Benjamin Hochman

Pianist Benjamin Hochman’s eloquent and virtuosic performances blend colorful artistry with poetic interpretation exciting audiences and critics alike. He performs in major cities around the world as a respected orchestral soloist, recitalist and chamber musician, working with a celebrated array of renowned conductors and colleagues. An impassioned and intelligent exponent of diverse composers, he frequently juxtaposes familiar works with the unfamiliar in his concert programs to help illuminate each work for the listener, a talent further illustrated by his thoughtful recorded repertoire. Highlights of the 2017-2018 season include Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 12 in A major, K.414, with the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra, where he serves as the soloist and conductor; under the baton of David Felberg, he reprises this work with Santa Fe Pro Musica Orchestra. Chamber music performances in 2017-18 include collaborations with the Borromeo String Quartet at Shriver Hall, members of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra at the Italian Academy of Columbia University, and at Santa Fe and Norfolk chamber music festivals, among others. Winner of the 2011 Avery Fisher Career Grant, Mr. Hochman has performed with the Los Angeles, New York and Israel Philharmonics, the Chicago, Pittsburgh, San Francisco, Cincinnati, Houston, Seattle, Vancouver, New Jersey, American and Portland Symphonies, the New York String Orchestra, IRIS Orchestra in Memphis, Prague Philharmonia, Istanbul State Orchestra, and the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Canada under eminent conductors such as David Robertson, Gianandrea Noseda, John Storgårds, Pinchas Zukerman, Jun Märkl, Leon Botstein, Bramwell Tovey, Jahja Ling, Kazuyoshi Akiyama, Kaspar Zehnder, Michael Stern, Jaime Laredo and Joshua Weilerstein. Under early influences of Otto Werner Mueller at Curtis and with a deep admiration for the rich orchestral repertoire, Mr. Hochman has recently pursued serious conducting studies. They resulted in Mr. Hochman’s appointment as the musical assistant to Louis Langrée and guest conductors at the 2016 Mostly Mozart Festival, including Thierry Fischer, Jeffrey Kahane, Matthew Halls and Paavo Järvi. He has served as assistant conductor at the Orlando Philharmonic, and led the Roosevelt Island Symphony, a specialized ensemble consisting of New York’s top musicians, in performance.  This season, he conducts members of The Orchestra Now and serves as assistant conductor to Leon Botstein for American Symphony Orchestra’s concerts at Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium and Alice Tully Hall. In 2009, Mr. Hochman’s debut solo recording of works by Bach, Berg and Webern was released by Artek, followed by his second solo album titled Homage to Schubert for Avie Records in 2013. His latest album on Avie Records, Variations, was based on his 2014 recital at 92nd Street Y which was recognized by The New York Times as one of the top ten classical music events of the year. He has also recorded chamber music by Lawrence Dillon with the Daedalus Quartet (Bridge Records) and Lisa Bielawa (Innova Recordings). Born in Jerusalem, Benjamin Hochman began his studies at the Conservatory of the Rubin Academy in Jerusalem, and is a graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music and the Mannes College of Music where his principal teachers were Claude Frank and Richard Goode. His studies were supported by the America-Israel Cultural Foundation. He is currently on the piano faculty of Bard College. Benjamin Hochman is a Steinway Artist and lives in New York City. His website is www.benjaminhochman.com