• 2018 / 2019 Season
    • Season Subscriptions
    • Seating & Venues
    • E-Brochure 2018 / 2019
    • 2017 / 2018 Season
  • Duos
  • Rising Stars
    • Piano Day
    • 2019 Participants
    • 2018 Participants
    • Piano Day Video 2018
    • Piano Day Video 2017
  • Concerto Competition
    • 2018 Summer Festival
    • Beyond the Score
    • Commissioning Project
    • Twilight Soirée
    • Tholen Fellows Project
    • SOLO Blog
    • Event Calendar
    • Contact
    • History
    • Board and Staff
    • Program Archive
    • Donate
    • Sponsor a Student
    • Harold Gray Legacy Society
    • Stock Gifts
    • Volunteer
    • Sponsors
Menu

Portland Piano International

  • SOLO Piano Series
    • 2018 / 2019 Season
    • Season Subscriptions
    • Seating & Venues
    • E-Brochure 2018 / 2019
    • 2017 / 2018 Season
  • Duos
  • Rising Stars
  • Piano Day
    • Piano Day
    • 2019 Participants
    • 2018 Participants
    • Piano Day Video 2018
    • Piano Day Video 2017
  • Concerto Competition
  • Programs
    • 2018 Summer Festival
    • Beyond the Score
    • Commissioning Project
    • Twilight Soirée
    • Tholen Fellows Project
  • Connect
    • SOLO Blog
    • Event Calendar
    • Contact
  • About
    • History
    • Board and Staff
    • Program Archive
  • DONATE
    • Donate
    • Sponsor a Student
    • Harold Gray Legacy Society
    • Stock Gifts
    • Volunteer
    • Sponsors
  • February 2019
    • Feb 13, 2019 British Pianist Benjamin Grosvenor Plays Bach from Decca Album Feb 13, 2019
    • Feb 7, 2019 Shai Wosner and Orion Weiss Talk About Classical Music Feb 7, 2019
    • Feb 1, 2019 Orion Weiss Plays Brahms and Schumann With Emanuel Ax and Anna Polonsky Feb 1, 2019
  • January 2019
    • Jan 31, 2019 Rising Star Pianist Filippo Gorini Performs in Oregon Jan 31, 2019
    • Jan 23, 2019 Behzod Abduraimov Plays Liszt's La Campanella Jan 23, 2019
    • Jan 23, 2019 Program Notes - Behzod Abduraimov, JAN 26 / 27 Jan 23, 2019
    • Jan 17, 2019 Cliburn Gold Medalist Stanislav Ioudenitch Performs Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1, Op. 23 Jan 17, 2019
    • Jan 9, 2019 Finalists and Jurors Chosen for the 2019 Youth Piano Concerto Competition Jan 9, 2019
    • Jan 8, 2019 Marc-André Hamelin at the Cliburn Jan 8, 2019
  • December 2018
    • Dec 21, 2018 Evgeny Kissin Plays Prokofiev's 10 Pieces from Romeo and Juliet, Op. 75 Dec 21, 2018
    • Dec 20, 2018 Argerich and Barenboim Perform Mozart Sonata for Two Pianos, K. 448 Dec 20, 2018
    • Dec 12, 2018 Rachel Cheung: An Audience Perspective Dec 12, 2018
    • Dec 12, 2018 Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 3 with Behzod Abduraimov Dec 12, 2018
    • Dec 7, 2018 Behzod Abduraimov Performed Twice at the BBC Proms  Dec 7, 2018
  • November 2018
    • Nov 30, 2018 Boris Giltburg: An Audience Perspective Nov 30, 2018
    • Nov 28, 2018 Program Notes - Rachel Cheung, DEC 1 / 2 Nov 28, 2018
    • Nov 26, 2018 Rachel Cheung Performs Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 20 at the Cliburn Nov 26, 2018
    • Nov 15, 2018 Rising Star Pianist Zhenni Li Performs in Oregon and Premieres New Work by Oregon Composer Renée Favand-See Nov 15, 2018
    • Nov 15, 2018 Watch Rachel Cheung Perform Debussy's "What the west wind saw" Nov 15, 2018
    • Nov 7, 2018 Program Notes - Boris Giltburg, NOV 10 / 11 Nov 7, 2018
    • Nov 7, 2018 Ravel's Le tombeau de Couperin - Boris Giltburg Nov 7, 2018
    • Nov 5, 2018 Hong Kongese Pianist Rachel Cheung Makes Portland Debut On SOLO Piano Series December 1 & 2, 2018 Nov 5, 2018
  • October 2018
    • Oct 24, 2018 Boris Giltburg Plays Rachmaninov's Études-tableaux, Op. 39 Oct 24, 2018
