Greg Anderson (pianist)


Greg Anderson is an American pianist, composer, video producer, and writer. According to his website, Anderson's mission is to "make classical piano music a relevant and powerful force in society."

Early life

Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, Anderson began his piano studies at age seven with Kim Craig, with whom he studied for eleven years, at the Saint Paul Conservatory of Music. He attended the Aspen Music Festival, the Bowdoin International Music Festival, Pianofest in the Hamptons, and the Banff Keyboard Festival.
Anderson studied with Julian Martin at The Juilliard School where he received his Bachelor and Master of Music degrees in Piano Performance in 2004 and 2006. In 2003, Anderson won the Juilliard Concerto Competition, playing Beethoven’s 4th Piano Concerto with the Juilliard Orchestra. He was awarded a scholarship from the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation in 2004. He then studied with Peter Frankl at the Yale School of Music, where he received his Master of Musical Arts and Doctorate of Musical Arts. Aside from his work in academic settings, Anderson also has a long history of studying with distinguished pianist and pedagogue Aiko Onishi.

Career

Solo Pianist

As a Steinway Artist, Anderson performs around the world and has released two solo albums.

Anderson & Roe piano duo

In addition to playing solo performances, Anderson concertizes with his piano duo partner, fellow Steinway Artist Elizabeth Joy Roe. The duo's partnership has been characterized as "the intense synchronization of genius" and "the most dynamic duo of this generation." In the book "Driven: Six Incredible Musical Journeys" Nick Romeo writes, " hook listeners by putting into practice an expanded concept of what classical music can be: sexy, funny, personal, and interactive." Adrian Daub's book "Four-Handed Monsters" calls Anderson & Roe "one of the most successful piano duos active in the United States," citing the duo's "innovative, frequently pop-inflected repertoire, and their ironic emphasis of the eroticism of four-hand performance."
They are widely known for their daring four-hand piano technique, as described by the Southampton Press:
"Their hand movements and the intertwining of arms, and it seemed at times of fingers, was elaborately and brilliantly choreographed. There were times when their hands seemed magically to occupy the same space, though they were playing different notes. The entire process was a small ballet of the hands, as wonderful to watch as to hear."
Their albums on the Steinway Label have spent dozens of weeks at the top of the Billboard Classical Charts.
Anderson & Roe served as webcast hosts for the inaugural Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition and Festival in 2015. They provided competitor information and Competition commentary, and conducted interviews to provide behind-the-scenes insight. Anderson & Roe then served as hosts of the 15th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition and #Cliburn2017 Webcast in 2017.
Anderson & Roe have made orchestral appearances with the San Francisco Symphony, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Calgary Philharmonic, Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra, Boulder Symphony, Santa Fe Symphony, and Hartford Symphony Orchestra. In 2018 the duo were artists in residence with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. The duo has performed at Carnegie Hall, David Geffen Hall, Kennedy Center, Herbst Theatre, The National Theater and Concert Hall, Seoul Arts Center, National Centre for the Performing Arts, Auckland Town Hall, Romanian Athenaeum, and Hercules Hall in the Munich Residenz.
In 2017 Anderson & Roe was a recipient of a Club Cumming “YAAAAAAAS” award.

Composer

Anderson's oeuvre consists of arrangements, fantasies, and original compositions. " musical paraphrases exhibit many of the traits Franz Liszt developed in his famous paraphrases of Italian opera in the nineteenth century: they're virtuosic and often playful transformations of familiar material into novel forms and styles." Many of the works written for the piano duo are credited in concert programs and on CD notes as being by Anderson & Roe; however, ASCAP and the published scores list Anderson as the sole composer.
Anderson's works have been premiered at the Rose Bowl, Alice Tully Hall, Gilmore Keyboard Festival, and the Grand National Theater in China. His compositions for The 5 Browns and Jenny Lin have appeared on the EMI, Sony/BMG, Steinway, and E1 Entertainment record labels. In 2015, Anderson & Roe premiered Anderson's arrangement of Brahms’ Double Concerto for two pianos and orchestra with the Santa Fe Symphony. His scores are published by Alfred Music on the “Anderson & Roe Duos & Duets Series” and by Awkward Fermata Press.

Music video producer

Anderson & Roe's self-produced music videos have been showcased at film festivals and nominated for an Emmy Award. Their videos have been viewed over 13 million times on YouTube which, according to Nick Romeo in the book "Driven: Six Incredible Musical Journeys," makes Anderson & Roe "one of the most popular piano duos in the world."
Jay Wilson blogs, Anderson & Roe's music videos "explore the narrative suggested by the music they play, allow the viewer access to the physical element of piano duetting."

Discography

Solo

Solo piano