Aimi Kobayashi

Aimi Kobayashi (小林 愛実, Kobayashi Aimi, born September 23, 1995) is a Japanese classical pianist.

She lived in Ube, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan until February 2007 and later in Tokyo, started learning the piano at the age of three, played with an orchestra at age seven, and has been receiving tutelage from Yuko Ninomiya since the age of eight.

Kobayashi's awards include three Yamaguchi Prefecture "Glory Culture Prize" and the special Frédéric Chopin passport from the Polish government. She has performed in France, Brazil, Poland, Russia, South Korea, the United States, and Japan in venues such as the Salle Cortot (Paris), Svetlanov Hall (Moscow), Suntory Hall (Japan), and all three halls of the Carnegie Hall Complex (New York City). AADGT (the American Association for Development of the Gifted and Talented), a New York-based non-profit organization, has supported Kobayashi for many years.

In 2010, Kobayashi released her CD/DVD debut, Aimi Kobayashi Debut, followed by another CD, Passion, for EMI Classics Japan. In 2011, she made her acting debut in the Japanese film Sleep directed by Katsumi Sakaguchi. Kobayashi's management company is To-On Artist's Promotion Agency, and she is currently a student at the Curtis Institute of Music.

• 1995 Born on September 23 in Ube, Yamaguchi, Japan.
• 2001 Won 1st prize at the PTNA Piano Competition
• 2002 Won her second 1st prize at the PTNA Piano Competition play Impromptus (Schubert) op.90 no.2
• 2003 Won her third 1st prize at the PTNA Piano Competition
• 2003 Won The Children's Grand Prix at the Tosu City Hupfer Memorial Piano Concours for Peace
• 2004 Won her fourth 1st prize at the PTNA Piano Competition
• 2004 Received the National Sonare Award (Junior Level G)
• 2004 Won the Gold prize at 1st and 2nd grade Elementary School level in the 5th International Chopin Piano Competition in ASIA.
• 2004 Debuted with the Kyushu Symphony Orchestra performing Mozart's Piano Concerto no. 26 "Coronation"
• 2004 Began receiving tutelage under prestigious Japanese piano teacher Yuko Ninomiya
• 2005 Won the first prize in the elementary school division of the Student Music concours of Japan when she was in the fourth grade.
• 2005 Invited to play at Salle Cortot and AADGT Passion of Music at Carnegie Hall.
• 2005 Receives the Aiko Iguchi Prize, Nomura Prize, Tszuki Music Prize, and Mainichi Shogakusei Shimbun prize
• 2006 Performed at Tokyo Opera City Hall with the Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra in January.
• 2006 Performed at the AADGT Passion of Music at Carnegie Hall again on October 29.
• 2006 Performed Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 26 ("Coronation") with Vladimir Spivakov conducting the Moscow Chamber Orchestra and as an encore she played Chopin's 1st Impromptu at Svetlanov Hall (Moscow International House of Music) in Moscow on December 24.
• 2006 Receives the Yamaguchi Prefecture's "Glory Culture Prize" three times (three medals)
• 2007 Enrolled as a scholarship student at the Toho Gakuen School of Music
• 2007 Played Beethoven's Piano Concerto No.1 with the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra at Suntory Hall on March 31.
• 2007 Gave a Debut Recital at the Symphony Hall of Acros Fukuoka on April 2.
• 2008 Recorded her first CD in New York, arranged by AADGT and sponsored by Global Private Equity.
• 2008 Performed Beethoven's Piano Concerto no. 1 with Vladimir Spivakov and the Moscow Chamber Orchestra in St. Petersburg encored by Chopin's Scherzo no. 1 in B Minor op20 and Schumann-Liszt: Widmung (Dedication)
• 2008 Performed Beethoven's Piano Sonatas no. 5 and 10 at the "I Love Beethoven" Event at Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall.
• 2008 Debuted in Krakow, Poland performing Beethoven's and Chopin's Piano Concerto no. 2 with Pawel Przytocki and the Krakow Philharmonic
• 2009 Performed Beethoven's Piano Concerto no. 1 and Chopin's Piano Concerto no. 2 with the Tokyo New City Orchestra at the Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall.
• 2009 Performed Chopin's Piano Concerto no. 2 and Mozart's Piano Concerto no. 20 in Warsaw, Poland at the Fifth International "Chopin and His Europe" Music Festival with Frans Brüggen and the Orchestra of the 18th Century encored by Chopin's Nocturne no. 20, Chopins' Etude op10no4, and Chopin's Scherzo no. 1 in B Minor on a Pleyel piano
• 2009 Performed Beethoven's Piano Concerto no. 1 op15 with James Judd and the Brazilian Symphonic Orchestra in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, Brazil
• 2009 Tied with ShiYu Yang of China for 1st prize at the 1st Asia-Pacific International F. Chopin Competition in Korea
• 2010 Performed Mozart's Piano Concerto no. 26 and Chopin's Piano Concerto no. 2 with Marek Pijarowski and the Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra in Poznan, Poland to celebrate Chopin's 200th Birthday encored by Chopin's Valse no. 14 op posth and Chopin's Nocturne no. 20 op posth
• 2010 Received the special Chopin passport from the Polish government at the Polish Embassy Grand Recognition.
• 2010 Performed Chopin's Piano Concerto no. 1 in Suntory Hall with Michal Dworzynski and the Chopin Festival Orchestra encored by Chopin's Nocturne no. 20op posth
• 2010 Won 1st prize at the 12th International Chopin Competition in ASIA in the C Division (no age limits) of the Concerto Category playing Chopin's Piano Concerto no. 2 op21
• 2010 Recorded her second CD in Japan.
• 2010 Performed Mozart sonata kv576 Beethoven piano sonata No.8 op.13 Chopin Ballade No.1 op.23
• 2010 Finished her studies at the preparatory division of the Toho School of Music as a scholarship student.
• 2011 Entered the Toho Gakuen Music High School on full-scholarship.
• 2011 Received the Roman Music Foundation Scholarship and scholarships from the Tokyo Club.
• 2011 Recorded Chopin's Piano Concerto no. 2 in F Minor op21 live at the Winner's Concert of the 12th International Chopin Piano Competition in Asia at the Yuri Hall of the Showa University in Kawasaki City on a CD with other winners at the Chopin competition.
• 2011 Made acting debut in the film "Sleep" directed by Katsumi Sakaguchi for which she played the sound track
• 2011 Performed Beethoven, Chopin and Ravel at Weill Recital Hall (Carnegie Hall) in New York on April 3 as part of the Distinctive Debuts Series.
• 2011 Won $10,000 at the Fifth Yasuko Fukuda Scholarship Auditions in Tokyo performing Beethoven's Piano Sonata no. 23 "Appassionata", Chopin's Piano Sonata no. 2 "Funeral March", and Prokofiev's Piano Sonata no. 3 op28.
• 2011 Performance in Philia Hall in Yokohama, Japan.
• 2011 Performance in St. Petersburg, Russia at the International Winter Festival "Arts Square" under the direction of Yuri Temirkanov performing Mozart's Piano Sonata no. 18 in D K576, Beethoven's Piano Sonata no. 23 "Appassionata", Prokofiev's Piano Sonata no. 3 op28, and Chopin's Piano Sonata no. 2 "Funeral March"
• 2011 Performance in Moscow, Russia with Vladimir Spivakov and the Moscow Chamber Orchestra performing Chopin's Piano Concerto no. 1 in E Minor op11.
• 2012 performance etude op.10 no.1 op.10 no.2 and op.10 no.5 at the PTNA Piano Competition
• 2012 Bronze medalist at Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition Gina Bachauer Young Artists Piano Competition. play Piano Sonata No. 2 (Scriabin) Chopin Piano Sonata no.2 op.35 and 1st movement piano concerto Chopin op.11Third Prize
• 2012 Study as a scholarship student at the International Mendelssohn Academy in Leipzig.
• 2013 Accepted as a student at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia.
• 2014 Performance Piano accompaniment Saint-Saëns: Violin Sonata Sonata No. 1 in D minor, Op. 75 at Curtis Institute of Music

