Ryo Yanagitani, B.Mus. (UBC), M.Mus (Yale)
Associate Professor, Piano (one year position)

Office:
Email: ryo.yanagitani(at)ubc.ca
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Ryo Yanagitani has distinguished himself as one of Canada's most promising young concert artists. His most recent success includes winning the gold medal at the 10th San Antonio International Piano Competition, where he was also given special recognition for a performance of the complete Chopin Ballades.  Among other honors, he is also the grand prize winner of the Hugo Kauder International Piano competition and a laureate of the Minnesota International Piano-e-Competition, the Dr. Luis Sigall International Piano competition in Vina del Mar (Chile), and the Hilton Head International Piano Competition.

Ryo has made concerto appearances with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, the Montreal Metropolitan Orchestra, Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, San Antonio Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, Hartford Symphony Orchestra, and the Moroccan Symphony Orchestra among others.

In addition to many solo recitals, he has been in demand as a chamber musician, performing in a wide range of settings, from the duo sonata repertoire to large ensembles. His most recent collaboration with cellist Dai Miyata has resulted in a concert tour of Japan, and they will be releasing a CD later this year. Ryo Yanagitani is presently an active member of the Musique a la Mode chamber ensemble in New York, specializing in the performance of new music and unusual works seldom heard in public. He is also pianist of Duo Chrysalis with cellist Jacques Lee Wood, and their collaboration has taken them on a tour of performances across the United States and Korea.

A recipient of many scholarships and awards, Ryo has been endowed twice by the Canadian Arts Council with a grant as an Emerging Artist, and is a recipient of the Arthur Foote Scholarship from the Harvard Musical Association. He was also recently awarded the Sony Foundation of America Career Grant through the Salon de Virtuosi of New York. He is an artist-in-residence of the Maxwell Shepherd Fund of Connecticut, as well as a pianist with the Swiss Global Artistic Foundation. Ryo is also increasingly recognized not only as a performer but also a pedagogue, and is frequently asked to adjudicate competitions and conduct masterclasses.

Ryo Yanagitani received his Masters of Music degree from the Yale School of Music under Boris Berman, a Bachelor Degree in Piano Performance from the University of British Columbia under Doctor Henri-Paul Sicsic, and an Artist Diploma from the Cleveland Institute under Sergei Babayan. He recently completed his residency requirement for the Yale School of Music Doctor of Musical Arts Degree, and was an instructor for the Chamber Music Program at Yale. On July 1, 2011, Ryo was appointed  to a one year position as Assistant Professor of Piano at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver.