Jonathan Fournel rose to prominence on the international scene with brilliance in the spring of 2021, winning the much-coveted Grand Prix–Queen Mathilde Prize at the Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition.
A few years earlier, Jonathan achieved first prizes at the Scottish International Piano Competition in Glasgow and the Viotti International Piano Competition in Vercelli.
Jonathan began studying piano at age seven in his hometown of Sarreguemines in eastern France before entering the Strasbourg Conservatoire. At 12, he was admitted to the Saarbrücken Musikhochschule in Germany, where he studied with Prof. Robert Leonardy and Jean Micault. Around this time, he also began working with pianist Gisèle Magnan, from whom Jonathan received mentorship for years. At 15, he entered the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris, studying with Brigitte Engerer, Bruno Rigutto, Claire Désert, and Michel Dalberto, and graduated with honors five years later. In September 2016, Jonathan joined Louis Lortie and Avo Kouyoumdjian’s class at Chapelle Musicale Reine Elisabeth in Belgium for five years.
What stands out most in Fournel’s playing—besides his stunning technique and extraordinary spectrum of colors—is the balanced mix of exquisite refinement and wild instinct, his natural lyricism, and the bright clarity of his interpretations, which shine light on details with a deeply mature understanding of the music.
These qualities extend seamlessly into his chamber music collaborations, where he has worked with distinguished musicians such as Gautier Capuçon, Augustin Dumay, Lorenzo Gatto, Victor Julien-Laferrière, Simone Lamsma, Kerson Leong, and Vassilena Serafimova, among others.
He is a guest at prestigious venues and festivals including the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Gewandhaus Leipzig, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, NDR Landesfunkhaus Hannover, Rheingau Musik Festival, Klavier Festival Ruhr, Konzerthaus Vienna, Philharmonie de Paris, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Auditorium de Radio France, Louis Vuitton Foundation, La Roque d’Anthéron Festival, Piano aux Jacobins Festival, Les Concerts de Poche, Verbier Festival, Sommets Musicaux de Gstaad, Sala Verdi Milan, Suntory Hall, Kioi Hall Tokyo, Philharmonie Luxembourg, Flagey, Bozar Brussels, de Bijloke Gent, Louisiana Museum Denmark, Kumho Art Hall Seoul, Tongyeong Concert Hall, Sala São Paulo, Warsaw Philharmonic, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall and Usher Hall Edinburgh.
Jonathan has performed under the baton of conductors such as Alexandre Bloch, Jean-Claude Casadesus, Thomas Dausgaard, Stéphane Denève, Sascha Goetzel, Howard Griffiths, Jonathon Heyward, Eivind Gullberg Jensen, Gabor Kali, Lio Kuokman, Alexander Markovic, Peter Oundjian, Daniel Raiskin, Pascal Rophé, Michael Schønwandt, Fan Tao, and Hugh Wolff.
He has collaborated with orchestras including the NHK Symphony Orchestra, Macao Orchestra, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg, Orchestre National d’Île-de-France, Orchestre de Chambre de Paris, Orchestre National de Bordeaux, Orchestre National de Lille, Orchestre National de Montpellier, Deutsche Radio Philharmonie, Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie, Brussels Philharmonic, Belgian National Orchestra, European Union Youth Orchestra, NOSPR Katowice, Slovak Philharmonic and the Croatian Radio and Television Orchestra.
Signed to the multi-Gramophone prize-winning label Alpha Classics, Fournel released a Brahms album in October 2021 to rave reviews from major international media. In France, the album was awarded the Diapason Découverte and Télérama’s ffff.
His Mozart album, featuring Concertos 18 and 21 with the Mozarteum Orchester and Howard Griffiths, was released in February 2024 as part of the New Generation Mozart Soloists collection sponsored by the Orpheum Stiftung and received great critical acclaim.
Jonathan’s second solo album on Alpha Classics, released in August 2024, is dedicated to Chopin and Szymanowski. The album received the Choc Classica award in France and widespread critical praise.
Jonathan is the artistic director of Les Songes Musicaux du Saulnois since 2025.