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The Spanish pianist, Josu de Solaun Soto, holds the Helen Cohn Award for outstanding achievement in chamber music from the Manhattan School of Music (where he has studied since 1999), as well as a Bachelor and Master in Music, which he completed under the guidance of Nina Svetlanova, a pupil of the legendary Heinrich Neuhaus. He is a recipient of the Francis Hall Ballard Scholarship at the Manhattan School of Music in New York, where he studies under the guidance of Horacio Gutiérrez in the Doctorate of Musical Arts program (D.M.A.). He has also been mentored by Albert Lotto and especially by Edna Golandsky, with whom he now works. In September 2006 he received, by unanimous decision of the jury, the First Grand Prize at the XV José Iturbi International Piano Competition, being the first Spanish pianist to ever win the coveted award in the 25 years of its existence.
Soon after, he has been invited to perform in distinguished concert series throughout the world, having made notable appearances in Washington D.C. (Kennedy Center), Paris (Salle Cortot), New York (Steinway Hall), Rome (Academia de España), and all major cities of Spain. Since a young age he has also performed in Japan, Switzerland, the UK and the USA as a recitalist, chamber musician, and concerto soloist.
Josu de Solaun has performed as a soloist with orchestras such as the Moscow Chamber Orchestra, New York Sinfonietta, North Shore Symphony Orchestra, Bari Philharmonic Orchestra, Janacek Philharmonic Orchestra (formerly known as the Czech Radio Orchestra), Mexico City Philharmonic Orchestra, Spain's National Television and Radio Orchestra, Orquesta de Valencia (Valencia Philharmonic Orchestra), Orchestra Sinfonica della Provincia di Bari in Italy, Monterey Symphony Orchestra of California, and under conductors such as Constantine Orbelian, Theodore Kuchar, Yaron Traub, Miguel Angel Gomez Martinez, Ramon Tebar, Max Bragado-Darman, and Yuri Krasnapolsky, among others. His performances have been broadcast on Spanish national radio, as well as on New York´s WQXR.
In 2009, Josu de Solaun won the 2nd Prize at the Young Concert Artists (YCA) International Auditions in New York, USA; and the 1st Prize at the I European Union Piano Competition in Prague/Ostrava, Czech Republic.
Future engagements include orchestral and solo performances in Spain, Italy, France and the United States, as well as a solo piano recording of works by Robert Schumann. Apart from music, Josu continues to unfold several interests in his life, including a near-completion of a Degree in Philosophy from UNED University in Spain. |
