Gabriela Montero

A classical piano prodigy from Venezuela, Gabriela Montero has played with some of the world's most storied orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, the Boston Philharmonic, and the NDR in Hannover, Germany. Her first performance, at the age of five, led to a concerto debut with the Venezuelan Youth Orchestra ‘Simon Bolivar' just three years later. She was given a scholarship by her nation's government, and went on to study in the United States. Before she reached her teens, she had already gained worldwide recognition and won the Baldwin National Competition and the AMSA Young Artist International Piano Competition. Eventually, Montero would perform at such storied venues as the Lincoln Center, the Herkulessaal in Munich, and Orchard Hall in Tokyo. 2005 saw the release of Montero's debut album, Piano Recital, on EMI Classics. A two disc affair, it contained work by Liszt and Chopin, and a disc containing her own improvisational work. Bach and Beyond followed in 2006, and in 2007 she released the album Baroque.