Shaham is an American pianist, born in Jerusalem, who has an international reputation of being one of today’s most gifted pianists. She is an alumni of Julliard and has previously taught there as an interim faculty member.
Shaham said, “I am honored and humbled to join the stellar faculty at The Juilliard School. In my years as interim faculty, I’ve seen firsthand how brilliant and inspiring these students are, and I’m thrilled to continue to dig into it all with them!”
Before this accomplishment, she has won the Gilmore Young Artist Award and the Avery Fisher Career Grant. The New York Times has called her a “brilliant pianist”, The Chicago Tribune said she is a “ First-rate Mozartean”, and London’s Guardian called her playing of Proms ‘perfection’.
Shaham was born in Jerusalem to two scientists and grew up in upstate New York. She is currently the artistic director for both the Pacific Symphony’s chamber series Café Ludwig in Costa Mesa, CA, and the interactive children’s concert series in Orli Shaham’s Bach Yard, which she founded as a way for pre-k to early elementary kids to learn music. She is also chair of the board of trustees at Kaufman Music Center in New York City.
Shaham is in the works of releasing the second and third volumes of the complete Mozart Piano Sonatas. This project also includes Vol. 1 and her recordings of Piano Concertos with the St. Louis Symphony. After earning her bachelor’s at Columbia University, where she was a part of the Barnard-Columbia-Julliard exchange she did graduate work at Columbia in historical musicology.
Alongside Shaham, Soyeon Kate Lee and Shai Wosner will also be joining the Julliard piano faculty. They each “possess the rare combination of great artistry and outstanding teaching ability that defines the Juilliard faculty,” said David Serkin Ludwig, dean and director of the Music Division.
Shaham said, “Congratulations too to my fellow new faculty members, pianists Shai Wosner and Soyeon Kate Lee, I can’t wait to work alongside you and the rest of the Juilliard faculty and staff.”
–Taylor Gordon
