The newest member of the Colburn Artists program, Vijay Venkatesh, performs May 22.
Vijay Venkatesh, pianist, joins the Colburn Artists roster and will be featured on a May 22 virtual performance.
The Colburn Artist program provides students on the brink of professional careers with in-house professional management. This invaluable support positions students for success once they transition from studying to touring. The program provides personalized career advice and training, such as guidance on building relationships with presenters, orchestras, and professional musicians; developing repertoire; interview preparation; and creating a professional image and online presence.
Originally from California, Vijay Venkatesh is currently pursuing an Artist Diploma at Colburn with faculty member Fabio Bidini. Vijay has performed extensively across the United States and Europe as a soloist with multiple symphony orchestras, and he is an active chamber musician who has appeared multiple times on Le Salon de Musiques at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and tours as the Vieness Piano Duo with his wife and pianist, Eva Schaumkell.
When asked about the significance of becoming a Colburn Artist, Vijay shared that “Becoming a Colburn Artist signifies that the School believes in my promise to achieve and sustain a major performing career. As a result, I could not be more honored to join this esteemed roster as opportunities that a Colburn Artist receives are invaluable to an artist’s potential. They provide an ideal stepping stone and pathway to professional management and lifelong network connections that allow for a major career to be sustained.”
The Colburn Artists program was led for many years by Laura Liepins, a 25-year veteran artist manager and former vice president of Opus 3 Artists, who guided numerous young Colburn musicians and ensembles into spectacular professional careers. The Viano Quartet, the Colburn Conservatory’s ensemble in residence from 2019 to 2021, recently joined the prestigious roster of Opus 3 Artists. Past Colburn Artists include Simone Porter and Blake Pouliot, also on the Opus 3 roster; the Calidore String Quartet on the IMG Artists roster; Rodolfo Leone and William Hagen on the MKI Artists roster.
On May 22, Vijay will present his first virtual performance as a Colburn Artist. Sharing his influences for the program, Vijay stated, “The repertoire for this recital offers a deeper glimpse into musical works that move me—whether it is the powerful panache of Scarlatti’s Sonata K. 141, his probing and pleading K. 213, the fleeting adventure of Mendelssohn’s Rondo Capriccioso, the alluring romance of Clara Schumann’s Impromptu, or the spiritual awakening of Brahms’s Op. 118 and Beethoven’s ‘Moonlight.’ Each piece offers a labyrinth of musical sensitivity and insight into my own personality as well as a chance for the audience to delve into each character as viscerally as I do.”
Learn more about the Colburn Artists Program and Vijay, and register for his May 22 performance.