Viney-Grinberg Piano Duo
Liam Viney and Anna Grinberg began playing together while students at Yale, later developing into a professional ensemble while living in Los Angeles. Liam and Anna are natives of Australia and Israel respectively. After a decade in the United States, they are now based in Australia at the University of Queensland. The duo has performed in festivals and concert series in Australia, the United States and Israel. Their recent recital at "Piano Spheres", Los Angeles, was described by L.A. Times critic Rick Schultz as "sure to be on the Best of 2011 list". Anna and Liam have appeared together as soloists with Queensland Symphony Orchestra, were featured pianists at the 2010 Bangalow Music Festival, Yale University's Messiaen Centenary Celebration, and have made live broadcasts on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's "Classic FM" Sunday Live program and the ABC’s Keys to Music program with Graham Abbott. They accompanied the great ballerina Nina Ananiashvili’s solo appearance at Royce Hall with the State Ballet of Georgia during her 2008 tour of the United States. Critic Ivan Katz said of their duo playing at the Horowitz Series, Yale University: “I cannot imagine a finer performance, as this one had everything, illuminating every bar of the music…The audience went wild…”
The Viney-Grinberg Duo is committed to developing a unique repertoire based on exploring classics of the two-piano literature, as well as creating new works through commissions. Since forming in 2006, the duo has commissioned six new works from composers Ezra Laderman, Marc Lowenstein, Shaun Naidoo and Yevgeniy Sharlat. In 2010 they gave the world premiere of Stephen Leek’s "Warrumbungles Burning" for two pianos and choir with the St. Peter’s Chorale, and released a CD of two-piano and choir works by Leek, Jonathan Dove and Mary Ellen Childs. Upcoming performances include the complete four volumes of Makrokosmos by George Crumb in a one-day event at the Campbelltown Arts Centre, the Tyalgum Festival and a recital in the Kawai Series at QPAC.
As individual pianists their careers have seen concerts in the U.S., Australia, Israel, England, Italy, Germany, and Belgium. Described by the Los Angeles Times as “powerful”, Anna's engagements have included solo and chamber music performances at the Bangalow Music Festival, Royce Hall Los Angeles, the International Cello Festival in Mizra, Israel, and New York's Weil Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. She has performed as soloist with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, and the Paul Mellon Chamber Orchestra. Anna has appeared on the faculty artist series of Chapman University and Yale University. She was the recipient of several America-Israel Cultural Foundation Scholarships, and was supported in a year of study at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels.
Liam has appeared as soloist with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, the Queensland Conservatorium Symphony Orchestra, the Queensland Youth Orchestra, the Hartford Symphony, and the CalArts Chamber Orchestra in concertos ranging from those of Mozart to Ligeti. He has made solo and chamber appearances in concert series and festivals including the Bangalow Festival, the Beijing Modern Music Festival, the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, the Dartington Summer School, "New Paths" festival of New York, “Piano Spheres” of Los Angeles, the "Keynote", "Celebrations", and "Kawai" series in Australia, and the "Tyalgum Festival". Liam has won competitions in both Australia and the U.S., including First Prize in the Lev Vlassenko Piano Competition, where he also won the "People's Choice Prize" and prizes for "Best performance of an Australian Work", and "Best Performance of a Classical Sonata". Liam also won First Prize in the Yamaha Australian Youth Piano Competition, (the prize for which was a grand piano), the Queensland Piano Competition on two occasions, the City of Sydney Piano Scholarship, and the Connecticut Young Artists Piano Competition. Liam's 2008 solo recital of all Australian music (including five U.S. premieres) at Zipper Hall in Los Angeles was named “Best of 2008”; one of the top ten musical events that year in Los Angeles, by music critic Rick Schultz.
Both Anna and Liam have Doctorates in piano performance, from Stony Brook University and Yale University respectively. Anna has served on the music faculties of Yale and Chapman University, and both of them taught at the California Institute of the Arts. Anna and Liam now work together in the piano department at the University of Queensland, Australia, where they are also Ensemble-in Residence.
