Talon Smith

Age: 18

Hometown: Fresno, CA

School/Teacher: Lighthouse Christian School/Eduardus Halim & Rufus Choi

Exhibiting an innate, passionate musicality and brilliant technical mastery well beyond his years, eighteen-year-old virtuoso pianist and composer Talon Smith won the Gold Prize at the 2016 Gina Bachauer International Junior Piano Competition.  He has performed many solo and orchestral concerts, consistently generating heart-felt and successful enthusiasm in audiences around the globe. Energetic and soulful, his performances display his gifts of authentic depth and rare sensitivity.  His natural ability to connect emotionally with his audience renders him a truly unique artist.  According to the experts, Talon is extraordinary in many ways; he possesses a distinct and deeply musical voice, a remarkable sense of musical structure, grand temperament, and intense poetry – all complimented by stunning technique. Talon’s career has also been marked by many concurrent years of prizes, almost exclusively first place, in solo and concerto piano and composition competitions including Baroque, Paderewski, and Chopin Festivals as well as many other festivals and competitions statewide, nationally, and internationally.

Repertoire

Round 1

Etude in C Major, Op. 10, No. 1 (Ekier)

Etude in E-flat Major, Op. 10, No. 11 (Ekier)

Nocturne in C minor, Op. 48, No. 1 (Ekier)

Barcarolle in F-sharp Major, Op. 60 (Ekier)

Round 2

Ballade No. 4 in F minor, Op. 52 (Ekier)

Waltz in A-flat major, Op. 64, No. 3 (Ekier)

Berceuse in D-flat Major, Op. 57 (Ekier)

Andante spianato et Grande Polonaise brillante, Op. 22 (Ekier)

Round 3

Fantasy in F minor, Op. 49 (Ekier)

Mazurkas, Op. 59 (Ekier)

Sonata in B minor, Op. 58 (Ekier)

Round 4

Piano Concerto in E minor, Op. 11 (Ekier)