MICHAEL MCHALE - piano

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'...McHale responded to each composer's every thought with a pianism that was tastefully gestured, delicately graded, and infallibly clear...' Irish Times

'...Bravura playing in the music of Franz Liszt drew extended ovations at pianist Michael McHale's recital at the Phillips Collection… He handled with gusto and skill the powerfully climbing themes and the thunderous climaxes...' Washington Post

One of the leading young Irish pianists of his generation, Michael McHale's playing has been described as 'beautifully proportioned' (Washington Post) and 'instantly engaging' (The Times).

After graduating from Cambridge University with a double first-class honours degree in Music, Michael went on to study piano with Christopher Elton at the Royal Academy of Music as holder of the EMI Music Sound Foundation Scholarship. A former student of John O'Conor and Réamonn Keary at the Royal Irish Academy of Music, he won the 2004 Camerata Ireland Musician of the Year, and was winner of the Brennan and Field Prizes at the 2006 AXA Dublin International Piano Competition.

Michael was featured as a 'rising star' in International Piano magazine as a result of his performance of two Mozart concertos with the Hallé Orchestra at the 'Piano 2006' international festival in Manchester. He has performed throughout the UK and Ireland, France, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Hungary and USA, including several broadcast performances for BBC Radio 3 and RTE Radio. Highlights include Beethoven Concertos 3, 4 and 5 with the Ulster Orchestra in Belfast, a recent highly successful début recital in Washington DC and four performances of Mozart's Concerto for Two Pianos with Barry Douglas and Camerata Ireland.

Engagements this season include Rachmaninov's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini in Berlin and Dresden, a live BBC Radio 3 broadcast with Sir James Galway, a concerto début with the RTE National Symphony Orchestra and solo recitals in the National Concert Hall, Dublin and Leighton House, London.

Michael is grateful to Camerata Ireland / Accenture, the Musicians' Benevolent Fund, Countess of Munster Musical Trust, Making Music and the Arts Council of Northern Ireland for supporting his performing career.