loading site...
            |<< >>| Pause
Jose Ramon Mendez
March 29, 2018New WebsiteWelcome!


Described as "an artist with a polished sound and tremendous constructive power" and hailed by the Hoja del Lunes de Madrid, as "the Spanish pianist of his generation," Jose Ramon Mendez is one of the most exciting Spanish pianists of today.

Recent performances include Chopin's first piano concerto with the Cuban National Symphony Orchestra and Manuel de Falla's "Nights in the Gardens of Spain" with the Nittany Valley Symphony, as well as numerous solo and chamber music performances in the United States, Europe, and Asia. His playing has been featured on WQXR's "Performance Today" and on Classical KMFA. He has been a guest performer at many music festivals, including Caramoor Festival, Barge Music Series, Festival Internacional de Piano de las Islas Canarias, Music at Penns Woods, Amalfi Coast International Music Festival, "Tocando el Cielo," Musica en Compostela, the Stony Brook International Piano Festival, and the Santander International Music Festival to name a few. As a chamber musician, Mendez has collaborated with such distinguished artists as Karl Leister, Itzhak Perlman, Michael Tree, Pascual Martinez-Nieto, and Pinchas Zukerman.

Mendez received his first music instruction from his father and by the age of seven was already performing on Spanish television and radio stations. He made his solo debut at the age of eleven at the Oviedo Philharmonic Society in Oviedo, Spain, the youngest performer ever to do so in the history of the society. He first gained international recognition when he performed Liszt's first piano concerto under the direction of Sergiu Commissiona at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. Since then, he has concertized extensively in his native Spain, the United States, Italy, England, Portugal, Holland, and Japan to great acclaim. With his poetry, intellect, and masterful technique, he has been praised by critics and celebrated by audiences around the world.

At the age of 18, Mendez's success brought him to the United States, where he began his studies at Manhattan School of Music in New York City. He completed his Bachelors and Masters Degrees in piano performance with renowned pedagogue Solomon Mikowsky and went on to finish his Doctorate of Musical Arts under the tutelage of Byron Janis and Miyoko Lotto. During his stay in New York, he won top prizes in many international competitions, including Pilar Bayona International Piano Competition, Hilton Head Island International Piano Competition, Frederick Chopin Competition in New York, and Hermanos Guerrero International Piano Competition, among others.

Mendez's professional teaching career began in 1996, when he was invited to teach master classes at the Gijon School of Music. Since then, he has given master classes in numerous cities in Spain, including Lugo, Aviles, Valencia, Gijon, Oviedo, Santiago de Compostela, and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, as well as in the United States at top music schools such as Oberlin Conservatory, Northwestern University, University of Michigan, and Columbus State University. Mendez also taught as assistant teacher to Miyoko Lotto at the Perlman Music Program, a program for gifted young musicians founded by the world famous violinist Itzhak Perlman. Currently in the summers, he is the Artistic Director and on the faculty of the Gijon International Piano Festival in Gijon, Spain, as well as frequently being invited to perform and teach at various festivals, such as Atlantic Music Festival, Palmetto International Piano Festival, Porto Pianofest Rebecca Penneys Piano Festival, and Adamant Music Festival, among others.

Formerly on the piano faculty at University of Texas at Austin, New York University, Pennsylvania State University, and Northwestern University's Bienen School of Music, he is currently an Assistant Professor of Piano at the University of Northern Arizona, Flagstaff.

Jose Ramon Mendez is a Yamaha Artist.




Coming soon...

