Born in
Cyprus, pianist/composer Christos Tsitsaros received his first
formal instruction with Nora Karasik at the Greek Academy of
Music of Nicosia. At the age of 13, he won
first prize in the National Competition of the Conservatory
of Athens. Upon graduating from high school, he moved
to Poland where he studied at the Frédéric Chopin
Academy of Warsaw. Two years later, as a result of winning
the Gina Bachauer Institution Competition in Athens (1981),
he continued his musical studies in Paris and graduated from
the Ecole Normale de Musique de Paris, obtaining the Diplôme
Supérieur d’Exécution with distinction.
A scholarship from the A. G. Leventis Foundation enabled him
to pursue further development at the School of Music of Indiana
University in Bloomington, Indiana, where he received an Artist
Diploma and a Master in Music degree (1989). Subsequently,
he entered the School of Music of the University of Illinois
where he attained a Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance
(1993). His mentors include pianists Jan Ekier, Aldo Ciccolini,
Germaine Mounier, Jean-Claude Pennetier, Leonard Hokanson,
György Sebök, and Ian Hosbon.
Christos is also quite
active as a composer, having won the composition competition
of the 1992 National Conference on Piano Pedagogy, which launched
an ongoing relationship with Hal Leonard Corporation. His
published works include Autumn Sketches, Poetic Moments, Songs
Without Words, (Hal
Leonard), Cinderella Suite, Songs and Dances, and Nine Tales
(Frederick Harris Music). He has also written concert works,
which he regularly performs in concerts.
In addition, he is contributing
composer for the Hal Leonard Student Piano Library and editor
for the Schirmer Performance Edition. Several of his compositions
have been selected by numerous examination systems, including
the National Federation of Music Clubs, the RCM examinations
of the Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto), and the Gina
Bachauer International Junior Piano Competition. In 2001, he
was artist-in-residence at the Helene Wurlitzer Foundation
of New Mexico; the same year, he gave his New York debut recital
at Weill Carnegie Hall. He
regularly appears in workshops and conferences as a performer
and lecturer, and performs as soloist, recitalist, and chamber
musician in Europe, the United States, Russia, and Canada. He
has participated as a clinician and lecturer for the National
Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy, the World Piano Pedagogy Conference,
the Music Teachers National Association Conference, and the
International Conference on European Music Education (St. Petersburg,
Russia).
Christos Tsitsaros is currently Professor
of Piano Pedagogy at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. He
also serves as Piano Chair for the Illinois State Music Teachers
Association.
Four recordings of his original piano works appear under the Centaur Records label (1998, 2007, 2011).