Viney-Grinberg Piano Duo
Liam Viney, Biography
Australian pianist Liam Viney is a soloist, collaborative artist and teacher. First prize-winner of the Lev Vlassenko Piano Competition, Liam has performed regularly in Australia, the U.S., Europe and Israel. Liam is pursuing a multi-faceted musical career centered on performing a broad range of musical styles, with an emphasis on new music and ideas. He has appeared as soloist with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, the Hartford Symphony, the Queensland Conservatorium Symphony Orchestra, the Queensland Youth Orchestra, the New Century Players and the CalArts Chamber Orchestra in concertos ranging from those of Mozart and Beethoven, to Prokofiev and Ligeti. He has given solo recitals and chamber music performances in concert series and festivals such as the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, (where he premiered the chamber ensemble version Rautavaara's Clarinet Concerto with Richard Stolzman), the Los Angeles Philharmonic's "Green Umbrella" series, The Dartington International Summer School, (where he gave the British premiere of Matthew Hindson's "Plastic Jubilation"), the "New Paths" festival of New York, Melbourne's "Next Wave" festival, the Brisbane Festival, the "Keynote", "Celebrations", and "Kawai" series of Australia, and the "Tyalgum Festival". He has also recorded solo radio programs for ABC FM radio's "Young Australia" program and 4MBS radio station.
Liam's involvement with new music has led to performances with groups such as Australia's "Elision Ensemble", and the U.S.-based "New Century Players" and "Inauthentica". He was soloist with CalArts' "New Century Players" in Berio's "Points on the Curve to Find" at REDCAT, Disney Hall. He has also been featured on several of L.A.'s esteemed Monday Evening Concerts. Other recent performances include a duo appearance with violinist Roberto Cani in the UCLA Live series at Royce Hall, Los Angeles, with the great ballerina Nina Ananiashvili and the Georgian State Ballet. He also made a guest appearance playing Stockhausen's "Mantra" with Vicki Ray in Piano Spheres' 2005 season, described as "first-rate" by the Los Angeles Times.
Liam has won competitions in both Australia and the U.S. Apart from First Prize in the 2001 Lev Vlassenko Piano Competition, he also won secondary prizes there such as the "People's Choice Prize" and prizes for "Best performance of an Australian Work", and "Best Performance of a Classical Sonata". The Courier Mail's review of the competition's final stage with orchestra described his playing as having "maturity and flair". Other competitions Liam has won include First Prize in the Yamaha Australian Youth Piano Competition, (the prize for which was a grand piano), a coveted "Queen's Trust" award, the City of Sydney Piano Scholarship, the Queensland Piano Competition on two occasions, and the Connecticut Young Artists Piano Competition.
Liam has formed a two-piano team with pianist Anna Grinberg, and together they explore classics of the two-piano literature, as well as create new works through commissions. Since 2006, they have commissioned four new works, including a major work by Ezra Laderman, President of the Academy of Arts and Letters; "Interior Landscapes", which they premiered at Steinway Hall in 2006. They have also commissioned composers Shaun Naidoo and Marc Lowenstein. Critic Ivan Katz said of their duo playing at the Horowitz Series, Yale University: “I cannot imagine a finer performance, as this one had everything, illuminating every bar of the music…The audience went wild…”
Liam earned a Doctorate in piano performance from Yale University's School of Music, where his teacher was Boris Berman. After graduating, in 2006 Liam shared a recital program of Prokofiev piano sonatas with Berman in Israel, and subsequently co-edited Berman's book "Prokofiev's Piano Sonatas" published by Yale University Press. He also received a Master of Music degree from Yale. Earlier, he completed his Bachelor of Music with First-class Honours at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music, where he performed the Australian premiere of Peter Sculthorpe's "Simori" at the opening ceremony of the Conservatorium's new building, and studied with Natasha Vlassenko, and Stephen Savage. Liam served five years on keyboard faculty at the California Institute of the Arts. He is now heading the piano department at the University of Queensland.
Anna Grinberg, Biography
Anna Grinberg is Performance Research Fellow at the University of Queensland, School of Music. Born in the former Soviet Union, and later becoming an Israeli citizen, Anna’s career has seen concerts in the U.S., Australia, Israel, England, Italy, Germany, and Belgium. Hailed by the Los Angeles Times as “powerful”, Anna's engagements have included solo and chamber music performances at Royce Hall, Los Angeles, New York's Weil Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall and other venues in the U.S. She has performed as soloist with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, and the Paul Mellon Chamber Orchestra. She has appeared on the Faculty Artist series of Chapman University, California Institute of the Arts, and Yale University. While studying in Israel Anna won prizes in several competitions, including the Katz Piano Competition on two occasions. She has also been the recipient of America-Israel Cultural Foundation Scholarships, and was supported in a year of study at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels. Anna was a major prizewinner in the Connecticut Young Artists Piano Competition on two occasions.