A pianist of Òunerring, warm-toned refinement, revealing judicious glimmers of power,Ó [Los Angeles Times]
Robert Edward Thies is an artist renowned for his consummate musicianship and poetic temperament.
He first captured worldwide attention in 1995 when he won the Gold Medal at the Second International Prokofiev
Competition in St. Petersburg, Russia. With this victory, Thies became the only American pianist to win first prize in a
Russian piano competition since Van CliburnÕs famed triumph in Moscow in 1958.
Praised for his Òthoughtful and intensely moving interpretationsÓ Thies enjoys a diverse career as an orchestral soloist,
recitalist, and chamber musician. His concerto repertoire includes over thirty-five works, spanning 200 years. He
demonstrated exceptional versatility when in one season alone he performed thirteen different concertos, garnering
consistent critical acclaim. He has appeared with such orchestras as the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic, Liep_ja
Symphony (Latvia), Mexico City Philharmonic, the National Symphony of Mexico, Auckland Philharmonia (New
Zealand), Fort Worth Symphony, Pasadena Symphony, and the Naples Philharmonic. His concerts have been broadcast
throughout the United States, Russia, Estonia, Latvia, Bolivia, Hungary, Mexico, and New Zealand.
Mr. Thies is a frequent recitalist in the United States and abroad, and he is known for his genuine interpretations of
intriguing and delicately balanced programs. He made his South American debut in Cochabamba, Bolivia in 2002, and
followed this with a European tour. Under the sponsorship of Community Concerts, he completed a forty-city
tour of the United States in 2001. In May 1999, he was honored with a special invitation to perform in the
Hermitage Theater in St. Petersburg, Russia, built for Empress Catherine the Great.
A dedicated chamber musician, Thies continues to expand his already impressive repertoire and collaborates with many
esteemed musicians. He has appeared with established ensembles such as the Angeles, Calder, and New Hollywood
String Quartets, and has also performed on the chamber series of Camerata Pacifica, Mladi, Dilijan and Jacaranda. He is
founder and artistic director of The Thies Consort which performs a wide range of works of varying instrumentation and
size, thus allowing for innovative and unique programming with musical continuity based on a style, composer, or other
concept.
ThiesÕs Ògrace and unsurpassed lyricismÓ are in high demand at festivals and special celebrations. In 2002, in
conjunction with the Hollywood premiere of Roman PolanskiÕs film The Pianist, he performed Wladislaw SzpilmanÕs
Concertino for Piano and Orchestra with the Los Angeles Jewish Symphony. That same year Thies earned national
recognition for his collaboration with noted cultural historian and author, Joseph Horowitz, in the Pacific SymphonyÕs
Dvo_‡k in America festival. To commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of Arnold SchoenbergÕs death, Thies was invited to
Mexico CityÕs Palacio de Bellas Artes in 2001 to perform the composerÕs seldom-heard Piano Concerto with the
National Symphony of Mexico. During the fall of 1997 Mr. Thies worked alongside distinguished Polish composer
Henryk G—recki in the United States premiere of his Sonata for Piano. Thies has performed at the music festivals of
Ravinia, Aspen, Sedona, Cape May, Music Academy of the West, as well as the San Luis Obispo Mozart Festival.
In Los Angeles, Thies has worked and recorded with many of the top studio musicians, and has also worked with film
composers James Newton Howard, James Horner, Danny Elfman, and Lalo Schifrin. ThiesÕs recordings can be found on
the Centaur, Albany, and Golden Tone labels. Recently, a chamber music recording Common Ground, was released,
which features works by LA composer, Gernot Wolfgang. In February 2006 Robert released his debut solo recording Live
in Recital. In June 2006, he recorded a collaborative CD Difference with the Croatian flutist, Damjan Krajacic. This CD
is a compilation of original compositions that Robert had a strong hand in arranging, and the music integrates classical
and jazz styles with improvisation and world music influences.
Mr. Thies is also sought after as a master class teacher, chamber music coach, lecturer, and adjudicator across the globe.
In 2003, he joined the faculty of the American Institute of Musical Studies in Graz, Austria, to work beside his former
teacher, Harold Heiberg, an authority on German art song. There Thies has been coaching singers and pianists, preparing
them for a LiederabendÑthe culminating event of the six-week festival.
Born in New Jersey in 1971, Thies now resides in Los Angeles. His teachers have included Robert Turner and Daniel
Pollack, both protŽgŽs of the legendary Russian pedagogue Madame Rosina Lhevinne, and the great pianist Josef
Lhevinne. Mr. Thies is a Steinway artist. For more information, visit Robert Edward Thies at: www.robertthies.org.