    • Oct 19, 2018 Who Plays the Pedals?! Oct 19, 2018
    • Oct 19, 2018 Gramophone Award-Winning Pianist Boris Giltburg Makes Portland Debut On SOLO Piano Series November 10 &11, 2018 Oct 19, 2018
    • Oct 18, 2018 Stunning Art Photography by Pianist Boris Giltburg Oct 18, 2018
    • Oct 18, 2018 Olga Kern - An Audience Perspective Oct 18, 2018
    • Oct 10, 2018 Marc-André Hamelin To Curate Portland Piano International’s 2019 / 2020 SOLO Season Oct 10, 2018
    • Oct 4, 2018 Olga Kern - the Watercolor Painter and Pianist Oct 4, 2018
  • September 2018
    • Sep 27, 2018 Olga Kern's Cliburn Recording - Rachmaninov Piano Sonata No. 2 Sep 27, 2018
    • Sep 19, 2018 World Premiere - James Lee III, Window to Eternity's Threshold Sep 19, 2018
    • Sep 13, 2018 Program Notes - Olga Kern, OCT 6 / 7 Sep 13, 2018
    • Sep 13, 2018 Beethoven Counted His Coffee Beans Sep 13, 2018
    • Sep 6, 2018 7 Favorite Encores Sep 6, 2018
  • August 2018
    • Aug 30, 2018 Rachel Cheung at The Cliburn - Beethoven, Mozart, Schumann Aug 30, 2018
    • Aug 21, 2018 Boris Giltburg Performs Rachmaninov Preludes Aug 21, 2018
    • Aug 9, 2018 Olga Kern's Thrilling Rachmaninoff No. 3 (Cliburn Competition) Aug 9, 2018
    • Aug 2, 2018 When the Stage Lights Brighten and the Grand Piano Glistens Aug 2, 2018
  • July 2018
    • Jul 26, 2018 Recordings from Summer Festival Artists Jul 26, 2018
    • Jul 19, 2018 Preview - Kaleidoscope Lectures Jul 19, 2018
    • Jul 12, 2018 Healing Power of Music with Tanya Gabrielian Jul 12, 2018
  • June 2018
    • Jun 5, 2018 3 Top Olga Kern Performances Jun 5, 2018
  • May 2018
    • May 24, 2018 Beethoven - Music by the Masters - Olga Kern, Boris Giltburg May 24, 2018
    • May 17, 2018 The Pianist Who Wanted to Be a Dentist May 17, 2018
    • May 14, 2018 New work based on Ravel's La Valse May 14, 2018
    • May 2, 2018 Kirill Gerstein Replaces Yuja Wang on May 3 May 2, 2018
  • April 2018
    • Apr 26, 2018 7 Piano Finales to Elevate Your Mood Apr 26, 2018
    • Apr 20, 2018 4 In-Depth Video Interviews with Yuja Wang Apr 20, 2018
    • Apr 4, 2018 Piano Day 2018 - Facebook Live Videos Apr 4, 2018
  • March 2018
    • Mar 15, 2018 Watch What Happens On Piano Day Mar 15, 2018
  • February 2018
    • Feb 21, 2018 Dénes Várjon Plays Liszt's Piano Sonata in B minor, S. 178 Feb 21, 2018
    • Feb 15, 2018 Watch Our Favorite Performances Online By Dénes Várjon Feb 15, 2018
    • Feb 13, 2018 Recap: Isata Kanneh-Mason's Portland Visit Feb 13, 2018
  • January 2018
    • Jan 31, 2018 Sign Up for Piano Day Jan 31, 2018
    • Jan 18, 2018 Sunwook Kim: An Audience Perspective Jan 18, 2018
    • Jan 17, 2018 3 Facts About Lukáš Vondráček Jan 17, 2018
    • Jan 17, 2018 Get to Know Rising Star Isata Kanneh-Mason Jan 17, 2018
    • Jan 11, 2018 2 Recordings to Jumpstart Your Weekend Jan 11, 2018
    • Jan 4, 2018 6 Fun Facts on Bach, Beethoven, Schumann, Schubert Jan 4, 2018
    • Jan 4, 2018 Listen to Sunwook Kim Play Brahms Jan 4, 2018
  • December 2017
    • Dec 21, 2017 Claim Your Cultural Tax Credit on State Taxes Dec 21, 2017
    • Dec 14, 2017 Sunwook Kim: First Asian Winner of the Leeds Competition Dec 14, 2017
    • Dec 7, 2017 Christina & Michelle Naughton: An Audience Perspective Dec 7, 2017
    • Dec 1, 2017 2018 Tholen Fellow Applications Due December 22! Dec 1, 2017
  • November 2017
    • Nov 15, 2017 Favorite Videos of Christina & Michelle Naughton Nov 15, 2017
    • Nov 3, 2017 International Piano Celebrates Our 40th Season! Nov 3, 2017
  • October 2017
    • Oct 18, 2017 Yekwon Sunwoo Plays Portland: An Audience Perspective Oct 18, 2017

