Michio Nishihara-Toro Piano   

Michio Nishihara-Toro was born in Concepcion, Chile in 1972, and received his music education in Santiago, under the supervision of the famed Chilean pianist Oscar Gacitua; this was followed by studies at the Bydgoszcz Music Academy (Poland) with Professors Wieslawa Ronowska and Katarzyna Popwa-Zydron, as well as at the Moscow Conservatory under Professor Victor Merzhanov. Among the awards he has won thus far include Best Performance of the Music of Szymanowski at the 1st International Competition "Arthur Rubinstein in Memoiram" (2002), and the esteemed Claudio Arrau Prize for outstanding Chilean musician (2002).

Mr. Nishihara-Toro has performed throughout South America and Europe, at such esteemed venues as Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires, Royal Festival Hall in London, Rachmaninov Hall at the Moscow Conservatory, Polish Radio Witold Lutoslawski Concert Hall in Warsaw, and Meistersaal in Berlin. He has released one CD, and has recorded programs for Chilean Radio and TV and for Moscow Radio. His repertoire ranges from the Classical period to 20th century piano works, though perhaps his specialty lies within the Romantic literature, and particularly the works of Chopin. We are very pleased to present this promising young pianist here at the Classical Archives.

Reviews

"The Chilean pianist Michio Nishihara Toro is a mature and fascinating artist... Along with possessing a technique of real magnitude, he proved to have an original personality. His rendition of Chopin's music fascinated the audience with its unusual aesthetic, authenticity, and pianistic mastery."

Ruch Muzyczny (Warsaw)

"In Beethoven's 'Appassionata' Sonata, Nishihara Toro displayed a clear sense of the work's dramatic form and sweeping tonal structure capturing the music's rich romantic expression and intensity. Importantly, the pianist never interjected unwarranted gestures or hurried the phrasing and rhythm, wisely allowing the music to gradually unfold thereby permitting the contrasting sections to develop and build to climaxes. Liszt provided a perfect vehicle for the pianist's considerable technique and explosive chords, but it was in Chopin that Nishihara Toro communicated his deepest affection for the romantic period, sculpturing each phrase with their interiors echoes and variations along with well defined dynamics, while at the same time allowing the music to move forward with an uncanny sense of rhythmic freedom."

Musical Opinion (London)