Hailed by the Herald-Tribune for his “dazzling pianism verging on the impossible, effortless technical command and authority with a sense of poetry and refinement that belies his years,” Indian-American pianist Vijay Venkatesh has been recognized on three continents as a pianist with profound musicianship, sparkling pianism and an innate sense of partnership. Vijay, whose playing is described as “fresh and inspired,” (Cincinnati Courier) has rapidly established a major international reputation as top prizewinner in the San Jose, Seattle, Zimmerli, World Piano, and Waring International Piano Competitions. He has also been named a Davidson Fellow Laureate at the Library of Congress, USC Thornton's Discovery Scholar, Grand Prize Winner of the Los Angeles Music Center’s Spotlight Awards and featured on Performance Today® with host Fred Child, “What Makes It Great?” with host Robert Kapilow, and NPR’s “From the Top."

 

Highlights of Mr. Venkatesh's upcoming season include debuts with the Lancaster Symphony in 3 performances of Rachmaninoff Concerto No.3 in D Minor with Michael Butterman, Orchestra Santa Monica in Beethoven’s Emperor with Roger Kalia, and at Le Salon de Musiques. Additionally, he appears this season at the Athena Foundation for the Arts, DaCamera Society, Emory Chamber Music Society, Gracie Theatre, Kultur unter'm Dach, L'ermitage Foundation, Mason Concerts, Opera Steamboat, and more.

 

An immersive and versatile soloist, Vijay has performed extensively across the United States and Europe as soloist with the symphony orchestras of Seattle, Vienna, Sarasota, Pasadena, Columbus, Cincinnati, Bangor, Redlands, Roanoke, LaGrange, Rogue Valley, Brevard Music Center, and dozens more. He has collaborated with preeminent conductors James Conlon, Carlos Miguel Prieto, Jeffrey Kahane, Ludovic Morlot, Richard Prior, Joseph Young, David Wiley, Roger Kalia, Eckart Preu, Lucas Richman, Michael Repper, Carolyn Kuan, Toshi Shimada, Ken Lam, Ryan Murray, Martin Majkut, and more. Mr. Venkatesh appeared in recent seasons at the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall with the Colburn Orchestra, Chicago’s Dame Myra Hess series, Grand Piano Series in Naples, and at the Aspen, Brevard, Banff, Newport, ProMusica, Redlands Bowl, Sarasota, Vienna, and Music in the Mountains Festivals. As recipient of the inaugural Parnassus Society Prize, he performed in recital at the Soka Performing Arts Center.

 

An active chamber musician, Vijay has appeared eleven times on Le Salon de Musiques at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and tours as the Vieness Piano Duo with his wife pianist, Eva Schaumkell. Last season, they appeared for the DaCamera Society, Irvine Performing Arts Center, Trinity Concert Series, Lancaster Performing Arts Center, L’ermitage Foundation, Masters in the Chapel, Muzewest, Opera Steamboat, Ocean Grove Summer Stars Series, Ridgecrest Chamber Music Society, Second City Chamber Series, Sarasota Artist Series, South Bay Chamber Music Series, Westcliffe InConcert Series, and the Kultur unter'm Dach series in Germany. As pianist in the Aristeia Trio, gold medalists of the Frances Walton International Chamber Music Competition, they embarked on a 30-concert tour of Washington, appeared twice on KING-FM 89.1 FM, and have been featured at Camerata Musica and the Irvine Performing Arts Center.

 

Originally from California, Venkatesh earned an Artist Diploma from the Colburn School in Los Angeles with Fabio Bidini, where he was generously awarded the prestigious Amron-Sutherland Grant for Pianists. He holds additional degrees from USC Thornton and IU Jacobs School of Music, where he was a recipient of the Barbara and David Jacobs Fellowship under the tutelage of Norman Krieger and André Watts. Venkatesh previously studied with Jeffrey Kahane, Sarkis Baltaian, Menahem Pressler, and Murray Perahia.

 

His latest recordings include the music of Lucas Richman on Albany Records and a release on Naxos dedicated to Mozart to be released in 2023. He is a featured artist on Tonebase.