Albert Tiu (born March 20, 1969) is a classical pianist from the Philippines.

Biography

Born in 1969 in

Cebu Cebu ( ; ), officially the Province of Cebu (; ), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 surrounding islands and islets. The coastal zone of Cebu is identified as a ...

, Albert first learned to play the piano at the age of five. At the age of eleven, he was accepted at the Philippine High School for the Arts, a government-run school for the musically gifted at the

National Arts Center The National Arts Center is a building complex situated in Mount Makiling, Los Baños, Laguna, the Philippines. The establishment was inaugurated in 1976. Its theater is the Tanghalang Maria Makiling or the NAC Center, which has an audience capa ...

, in

Mount Makiling Mount Makiling (also spelled Maquiling) is an inactive stratovolcano located in the provinces of Laguna and Batangas on the island of Luzon in the Philippines. The mountain rises to an elevation of above mean sea level and is the highest feat ...

, Laguna. He studied piano with Nita Quinto at the

University of the Philippines College of Music A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...

, with John Winther in the

Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA) is a provider of tertiary education in Hong Kong. Located near the north coast of Wan Chai on Hong Kong Island, the main campus also functions as a venue for performances. Béthanie (Hong Ko ...

, and with Michael Lewin at the

Boston Conservatory Boston Conservatory at Berklee (formerly The Boston Conservatory) is a private performing arts conservatory in Boston, Massachusetts. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in dance, music, and theater. Boston Conservatory was founded o ...

. In 1996, he received his Master of Music degree from the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...

, where he was a scholar and student of

Jerome Lowenthal Jerome Lowenthal (born February 11, 1932) is an American classical pianist. He has served as chair of the piano department at the Juilliard School in New York. Additionally, Lowenthal is on the faculty at Music Academy of the West in Montecito, Ca ...

."Albert Tiu, pianist"
Performing Arts.net. Retrieved on 2011-06-05. Between 1996 and 2002, Albert participated in piano competitions, winning First Prizes at the 1996 Unisa Piano Competition in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

and the 2000 Web Concert Hall Piano Competition in the U.S. He also won prizes in Calgary (Honens), Helsinki (Maj Lind), Santander ( Paloma O'Shea Santander International Competition), and special awards for his performance of Mozart Piano Concerto K595 and the Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2 at the Unisa Competition (see list below). His performance highlights include soloist with the St. Petersburg Philharmonic, Hamburg Symphony,

Finnish Radio Symphony The Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra (Finnish: ''Radion sinfoniaorkesteri'', Swedish: ''Radions symfoniorkester''; abbreviated as RSO) is a Finnish broadcast orchestra based in Helsinki, and the orchestra of the Finnish Broadcasting Company (Yle) ...

, Gstaad Festival Orchestra
Baden-Baden Philharmonic

Northern Sinfonia Royal Northern Sinfonia is a British chamber orchestra, founded in Newcastle upon Tyne and currently based in Gateshead. For the first 46 years of its history the orchestra gave most of its concerts at the Newcastle City Hall. It also gave mont ...

(England),

Calgary Philharmonic The Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra is an orchestra based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The orchestra gives the majority of its performances in the Jack Singer Concert Hall at Arts Commons. It is also the resident orchestra for the Calgary Opera, A ...

Winnipeg Symphony Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,607 and a metropolitan population of 834,678, making ...

Louisiana Philharmonic The Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) is an American orchestra based in New Orleans, Louisiana, New Orleans, Louisiana. It is the only full-time, professional orchestra in the Gulf South. The orchestra performs at the Orpheum Theater (New O ...

, Michigan Chamber Symphony
Johannesburg PhilharmonicCape Town Philharmonic
Guangzhou Symphony,

Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO) is the resident symphony orchestra of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP). It is currently under the musical direction of its resident conductor and associate conductor, Dr. Herminigildo Raner ...

and Juilliard Symphony. He has settled in

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

, where he is a Professor at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory,

National University of Singapore The National University of Singapore (NUS) is a national university, national Public university, public research university in Singapore. It was officially established in 1980 by the merging of the University of Singapore and Nanyang University ...

Competitions

* 1995 St. Charles International Piano Competition in Illinois, USA, First * 1996 Alabama International Piano Competition, Second * 1996

Honens International Piano Competition The Honens International Piano Competition is a triennial classical piano competition held in Calgary, Canada that awards prizes in piano performance. In addition to monetary awards, the top prize winner receives access to a career development prog ...

Calgary, Alberta Calgary () is a major city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a Metropolitan area, metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the List of ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, Second * 1996 UNISA Competition in

Pretoria Pretoria ( ; ) is the Capital of South Africa, administrative capital of South Africa, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to the country. Pretoria strad ...

