Ryo Yanagitani has distinguished himself as one of Canada's most promising young concert artists. His most recent success includes winning the gold medal at the 10^th San Antonio International Piano Competition, where he was also given special recognition for a performance of the complete Chopin Ballades.  Among other honors, he is also the grand prize winner of the Hugo Kauder International Piano competition and a laureate of the Minnesota International Piano-e-Competition, the Dr. Luis Sigall International Piano competition in Vina del Mar (Chile), and the Hilton Head International Piano Competition.

Ryo has made concerto appearances with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, the Montreal Metropolitan Orchestra, Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Hartford Symphony Orchestra, and the Moroccan Symphony Orchestra among others.  In the 2010/11 season, he will be performing concerti with the San Antonio Symphony Orchestra and the Kerrville Symphony Orchestra.

In addition to many solo recitals, he has been in demand as a chamber musician, performing in a wide range of settings, from the duo sonata repertoire to large ensembles. His most recent collaboration with eminent flutist Ransom Wilson has taken him to Moscow for performances of Canadian and American music. He is presently an active member of the Musique a la Mode chamber ensemble in New York, specializing in the performance of new music and unusual works seldom heard in public. Ryo Yanagitani is also pianist of Duo Chrysalis with cellist Jacques Lee Wood, and their collaboration will take them on a tour of performances across the United States and Korea in the upcoming season.

A recipient of many scholarships and awards, Ryo has been endowed twice by the Canadian Arts Council with a grant as an Emerging Artist, and is also a recipient of the Arthur Foote Scholarship from the Harvard Musical Association. He is  an artist-in-residence of the Maxwell Shepherd Fund of Connecticut, and a pianist of the Swiss Global Artistic Foundation. Ryo is also increasingly recognized not only as a performer but also a pedagogue, and is frequently asked to adjudicate competitions and conduct masterclasses.

Ryo Yanagitani received his Masters of Music degree from the Yale School of Music under Boris Berman, a Bachelor Degree in Piano Performance from the University of British Columbia under Doctor Henri-Paul Sicsic, and an Artist Diploma from the Cleveland Institute under Sergei Babayan. He recently completed his residency requirement of the Yale School of Music Doctor of Musical Arts Degree, and currently resides in New Haven, Connecticut.