Juho Pohjonen, piano February 2, 2011

One of the brightest young instrumental talents to emerge from Finland today, Juho Pohjonen has attracted great attention as one of the Nordic country's most intriguing and talented pianists.

Pohjonen's studies began in 1989, when he entered the Junior Academy of the Sibelius Academy, Helsinki. He has studied with Meri Louhos and Hui-Ying Liu at the Sibelius Academy, where he completed his Master's Degree in 2008. In addition, Pohjohnen has participated in several master classes of world-class pianists such as Andr￠s Schiff, Leon Fleisher, Jacob Lateiner and Barry Douglas.

Pohjonen has given recitals in Dresden, Hamburg, Helsinki, London (Wigmore Hall), New York (Carnegie Hall), San Francisco, Vancouver, Warsaw and at the Lucerne Piano, Savonlinna and Bergen Festivals. He has performed with orchestras including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Danish National, Malmo, Finnish Radio Symphony, Helsinki Philharmonic, Lahti Symphony, with whom he toured Japan, Atlanta Symphony, Bournemouth Symphony, Scottish Chamber and Philharmonia Orchestras.

Concerto highlights for the 10/11 season include performances of Beethoven's Piano Concerto No.3 with the San Francisco Symphony under Marek Janowski and with the Philharmonia Orchestra under Esa-Pekka Salonen, Ravel's G major Piano Concerto with Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and conductor Hugh Wolff, as well as Salonen's Piano Concerto with Orquesta Sinfonica Castilla y Leon and Lionel Bringuier and with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen.

Pohjonen has been widely praised for his interpretations of music from Bach to Esa-Pekka Salonen. Anthony Tommasini, senior music critic of the New York Times, selected his New York debut recital at Carnegie's Weill Recital Hall in 2004 as one of the most memorable concert events heard in New York during that year.

Official Website: http://sfperformances.org/performances/1011/TillFellner.html