A “great revelation”: those were the very words used by the legendary Nelson Freire to describe his impression of young Elena Fischer-Dieskau’s début performance in Rio de Janeiro. The Franco-German pianist grew up in Berlin and in Paris, studied with Vladimir Krainev in Hannover, und then in Baltimore with the renowned Leon Fleisher. Could her fine sense of phrasing and the melodious vocal aspect in her playing partly be due to her grandfather’s legacy? Elena is indeed the granddaughter of legendary baritone Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. She is particularly fond of the music of Robert Schumann, where she can showcase her sensitivity as well as her impressive virtuosity. Schumann will thus be at the core of the programme of Elena Fischer-Dieskau’s début performance at the Ruhr Piano Festival.