, FirstRoos, John
"Twenty Years of Music Competitions at Unisa"
Retrieved on 2011-06-05. * 1998 Paloma O'Shea Santander International Piano Competition in Santander,

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, Laureate * 2000 Web Concert Hall Competition, First"2000 Web Concert Hall Competition Winners"
. Web Concert Hall. Retrieved on 2011-06-05. * 2002 Maj Lind Piano Competition in

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

, Fifth

Notable live performances

He is noted for his interesting thematic programming, coming up with recital programmes entitled "Nocturnal Fantasies", alternating similarly titled pieces (with similar keys as well) by Chopin and

Scriabin Alexander Nikolayevich Scriabin, scientific transliteration: ''Aleksandr Nikolaevič Skrjabin''; also transliterated variously as Skriabin, Skryabin, and (in French) Scriabine. The composer himselused the French spelling "Scriabine" which was a ...

; "Bee Flat", featuring the two Sonatas in B-flat (Op.22 and Op.106) by

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

; and "Chopin without Chopin", featuring some of

Leopold Godowsky Leopold Mordkhelovich Godowsky Sr. (13 February 1870 – 21 November 1938) was a virtuoso pianist, composer and teacher, born in what is now Lithuania to Jewish parents, who became an United States of America, American citizen in 1891. He ...

Studies on Chopin's Études The ''Studies on Chopin's Études'' are a set of 53 arrangements of Chopin's études by Leopold Godowsky, composed between 1894 and 1914. They are renowned for their technical difficulty: critic Harold C. Schonberg called them "the most impossi ...

, the Skryabin Polonaise and the

Busoni Ferruccio Busoni (1 April 1866 – 27 July 1924) was an Italian composer, pianist, conductor, editor, writer, and teacher. His international career and reputation led him to work closely with many of the leading musicians, artists and literary ...

and

Rachmaninov Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of ...

Variations on the same C-minor Prelude. As a chamber musician, he has collaborated with violinists

Pierre Amoyal Pierre Amoyal (born 22 June 1949 in Paris) is a French violinist and is the artistic director of the Conservatory of Lausanne. He owns the "Kochanski" Stradivarius of 1717. It was stolen from him in 1987 and recovered in 1991. Life and ca ...

, Cho-Liang Lin,

Robert McDuffie Robert McDuffie is an American violinist. He has played as a soloist with many of the major orchestras around the world including those of New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Montreal, Toronto, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Minnesota, Ho ...

Kam Ning Kam Ning () is a violinist and daughter of the violinist-composer Kam Kee Yong (甘琦勇), and grandchild of Kam Beng Soo and Ooi Kooi Aun. Born in Singapore in 1975, she was given violin lessons at the age of six by the elder Kam, and had her ...

and Qian Zhou, violist

Nobuko Imai is a renowned Japanese classical violist with an extensive career as soloist and chamber musician. Since 1988 she has played a 1690 Andrea Guarneri instrument. Biography Born in Tokyo, Imai began her musical training at the age of six. She b ...

, cellist Li-Wei Qin, the T'ang Quartet, the St. Lawrence Quartet, the

Australian String Quartet The Australian String Quartet (ASQ) is a chamber music group founded in 1985 and based at the University of Adelaide, South Australia. It delivers an artistic program of performances, workshops, commissions, digital content and education projects ...

, and in duo-piano concerts with Thomas Hecht. In January 2005, he and the T'ang Quartet played together in a fund-raising concert at Victoria Concert Hall, ''Concert for Hope'', to aid the victims of the

2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami On 26 December 2004, at 07:58:53 local time (UTC+07:00, UTC+7), a major earthquake with a magnitude of 9.2–9.3 struck with an epicenter, epicentre off the west coast of Aceh in northern Sumatra, Indonesia. The Submarine earthquake, undersea ...

. In August 2005, he gave the Singapore premiere of

Samuel Barber Samuel Osmond Barber II (March 9, 1910 – January 23, 1981) was an American composer, pianist, conductor (music), conductor, baritone, and music educator, and one of the most celebrated composers of the mid-20th century. Principally influenced ...

Piano Concerto A piano concerto, a type of concerto, is a solo composition in the classical music genre which is composed for piano accompanied by an orchestra or other large ensemble. Piano concertos are typically virtuosic showpieces which require an advance ...

with the

Singapore Symphony Orchestra The Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) is a symphony orchestra based in Singapore. Its principal concert venue is the Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay. The orchestra also gives concerts at the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall, and performs ...

under conductor Tang Muhai at the

Esplanade Concert Hall An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cle ...

. In September 2007, after suffering a dislocated left thumb from a bicycle accident, he performed an entire recital with his right hand alone. Albert arranged eight of Chopin preludes for the right hand and played a commissioned piece by Kawai Shiu.

Personal life

Albert Tiu is married to his wife Susan, and they have two children, Alexander and Lauren.

