Lisa Tahara
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With over 30 years of accompanying experience, Lisa has played for thousands of events including recitals, exams, lessons, auditions, rehearsals, church services and weddings. She has been the choral accompanist for numerous ensembles including the Hart House Chorus at the University of Toronto. Lisa has also played most of the standard chamber music repertoire including sonatas and showpieces for violin, cello, viola. As a graduate teaching assistant, she was a collaborative pianist for both vocal and instrumental classes at the University of Toronto between 2008-2015.
Born in Japan and raised in Canada, pianist Dr. Lisa Tahara first came to public attention with her concerto debut aged 15 with the Burnaby Symphony Orchestra. Critically acclaimed performances followed in venues across Europe, Mexico, Canada, and the United States both as a chamber musician and as a soloist.
At 17, Lisa was a prizewinner at the CFMTA National Piano Competition held in St. John's, Newfoundland. As an undergraduate student, she won several concerto competitions which led to a performance of the Schumann Piano Concerto with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and the Rachmaninoff Third Piano Concerto with both the University of Victoria Symphony Orchestra and the Sooke Philharmonic Orchestra. She also performed renowned Canadian composer Denis Gougeon’s Piano Concerto with the Orchestre symphonique de Québec. She received numerous other awards and scholarships from festivals and music societies while completing her music studies.
A career highlight included a successful European debut in 2019 performing with the Danube Symphony Orchestra (in Budapest, Hungary), after which the same orchestra called her a few months later to replace a suddenly injured colleague. This saw Lisa fly on only a few days’ notice to Europe and give a performance of Rachmaninoff’s Second Piano Concerto which was tremendously well received by the local press and colleagues alike.
Lisa studied at the University of Victoria with the late Robin Wood and May Ling Kwok and the University of Toronto with Jamie Parker and Henri-Paul Sicsic on full-scholarships throughout, in addition to the Mozarteum in Salzburg and the Wiener Musikseminar in Vienna as a three-time recipient of the Johann Strauss scholarship. Since moving to Toronto, she has frequently performed as a concerto soloist with several orchestras in Ontario including the Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra (SPO), the Westben Festival Orchestra, and the Georgian Bay Symphony Orchestra. Most recently, Lisa performed Saint-Saëns’ Piano Concerto No. 2 with the SPO.
A sought-after chamber musician and collaborative pianist, Lisa has over twenty-five years of experience working with instrumentalists and vocalists. As a founding member of the Zuhara Duo, Lisa has worked on most of the standard repertoire for cello and piano. Furthermore, she has also performed numerous piano trios, quartets, and other larger ensemble works, including quintets with the Penderecki String Quartet and members of the St. Lawrence String Quartet. Twice, she became one of only eight pianists chosen for the internationally renowned collaborative piano internship at the Banff Centre. Over the years, Lisa has been invited to many chamber music festivals including the Toronto Summer Music Festival, St. Lawrence String Quartet Chamber Music Seminar, Ottawa International Chamber Music Festival, and the Festival Del Lago.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Lisa began a YouTube project that involved recording all the works of the Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) Celebration Series. Her videos have garnered over 4 million views and she currently has almost 10,000 subscribers on her channel. After giving the world premiere, she was also chosen as the pianist to record for Frank Horvat’s pandemic album in Roy Thomson Hall. The album, entitled ‘Music for Self-Isolation’, was chosen as one of Canada’s Top 21 classical albums of 2021 by the CBC.
As a multi-faceted artist, Lisa was invited by Canadian director France Benoit to star in a short film, entitled Kiri’s Piano, based on a true story about a Japanese Canadian female pianist who was sent to an internment camp during the Second World War. The project was shot in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories in 2013. For the film, Lisa performed and recorded Ravel’s Une barque sur l’océan which also served as the film’s soundtrack.
