A native of Belgium, Steven Vanhauwaert was hailed by the Los Angeles Times’ Mark Swed for his “impressive clarity, sense of structure and monster technique.” Since then, Mr. Vanhauwaert has appeared in the world’s leading venues, including the Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Concertgebouw, the National Center for the Performing Arts in Beijing, and the Shanghai Oriental Arts Center. He has appeared with orchestras such as the Pacific Symphony, the Flemish Symphony, the Lviv Philharmonic, the Reno Chamber Orchestra, the Kyiv Kamerata, and the International Chamber Orchestra of Puerto Rico.
Many of Mr. Vanhauwaert’s performances have been broadcast live on networks such as PBS, K-MZT, K-USC, K-PFK, K-NCJ, W-FMT, RTBF, WTV, Radio4, and KLARA. He was a featured guest in a documentary on creativity for the French channel ARTE. He is also featured on several programs on CBS in collaboration with the International Chamber Orchestra of Puerto Rico, performing piano concerti and chamber music concert tours as well as numerous outreach projects for the local community. He serves as co-director of the Chamber Music Unbound Festival in Mammoth Lakes, a 3-week long summer festival featuring guest artists from around the world. He also serves as the Artistic Director for the Second-Sundays-at-Two recital series in Rolling Hills, CA.
Mr. Vanhauwaert is passionate about discovering the less familiar jewels of the classical repertoire and sharing them with his audiences. He has given the West Coast premiere of Messiaen’s Fantaisie for violin and piano in San Francisco and the US premiere of Eric Tanguy’s Piano Trio. He also frequently collaborates with and performs works by today’s leading composers such as György Kurtág, Sean Friar, Thomas Adès, Steve Reich, and Eric Tanguy.
He made his debut for the Piano Spheres concert series in Disney Hall’s Redcat Auditorium, with a program consisting exclusively of 20th and 21st century Etudes for the piano, including two special commissions by composers Eric Tanguy, and Veronika Krausas. He appeared as a soloist at the Walt Disney Concert Hall to premiere Fratello by Magnus Lindberg, written in memory of composer Steven Stucky. He presented the monumental and rarely performed Piano Sonata by Jean Barraqué at the Jacaranda Series in Los Angeles. He also toured with the complete 12 Transcendental Etudes by Franz Liszt and will record them in the upcoming season. He is frequently invited to give guest lecture recitals and masterclasses at universities throughout the world, including Shanghai Conservatory, Beijing University, the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music (Tel Aviv), and New York University.
He is the recipient of the Maurice Lefranc award, the Galiot Prize, and the Grand Prize at the 2004 Los Angeles International Liszt Competition. His discography for the ECM, Bridge, Hortus, and Sonarti labels, reflects his vast repertoire, ranging from works by Woelfl and Hindemith up to contemporary works by Tigran Mansurian. His albums have garnered critical praise in the international press, including 5 Diapasons, the Coup de Coeur on France Musique, 5 stars in the Pizzicato Magazine, and a nomination for the International Classical Music Award.