2015

Kobayashi was one of ten finalists at the Warsaw XVII International Chopin Piano Competition of 452 entrants from 45 countries.

2016 - 2017

• 26 February 2016 Performance Piano Mozart Concerto no.23 Suntory Hall (Main Hall)
• 23 July 2016Performance Piano concerto op.11 Chopin and 1) One Summer's Day (from Spirited Away) (2) A Town With An Ocean View (from Kiki's Delivery Service) With the Hiroshima Symphony at Hiroshima Bunka Gakuen HBG Hall
• 26 November 2016 Performance Piano Valses nobles et sentimentales (Ravel)ravel Fantasie op.28 mendelshon 24 Preludes (Chopin)
• 5 March 2017Performance Piano Accompaniment Violin Sonata in G minor L.140 Debussy and Carmen Fantasie (Waxman)at Curtis Institute of Music

Aimi Kobayashi Debut

DVD/CD package released in February 2010 for EMI Classics/EMI Music Japan

CD

Recorded in 16–18 June 2008 at Merkin Hall, New York, USA as arranged by the AADGT and sponsored by Global Private Equity.

• Bach: Sinfonia from Partita no. 2 in C Minor BWV 826
• Beethoven: Piano Sonata no. 21 "Waldstein" op53
• Chopin: Scherzo no. 1 in B Minor op20
• Chopin: Scherzo no. 2 in Bb Minor op31
• Chopin: Nocturne no. 20 in C# Minor op posth

DVD

Recorded live on 14 December 2009 at Kobayashi's debut concert at Suntory Hall in Tokyo, Japan.

• Chopin: Etude in C# Minor op10no4 "Torrent"
• Chopin: Mazurka in C# Minor op63no3
• Chopin: Scherzo no. 1 in B Minor op20

Passion

CD released in March 2011 for EMI Classics/EMI Music Japan and recorded 6–9 December 2010 at Mihara Performing arts Center "Popolo" in Hiroshima, Japan.

• Beethoven: Piano Sonata no. 8 "Pathetique" op13
• Beethoven: Piano Sonata no. 23 "Appassionata" op57
• Schumann: Kinderszenen op15

12th International Chopin Piano Competition in ASIA Winners Commemorative Album

3-CD set (Kobayashi's performance is on the third CD) released in July 2011. Recorded at Yuri Hall at the Showa University of Music at Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture on 29 January 2011.

• Chopin: Piano Concerto no. 2 in F Minor op21