(2019) Christopher Basso’s piano performances have been heralded as “riveting, with a multi-dimensional array of colors and shapes” (San Francisco Classical Voice) and “undeniably extraordinary” (Wilmington News Journal). The Boston Globe writes of his Prokofiev Eighth Piano Sonata … “Basso used his coruscating virtuosity, his flexible rhythmic spine, and his chameleon colors to communicate the sorrow, the irony, the rage and the compassion of this great score.” His playing has also been described as thoughtful, expressive and above all, deeply moving and engaging.

Basso was named First Place Prizewinner in the Second International Van Cliburn Competition for Outstanding Amateurs in Ft. Worth, Texas. National performance venues include recitals at The Flagler Museum in Palm Beach, Florida, the Smithsonian in Washington, DC, the Rockport Chamber Music Festival in Rockport, Massachusetts, the Shandalee Music Festival in Livingston, New York and The Nicolaï Hall Series in Mill Valley, California.

Basso has performed in the Bay Area with local artists, including violinists Ian Swensen and Krista Bennion Feeney, violist Jodi Levitz, cellists Jennifer Culp and Jean-Michel Fonteneau, pianists Robin Sutherland and Keisuke Nakagoshi, and the Ives Quartet.

As an educator, Basso imparts in his students a lifelong appreciation for music, helping nurture creative examination and practice, and guiding students in finding a standard for self-expression while striving for personal fulfillment of the highest artistic caliber.

Basso received B.M. and M.M. degrees from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where he studied with Paul Hersh and Mack McCray. He studied for many years with famed pedagogue Nina Svetlanova in New York City. More about Christopher Basso at bassopiano.com

Exam Preparation: RCM – Royal Conservatory of Music (Canadian), Entrance Exams for Conservatories