Phillip Shovk is one of Australia’s most respected pianists and pedagogues. After initial studies with Anatole Mirosznyk he continued his studies at the Sydney Conservatorium High School with George Humphrey from where he graduated with the Frank Hutchens prize for being the most promising performer. He then furthered his studies at the Moscow State Conservatory with Professor Valery Kastelsky (himself a student of the legendary Heinrich Neuhaus). 
Phillip Shovk is a Laureate of International Competitions, Lisbon 1987 and Sydney 1988, including the Best Australian Pianist prize and the Hephzibah Menuhin prize. He has adjudicated at the Sydney International Piano Competition, Concours Animato of Paris, the Singapore National Piano Competition and the New Zealand National Concerto Competition amongst others. He has taught at the Rachmaninov Conservatoire in Paris and at the Australian Institute of Music and currently is a Lecturer in both Piano and Accompaniment at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. 

When not performing, accompanying, playing chamber music, he can be found body-surfing, playing chess or scrabble, reading, solving cryptic crosswords or drinking wine. I would like to dedicate this CD to the memory of my parents who survived both Stalin’s Russia and Hitler’s Germany.