Rieko Aizawa
Rieko Aizawa
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Piano
- Website: riekoaizawa.com
Praised by The New York Times for an “impressive musicality, a crisp touch and expressive phrasing,” Japanese pianist Rieko Aizawa has performed throughout the U.S., Canada, and Europe, including New York City’s Lincoln Center, Boston's Symphony Hall, Chicago’s Orchestra Hall, Vienna’s Konzerthaus, and Wigmore Hall in London.
At the age of thirteen, Ms. Aizawa was brought to the attention of conductor Alexander Schneider on the recommendation of the pianist Mitsuko Uchida. Schneider engaged Ms. Aizawa as soloist with his Brandenburg Ensemble at the opening concerts of Tokyo's Casals Hall. Later that year, Schneider presented in her United States début concerts at the Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall with his New York String Orchestra. She has since established her own unique musical voice.
Ms. Aizawa is also an active chamber musician. The youngest-ever participant at the Marlboro Music Festival, she has performed as a guest with string quartets such as the Guarneri Quartet and the Orion Quartet. She is a founding member of the Horszowski Trio and of the prize-winning Duo Prism. Ms. Aizawa became artistic director of the Alpenglow Chamber Music Festival in Colorado in 2010.
Ms. Aizawa’s solo debut recording of Scriabin’s and Shostakovich’s 24 Preludes was released by Altus in Japan, to rave reviews. Her second album of Messiaen's and Fauré's preludes is imminent. Ms. Aizawa also has a great interest in exploring unusual repertoire. The St. Paul Pioneer Press said of her performance with Paul Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Hans Graf: "the Salieri Piano Concerto in C was played so splendidly by Rieko Aizawa. Hers was a graceful reading. . . . Aizawa's performance lent the work a respect it rarely receives." That same year, she received the Washington Award.
Ms. Aizawa was the last pupil of Mieczyslaw Horszowski at the Curtis Institute and she also studied with Seymour Lipkin and Peter Serkin at the Juilliard School. She has been invited to give masterclasses at Yale University, the Eastman School of Music, and Stanford University; she has been on the faculties of Curtis Institute's Summerfest and Bard College's Longy School of Music; she has served as a judge at competitions such as Fischoff Chamber Music. Ms. Aizawa is a Steinway Artist.
Other links:
- Horszowski Trio website: horszowskitrio.com
- The Horszowski Trio