Sophiko Simsive plays Schumann/Liszt’s Widmung.

New work based on Ravel's La Valse

May 14, 2018

Rising Star Pianist Sophiko Simsive Performs in Oregon and Premieres New Work by Oregon Composer Kenji Bunch

Portland Piano International / SOLO presents three public hour-long performances by Rising Star pianist Sophiko Simsive. In addition to other pieces, Sophiko's program includes a new work by Oregon composer Kenji Bunch, entitled La Discothèque, a piece inspired by Ravel’s La Valse. Kenji’s piece was composed through the Portland Piano International / SOLO Commissioning Project and performed in cooperation with its already-established Rising Stars program. The composer will be present at most of the performances.
 
“We are so happy to be presenting Sophiko as our next Rising Star. Although she is just in her mid-twenties, she has been performing publicly since the age of 11,” said Ellen Bergstone Wasil, executive director. “Her program is also very compelling. Our audiences will have heard Ravel’s La Valse as performed at the beginning of our season by Yekwon Sunwoo, the 2017 Gold Medalist of the Van Cliburn Piano Competition. We are thrilled to have Sophiko perform this challenging work and premiere Kenji’s piece, playfully titled La Discothèque.”
 
Sophiko’s full program is the following:  

Mozart: Sonata in F Major, K533
Scriabin: Sonata No. 5
Kenji Bunch: La Discothèque
Ravel: La Valse


Performance

WED / MAY 16, 2018 / 7PM
Portland Piano Company, 8700 NE Columbia Blvd, Portland, OR 97220

"Thursdays at Three" on All Classical

THR / MAY 17, 2018 / 3PM
Listen to "Thursdays at Three" on All Classical Portland. Seating is full for this event, but there is a wait list. Please visit allclassical.org.

Performance

THR / MAY 17, 2018 / 7PM
Salem Public Library, 585 Liberty St SE, Salem, OR 97301

Master Class

FRI / MAY 18, 2018 / 10AM
Portland Piano Company, 8700 NE Columbia Blvd, Portland, OR 97220

School Visit

FRI / MAY 18, 2018 / 2:30PM
Hood River Middle School, 1602 May St, Hood River, OR 97031

Performance

FRI / MAY 18, 2018 / 7PM
Hood River Middle School, 1602 May St, Hood River, OR 97031

All performances are free.
 
The two-year Commissioning Project is funded through a Creative Heights Grant from The Oregon Community Foundation. Portland Piano International was selected as one of only 13 organizations statewide for the first round of these new grants, which were established through the Fred W. Fields Fund. Portland Piano International thanks the Herbert A. Templeton Foundation, ESCO Foundation for helping make the Rising Star series possible. 

Sophiko Simsive

Sophiko Simsive

About Sophiko Simsive

Georgian-born Sophiko Simsive began piano lessons with her mother at the age of three. At just eleven years old she performed Beethoven’s Second Piano Concerto with the student orchestra of Georgia at the Beethoven Festival in Bonn (Germany) and played the same concerto in a Rudolf Buchbinder master class in Switzerland. At that time, in 2003 conductor Lev Markiz discovered her at the Music Gymnasium of Tbilisi, where she studied with professors Maka Aladashvili and Alexander Garber. While at school she was a recipient of a scholarship from Vladimir Spivakov and performed at the Kremlin in Moscow. She further toured with I Virtuosi Italiani under Lev Markiz in the Netherlands, playing Mozart’s Jeunehomme Piano Concerto at De Doelen in Rotterdam, the Vredenburg in Utrecht, the Stadsgehoorzaal in Leiden and in De Oosterport in Groningen. In the fall of 2007 15-year-old Sophiko was admitted to the Sweelinck Conservatory of Amsterdam as its youngest pupil. Esteemed professor Mila Baslavskaya guided her towards a bachelor’s degree cum laude in 2012. She then studied with professor Jacques Rouvier at the Universität der Künste in Berlin.
 
