Lisa Tahara

Japanese-Canadian pianist Lisa Tahara has appeared in solo and chamber concerts throughout North America and Europe. She has also performed as a concerto soloist with several orchestras across Canada such as the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, l’Orchestre symphonique de Québec and the University of Victoria Orchestra. After obtaining her Bachelors of Music degree at the University of Victoria, she completed her Masters of Music degree with honours in performance at the University of Toronto. Currently, Ms. Tahara is undertaking her Doctorate of Musical Arts studies at the University of Toronto in piano with Drs. Jamie Parker and Henri-Paul Sicsic, and pedagogy with Dr. Midori Koga.

As a recipient of the David & Martha Beach Scholarship and a two-time recipient of the Johann Strauss Scholarship, Ms. Tahara has had the opportunity to spend three summers studying in Europe – at the Mozarteum Summer Academy in Salzburg with Andrezej Jasiński, Robert Levin and Sergio Perticaroli, and at the Wiener Musikseminar in Vienna with Rudolf Kehrer. In 2007, Ms. Tahara completed a long-term residency at the Banff Centre, where she performed with the Penderecki String Quartet. She was also invited to participate in the 2011 Toronto Summer Music Festival, where she had the opportunity to perform in ensembles with renowned guest artists Christopher Costanza and Mark Fewer.

In addition to her passion for performing both solo and chamber works, Ms. Tahara is equally passionate about teaching and is a teaching assistant for the University of Toronto Children’s Pedagogy Program.