Christopher

Artist Bio

Christopher Schmitt, piano

Christopher Schmitt is currently studying at The Juilliard School as a D.M.A. student in the C.V. Starr Doctoral Program. Mr. Schmitt graduated from Juilliard in 2011 with a Masters degree in Piano Performance as the recipient of the John and Henry Steinway Scholarship, the Susan W. Rose Fellowship, and the Richard S. Becker Scholarship. Mr. Schmitt also received a Bachelor of Music degree from the school in 2009. Prior to his arrival at Juilliard, Mr. Schmitt studied piano under the direction of Patricia Zander at The New England Conservatory as the recipient of the Dorothy Hinton-Congleton Memorial Scholarship, and earlier with Marjorie Lee in Vienna, Virginia.

In the summer of 2008, Mr. Schmitt attended The Music Academy of the West, a full scholarship music program in Santa Barbara, California. While at the Academy, he won the concerto competition and, during his performance of Liszt's Piano concerto No. 1, was hailed as a formidable talent" and "mature beyond his years" by the Santa Barbara News-Press. Also while at the Academy, Mr. Schmitt performed Debussy's two-piano piece En Blanc et Noir with Juilliard faculty member Jerome Lowenthal. Both performances took place at the Lobero Theatre in downtown Santa Barbara.

Over the last four years, Mr. Schmitt has been the recipient of the scholarship offered by the Chopin Foundation of the United States. In October of 2006, Mr. Schmitt was sponsored by the foundation to perform a full recital in Gusman Concert Hall in Miami. Mr. Schmitt has also performed many recitals in the Boston, New York, and Washington DC areas and in masterclasses given by esteemed pianists such as Andr̩ Watts, Thomas Schumacher and Stephen Hough. Additionally, Mr. Schmitt has soloed with numerous orchestras in the Virginia area such as the Little River Symphony and the Richmond Philharmonic.

In 2004, Mr. Schmitt was invited by the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts (NFAA) to spend a week in Miami with nineteen other musicians across the nation to compete at the Arts Recognition and Talent Search (ARTS). While in Miami, he received the Level I Award (sponsored by the Gibson Foundation and Baldwin Pianos). Since then, he has performed for the Foundation at the Corcoran Gallery of Art and Congressional Club in Washington DC, in Annapolis, MD, and several times at their headquarters in Miami, FL.

Mr. Schmitt is also active as a collaborative pianist and chamber musician.