During her first year at the Conservatory Sophiko won the first prize at the Princess Christina Concours in the Netherlands. This prize included a performance of Beethoven’s Third Piano Concerto with the Residential Orchestra of The Hague under Jan Willem de Vriend and a chamber music tour in the USA and Canada. In 2008 she won the Yamaha Piano Competition in Amsterdam. Sophiko played a solo recital at the Canterbury Festival in England in 2011 and was invited to the academy program of the International Music Festival of Verbier in 2013.
 
In 2015 she toured with Eduard Sistek on cello in the New Masters on Tour series organized by The International Holland Music Sessions and made her debut at the Carnegie Hall in New York together with Kian Soltani on cello. Sophiko performed 11 solo recitals in the Netherlands as a finalist of the Dutch Classical Talent program. She won her age category at the Young Pianist Foundation Competition during which she played Liszt’s First Piano Concerto with the Noord Nederlands Orkest under Pieter-Jelle de Boer. Sophiko was awarded both the audience prize and the prize for the obligatory work by Dutch composer Diderik Wagenaar. That same year Sophiko won the first prize as well as the press prize at the Geertruidenberg Klassiek. In January 2016 she gave a series of concerts together with violinist Amarins Wierdsma in Indonesia organized by the Erasmus Huis. Sophiko was the winner of the GrachtenfestivalPrijs 2016 of the Netherlands and was Artist in Residence during the Grachtenfestival 2017.
 
Over the years Sophiko has participated in masterclasses with pianists such as Dmitri Alexeev, Dmitri Bashkirov, Pascal Devoyon, Klaus Hellwig, Ferenc Rados, Jean-Yves Thibaudet and Lilya Zilberstein.
 
Since September 2016 she has pursued her master’s degree at the Yale School of Music under professor Boris Berman.

Kenji Bunch

Kenji Bunch

About Kenji Bunch

Composer/performer Kenji Bunch has received acclaim from audiences, performers, and critics alike for his work combining vernacular American influences with techniques from his classical training to create a unique vocabulary of New American music. His compositions have been performed by over fifty American orchestras, and in premiere venues on six continents. Recordings of his music are regularly broadcast on radio worldwide and are available on 18 different record labels.
 
Kenji maintains an active performing career and is recognized for his own groundbreaking works for viola. Deeply committed to exploring connections with musicians from other backgrounds as well as artists of other disciplines, Kenji has collaborated with choreographers, film directors, actors, and prominent rock, jazz, folk, and experimental musicians.
 
Upcoming projects include commissions by the Eugene Ballet, the Seattle Symphony, the Oregon Symphony, the Britt Festival, the Lark Quartet, and the Music at Angel Fire Festival, at which Kenji will appear as Composer in Residence next summer. Currently serving as Composer in Residence for 45th Parallel in Portland, his past residencies include the Spoleto USA Festival, the Bravo! Vail Festival, the Mobile Symphony, Sound Encounters (Boston), the Craftsbury Chamber Players, and Young Concert Artists, Inc.
 
A graduate of the Juilliard School in both viola and composition and a 20-year veteran of the New York City musical world, he returned in 2013 to his native Portland, Oregon, where he has served as Artistic Director of Fear No Music since 2014. He lives with his wife, concert pianist Monica Ohuchi, their two children, and their dog, Coffee.
 
A dedicated teacher who taught viola, composition and chamber music for 12 years at The Juilliard School Pre-College, he now teaches viola and composition at Reed College and Portland State University and is the head music theory teacher for the Portland Youth Philharmonic.

← The Pianist Who Wanted to Be a DentistKirill Gerstein Replaces Yuja Wang on May 3 →
Back to Top

© 2019 Portland Piano International. All Rights Reserved   |  PO Box 6469 Portland OR 97228  |  503.228.1388  |  info@portlandpiano.org  |  Media Room  |  Contact