Josu De Solaun

"De Solaun lets expression lead at all times, no matter how intense the virtuosity. There’s a bouncy vitality to his playing, a warm and intimate approach to phrasing and a beautifully mellow tone." -Jessica Duchen, BBC Music Magazine Josu de Solaun is a multitalented pianist-composer known for his "poetic sense of sound, artistic vision, and brilliant virtuoso skills, entirely at the service of the works being performed," according to Nikolaus Frey of Fuldaer Zeitung. With a repertoire that spans from the classical canon to free improvisation, de Solaun has made a name for himself in some of the world's most prestigious concert halls, performing as a soloist, chamber musician, and improviser. In 2020-2021, he opened the season with his debut free improv concert, panDEMiCity, and received the prestigious ICMA Award (International Classical Music Award) for his recording of French violin sonatas with violinist Franziska Pietsch. An accomplished pianist, de Solaun has won numerous international competitions, including the XIII George Enescu International Piano Competition, XV José Iturbi International Piano Competition, and the First European Union Piano Competition. He has been invited to perform in prestigious concert halls around the world, including the Romanian Athenaeum, Teatro La Fenice, Mariinsky Theatre, and The Kennedy Center Concert Hall, among others. In 2019, he was awarded the title of Officer of Cultural Merit by the President of Romania. In addition to his musical talents, de Solaun is also a published poet, with his volume of poetry "Las Grietas" published in 2021. He holds a doctorate from the Manhattan School of Music and has studied with renowned pianists Nina Svetlanova and Horacio Gutierrez, as well as composers Giampaolo Bracali and Salvador Chuliá. He currently resides in Madrid where he is a visiting professor and helps craft the performance curriculum at the Musical Arts Madrid academy. With a discography that spans from the complete works for piano of George Enescu to Stravinsky's "Les Noces" and beloved piano music of Schumann and Brahms, de Solaun is a creative force to be reckoned with. He has recordings of Haydn Sonatas, Enescu's Complete Chamber Music, and Czech piano music in the works, and is committed to exploring new and unusual repertoire with his unique, virtuosic touch.