A devoted and passionate music educator, Lisa joined the faculty at the University of Toronto in 2019. Dr. Tahara’s interests in music and how it affects the quality of life for older adults inspired her to conduct keyboard classes involving improvisation at a retirement home as part of her doctoral dissertation. As an RCM ambassador, she is also a member of the College of Examiners and has adjudicated numerous festivals in Canada including the inaugural Music Lights the Way Festival and the Toronto and Kingston Kiwanis Festivals. http://www.lisatahara.com
Born in Japan and raised in Canada, pianist Dr. Lisa Tahara first came to public attention with her concerto debut aged 15 with the Burnaby Symphony Orchestra. Critically acclaimed performances followed in venues across Europe, Mexico, Canada, and the United States both as a chamber musician and as a soloist.
At 17, Lisa was a prizewinner at the CFMTA National Piano Competition held in St. John's, Newfoundland. As an undergraduate student, she won several concerto competitions which led to a performance of the Schumann Piano Concerto with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and the Rachmaninoff Third Piano Concerto with both the University of Victoria Symphony Orchestra and the Sooke Philharmonic Orchestra. She also performed renowned Canadian composer Denis Gougeon’s Piano Concerto with the Orchestre symphonique de Québec. She received numerous other awards and scholarships from festivals and music societies while completing her music studies.
A career highlight included a successful European debut in 2019 performing with the Danube Symphony Orchestra (in Budapest, Hungary), after which the same orchestra called her a few months later to replace a suddenly injured colleague. This saw Lisa fly on only a few days’ notice to Europe and give a performance of Rachmaninoff’s Second Piano Concerto which was tremendously well received by the local press and colleagues alike.
Lisa studied at the University of Victoria with the late Robin Wood and May Ling Kwok and the University of Toronto with Jamie Parker and Henri-Paul Sicsic on full-scholarships throughout, in addition to the Mozarteum in Salzburg and the Wiener Musikseminar in Vienna as a three-time recipient of the Johann Strauss scholarship. Since moving to Toronto, she has frequently performed as a concerto soloist with several orchestras in Ontario including the Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra (SPO), the Westben Festival Orchestra, and the Georgian Bay Symphony Orchestra. Most recently, Lisa performed Saint-Saëns’ Piano Concerto No. 2 with the SPO.
A sought-after chamber musician and collaborative pianist, Lisa has over twenty-five years of experience working with instrumentalists and vocalists. As a founding member of the Zuhara Duo, Lisa has worked on most of the standard repertoire for cello and piano. Furthermore, she has also performed numerous piano trios, quartets, and other larger ensemble works, including quintets with the Penderecki String Quartet and members of the St. Lawrence String Quartet. Twice, she became one of only eight pianists chosen for the internationally renowned collaborative piano internship at the Banff Centre. Over the years, Lisa has been invited to many chamber music festivals including the Toronto Summer Music Festival, St. Lawrence String Quartet Chamber Music Seminar, Ottawa International Chamber Music Festival, and the Festival Del Lago.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Lisa began a YouTube project that involved recording all the works of the Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) Celebration Series. Her videos have garnered over 4 million views and she currently has almost 10,000 subscribers on her channel. After giving the world premiere, she was also chosen as the pianist to record for Frank Horvat’s pandemic album in Roy Thomson Hall. The album, entitled ‘Music for Self-Isolation’, was chosen as one of Canada’s Top 21 classical albums of 2021 by the CBC.
As a multi-faceted artist, Lisa was invited by Canadian director France Benoit to star in a short film, entitled Kiri’s Piano, based on a true story about a Japanese Canadian female pianist who was sent to an internment camp during the Second World War. The project was shot in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories in 2013. For the film, Lisa performed and recorded Ravel’s Une barque sur l’océan which also served as the film’s soundtrack.
A devoted and passionate music educator, Lisa joined the faculty at the University of Toronto in 2019. Dr. Tahara’s interests in music and how it affects the quality of life for older adults inspired her to conduct keyboard classes involving improvisation at a retirement home as part of her doctoral dissertation. As an RCM ambassador, she is also a member of the College of Examiners and has adjudicated numerous festivals in Canada including the inaugural Music Lights the Way Festival and the Toronto and Kingston Kiwanis Festivals. http://www.lisatahara.com
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