Achieving international attention at an early stage, Canadian pianist Avan Yu triumphed at the 2012 Sydney International Piano Competition in Australia, winning First Prize along with nine special awards.
Avan decided to pursue a life in music shortly before winning his first international piano competition at the age of fourteen. Although initially aspiring to be an astronaut while growing up in Canada, his ideas changed after opportune meetings with several important musical mentors.
He was first noticed by Pinchas Zukerman and Bramwell Tovey who invited him to perform with their respective orchestras, the National Arts Centre Orchestra and the Vancouver Symphony. Yo-Yo Ma, after hearing Avan play at the age of sixteen, invited him to perform with him in Ottawa a few years later. Since then, he has appeared with conductors and musicians such as Rafael Fruehbeck de Burgos, Christian Arming, Juanjo Mena, Johannes Moser, and the Armida Quartet.
He has performed extensively throughout Europe, North America, Asia, and Australia and at venues such as the Weill Recital Hall in Carnegie Hall, Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Philharmonie in Berlin, the Salle Cortot in Paris, and the Sydney Opera House.
His latest recording of Liszt’s Transcriptions of Schubert’s Winterreise and Schwanengesang, released by Naxos, won positive reviews from critics at Gramophone Magazine, American Record Guide, Fono Forum, among others.
Besides playing the piano, Avan has also written for the National Post. He loves studying languages and in his spare time enjoys experimenting in the kitchen in his home in Berlin. He has just moved to New York City in September to begin Doctoral Studies at the Manhattan School of Music.
Tickets: $25 Under30 $15 Student tickets $5
Tickets will also be available at the door. For a season brochure or to also order a subscription by phone: 204-944-9431.