Bakst was a descendant of the Russian artist
Léon Bakst. His teachers were initially his mother and pianist
Józef Turczyński, then
Abram Lufer (who had won 4th Prize at the 1932
Chopin International Piano Competition) and later
Konstantin Igumnov and
Heinrich Neuhaus at the
Moscow Conservatory, and finally with pianist
Zbigniew Drzewiecki. Bakst was a prize winner at the
IV International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw in 1949 and performed in
Europe and the United States the Far East and numerous other places around the world. He was particularly known for his interpretations of
Chopin but also played composers as diverse as Aaron Copland and Juliusz Zarębski. He immigrated to
Great Britain in 1968 and did not return to Poland until 1988 when he appeared in a televised concert at the Warsaw Philharmonic Hall. Among the most gifted students he taught, according to Bakst himself, are
Andrew Wilde and Pawel Skrzypek, and, for her complete Bach performances,
Jill Crossland. Others whom Bakst held in high regard are Alicja Fiderkiewicz,
Janusz Olejniczak and Ronan O'Hora, whilst the long list of other students includes the highly successful
Paul Lewis as well as
Marta Karbownicka, Graham Scott, Robyn Koh, Mark Anderson, Takahashi Yamamoto,
Matthew Schellhorn,
Peter Seivewright, Timothy Horton, David Moss and many others. He also gave lessons to popular music artists, such as
Don Airey of
Deep Purple. In 2013, multiple allegations were made that Bakst had sexually abused students he taught at
Chetham's School of Music.{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2013/feb/12/chethams-music-school-allegations-increase |title=Chetham's school of music: further abuse allegations emerge |last1=Pidd ==References==