Past Performances

Friday, November 10, 2023
Recital at the Bachauer Concert Series
Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center
Salt Lake City, UT 84101
Wednesday, August 02, 2023
Guest Artist Recital at Porto Pianofest
Reitoria da Universidade do Porto
4099-002 Porto, Portugal
Sunday, July 23, 2023
Faculty performance at Adamant Music School
Adamant, VT 05640
Saturday, July 08, 2023
Guest Artist Recital at Palmetto International Piano Festival
Memorial Hall at Erskine College
Due West, SC 29639
Thursday, May 11, 2023
Recital at David L. Abell Piano Master Series
Lani Hall at the Herp Albert School of Music at UCLA
Los Angeles, CA 90095
Friday, October 28, 2022
Guest Artist Recital East Tennessee State University
Martin Center's Powell Recital Hall
Johnson City, TN 37614
Monday, October 10, 2022
Guest Artist Recital at Lynn University
Amarnick-Goldstein Concert Hall
Boca Raton, FL 33431
Friday, May 20, 2022
Piano Recital at the Boal Mansion Concert Series
Boal Mansion
Boalsburg, PA
Sunday, January 09, 2022
Homage concert to Jesus Gonzalez Alonso
Centro de Cultura Antiguo Instituto
33201 Gijón, Asturias, Spain
March 28, 2017
6@6
Yamaha Artist Services Piano Salon
New York, New York
October 27, 2016
Solo Recital at Marian Garcia Piano Festival and Competition
Esber Recital Hall at Penn State University
University Park, PA 16802
August 3, 2016
Porto Piano Festival
TBD
Porto, Portugal
July 14, 2016
Solo Recital at the Shanghai Piano Festival
TBA
Shanghai, China
July 3, 2016
Nights in the Gardens of Spain
Forest Studio at the Pierre Monteux School and Summer Festival
Hanock, Maine
June 18, 2016
Music at Penns Woods: Festival Orchestra with Jose Ramon Mendez,
Esber Recital Hall
University Park, PA
June 15, 2016
Mozart/Schuloff/Caplet
Esber Recital Hall
State College, PA
April 25, 2015
Spanish impressions
Eisenhower Auditorium, Center for the Performing Arts at Penn St
University Park, PA 16802
November 23, 2014
Guest Recital
Oberlin Conservatory, Warner Concert Hall
Oberlin, OH 44074
November 22, 2014
Guest Master Class
Oberlin Conservatory, Warner Concert Hall
Oberlin, OH 44704
November 16, 2014
Spanish American Music Council presents Jose Ramon Mendez, piani
Tenri Cultural Institute
New York, New York
December 10, 2013
Solo Piano Recital, NYU Faculty Recital Series
Frederick Loewe Theatre
New York, New York 10012
October 23, 2013
Faculty Showcase Recital
Frederick Loewe Theatre, New York University
New York, New York
November 1, 2012
NYU Artist Faculty in Concert
Frederick Loewe Theatre
New York, New York
December 4, 2010
Solo Recital
Merkin Recital Hall
New York, NY
October 15, 2010
Faculty Showcase Recital
Frederick Loewe Theater at New York University (Steinhardt)
New York, NY
July 5, 2010
Solo Recital - Stony Brook International Piano Festival
Carson Auditorium - The Stony Brook School
Stony Brook, NY
January 10, 2010
Solo Recital
Episcopal Church of Christ the Redeemer
Pelham, NY
October 11, 2009
Solo Performance with Galician Chamber Orchestra
Merkin Recital Hall
New York, NY

Reviews

La promesa cumplida de un virtuoso: José Ramón Méndez retorna al Filarmónica de Oviedo - La NuevEl pianista derrocha talento en el teatro, donde actuó con 11 añosclick here for more info

Festivals

Gijón International Piano Festival | Official WebsiteSet on the spectacular coast of northern Spain, the Gijon International Piano Festival offers advanced pianists ages 16 and older an opportunity for two weeks of master classes, recitals, and individual instruction with internationally renowned piano professors...http://gijonpiano.com/
Palmetto International Piano Festivalhttps://www.palmettopianofestival.com

Site Credits

Lisa-Marie MazzuccoLong Island based classical music photographer Lisa-Marie Mazzucco. Lisa Marie Mazzucco, photographer and make up artist, Montauk, New York, NY.http://www.lisamazzucco.com/
Aestheticize MediaAestheticize Media is a web/graphic design and photography firm based in the Greater Toronto Area.http://www.aestheticize.com/

Other Links

‎Lost Romance by Jose Ramon Mendez on Apple Musicclick here for more info
For booking and all other inquires, contact Jose Ramon Mendez at:
jose@joseramonmendez.com

music photos video
Rogelio Groba
Malleus Animatus
for Piano & String Orchestra
Orquesta Galega de Camara
Rogelio Groba - Concertmaster/Conductor
LISTEN
Rogelio Groba
Concerto in Arcos
for Piano & String Orchestra
Orquesta Galega de Camara
Rogelio Groba - Concertmaster/Conductor
LISTEN
Franz Liszt
Les Jeux d’eau á la Villa d’Este
LISTEN
Karol Szymanowski
Etude Op. 4 No. 1
LISTEN
Karol Szymanowski
Etude Op. 4 No. 3
LISTEN
Karol Szymanowski
Variations on a Theme in b-flat minor, Op. 3
LISTEN
Alexander Scriabin
Mazurka Op. 10 No. 7
LISTEN
Alexander Scriabin
Mazurka Op. 10 No. 8
LISTEN
Alexander Scriabin
Etude Op. 42 No. 5
LISTEN
Sergei Rachmaninov
Sonata No. 2 in b-flat minor, Op. 36
I. Allegro agitato
LISTEN
Sergei Rachmaninov
Sonata No. 2 in b-flat minor, Op. 36
II. Non allegro & III. Allegro molto
LISTEN
music photos video

Jose Ramon Mendez performs at East Tennessee State University
2022 RPPF Soiree: Jose Ramon Mendez - YouTube
2021 RPPF -Jose Ramon Mendez Tone Color Class - YouTube
This class explores and explains touch and tactile perception in the production of tone color at the piano.