Born in 1942. He began learning piano from his parents at age five and debuted as a pianist at age seven. In 1952, at age 10, he successively debuted in Vienna and Rome, followed by Paris in 1955, London in 1956, and New York in 1957 in collaboration with Stokowski, establishing his international reputation. In 1954, Furtwängler remarked, "Barenboim's appearance is an event." In the 1960s, he collaborated with Otto Klemperer on the complete Beethoven concertos and with Sir John Barbirolli on the complete Brahms concertos, also making recordings. From 1966 to 1969, he made his first complete recording of Beethoven's piano sonatas. Furthermore, in 1968, he formed a trio with Pinchas Zukerman (violin) and Jacqueline du Pré (cello). Since then, he has also engaged in chamber music with leading soloists of the era, including Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Itzhak Perlman, Isaac Stern, Yo-Yo Ma, Maxim Vengerov, Martha Argerich, and Emmanuel Pahud.

His repertoire spans widely across piano, chamber music, and conducting, with his performances of German-speaking composers' works, from Bach to Beethoven, Brahms, and Wagner, receiving particularly overwhelming acclaim. His music is characterized by a confident approach, based on a comprehensive understanding not only of the works' details but also of the composers and their historical contexts. He has undertaken many intensive performances and recordings, such as the complete piano concertos and piano sonatas of Beethoven and Mozart, and the complete Well-Tempered Clavier by Bach, all of which have been highly praised. In December 2020, he garnered attention by releasing his fifth complete recording of Beethoven's piano sonatas.

He has also been active as a conductor, serving as Music Director for the Orchestre de Paris, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Staatskapelle Berlin, and Teatro alla Scala in Milan, and as the Berlin Philharmonic's first-ever Honorary Conductor in the orchestra's history. In January 2022, he is scheduled to make his third appearance at the Vienna Philharmonic's New Year's Concert.

Currently, while continuing to be active in both conducting and piano, he also leads the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, which he co-founded in 1999 with literary scholar Edward Said, actively engaging in the development of young musicians and initiatives seeking peace in the Middle East. He has received numerous awards, including the Grammy Award, Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire, Légion d'honneur, Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany, and the Praemium Imperiale.