Discography

# Sentimyento entiment(2000), with Joseph Esmilla on the

violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...

assisted by Albert Tiu, Bookmark Audio. # The Clarinetist Composer (2001) is a compilation of

clarinet The clarinet is a Single-reed instrument, single-reed musical instrument in the woodwind family, with a nearly cylindrical bore (wind instruments), bore and a flared bell. Clarinets comprise a Family (musical instruments), family of instrume ...

music composed by another clarinetist. David Hattner (clarinet) accompanied by Albert Tiu (piano), Northbranch Records. # Variations: Albert Tiu, Honens International Piano Competition Laureate Series (2002), Arktos Recordings Limited, Canada. # "Salamisim" (Reminiscence) (2002), a collection of short and popular romantic pieces released by Bookmark Audio Philippines."Welcome to JE Labs"
. JE Labs. Retrieved on 2011-06-05). # Concierto para trio (2003) is a collection of pieces by Spanish and South American classical composers performed by Triode, a

piano trio A piano trio is a group of piano and two other instruments, usually a violin and a cello, or a piece of music written for such a group. It is one of the most common forms found in European classical music, classical chamber music. The term can also ...

composed of Albert Tiu (piano), Joseph Esmilla (violin) and Sean Katsuyama (

cello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...

), Northbrach Records. # Kawai Shiu: unassuming music (2007) is a compilation of music by composer Kawai Shiu with Albert performing ''"La coral de una mano alberto"'', a piece for right hand, Ablaze Records. # Beethoven: The Cello Sonatas (2010), the five

cello sonatas A cello sonata is piece written sonata form, often with the instrumentation of a cello taking solo role with piano accompaniment. Some of the earliest cello sonatas were composed in the 18th century by Francesco Geminiani and Antonio Vivaldi, and ...

with cellist Li-Wei Qin and Tiu (piano), Decca. # Nocturnal Fantasies (2011) is a solo piano collection of works by Chopin and

, pairing and alternating similar pieces by the two composers, Centaur Records.(2011)
"Nocturnal Fantasies"
Amazon.com. Retrieved on 2011-06-05. # Rachmaninov: Works for Cello and Piano (2012) includes the Op.2 pieces, the Op.19 Sonata, a transcription by Tiu of the piano Prelude Op.23 No.3, and some songs, with cellist Li-Wei Qin, Decca.

Reviews

* For his 2002 recording on Canadian label Arktos, ''Variations'', the

American Record Guide The ''American Record Guide'' (''ARG'') is a classical music magazine. It has reviewed classical music recordings since 1935. History and profile The magazine was founded by Peter Hugh Reed in May 1935 as the ''American Music Lover''. It chan ...

described him as "an artist of uncommon abilities". * Adam Baer of

The New Republic ''The New Republic'' (often abbreviated as ''TNR'') is an American magazine focused on domestic politics, news, culture, and the arts from a left-wing perspective. It publishes ten print magazines a year and a daily online platform. ''The New Y ...

commented, "Tiu plays with this notion in his mind and in his fingers. While he expresses motifs artfully thought out well ahead of performance time, Tiu, like the world's best artists, eventually allows his heart to take over and lets go.""Albert Tiu - 200 Winner"
. Web Concert Hall. Retrieved on 2011-06-05 *

on ''"Nocturnal Fantasies"'', Centaur: "this is one of the most inventive recital programs I have ever seen or heard. Chopin and Scriabin work so well together that I'm surprised that I rarely see them combined on one disc - and never as well as this. He has the heart and soul of a true romantic pianist, as well as an abundance of technical skills. He can float a delicate melody one moment and rise to an impressive and exciting climax the next. His writing, based on superb program notes, supports his program-building ability quite nicely. He is a pianist I would go out of my way to hear in concert, and I will look for his future recordings." *

Gramophone A phonograph, later called a gramophone, and since the 1940s a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogue reproduction of sound. The sound vibration waveforms are recorded as corresponding physic ...

describes ''"Nocturnal Fantasies"'' as "performances where heart and mind unite in a deeply affecting union. Tiu is the sort of artist... who can make a single note or chord tell, yet always within an enviably natural, lucid and refined context." * In

Fanfare A fanfare (or fanfarade or flourish) is a short musical flourish which is typically played by trumpets (including fanfare trumpets), French horns or other brass instruments, often accompanied by percussion. It is a "brief improvised introdu ...

, Jerry Dubins declared: "Centaur has produced, in my opinion, one of the all-time great piano recordings."

References

External links

Albert Tiu
web site from Musical Online

at the 2001 Web Concert Hall Competition {{DEFAULTSORT:Tiu, Albert Boston Conservatory at Berklee alumni Filipino classical pianists Juilliard School alumni Living people 1969 births 20th-century Filipino musicians 21st-century Filipino musicians 21st-century classical pianists Musicians from Cebu