haroche, Nobel Prize winner in Physics. Lumières d’Europe is aimed at talented young musicians at the start of their careers, who are invited to work and perform alongside international artists in concert. Leading scholars are invited to shed philosophical, literary, historical or scientific light on the themes addressed in each session.

Lumières d’Europe takes place in several European capitals, in collaboration with major cultural institutions (Fondation Royaumont, Institut Weizmann, Jerusalem Music Center, Festival International Georges Enescu, Institut de France, Collège de France…) and contributes to the professional integration of young European musicians.

In 2004, David Grimal also created L’Autre Saison: a season of concerts in aid of the homeless in Paris, now in partnership with ARTE, where the greatest artists have performed and which has enabled over 400 people to escape from extreme poverty.

David Grimal was made a Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et Lettres in 2008 by the French Ministry of Culture. A renowned pedagogue, David Grimal teaches violin at the Musikhochschule in Saarbrücken and at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris, and is regularly invited to sit on juries at major international competitions and give masterclasses around the world. He plays the 1710 Ex-Roederer Stradivarius and the Don Quichotte built for him by Jacques Fustier. He plays bows by Louis Tourte, Dominique Peccatte and Pierre Grunberger, depending on the repertoire.