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"Hands down the most dynamic and exciting young pianist I've yet witnessed"(Canadian conductor Victor Sawa), Helen Kashap has been hailed as an "exciting pianist full of energy and spirit" (Interlochen Radio USA), and called a "beautifully expressive performer" (Saskatoon Star Phoenix) . The daughter of two professional violinists, Kashap has been heard with several major Canadian Orchestras, including her solo orchestral debut in 2011 with the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra in a performance of Edvard Grieg's Piano concerto in A minor. Lauded a "great debut success", Kashap was heard a few weeks later with the Regina Symphony Orchestra in a performance of Franz Liszt's Piano Concerto Number Two. The Grand Prize Winner of the North Bay Symphony Competition, Kashap was recently invited to play Franz Liszt's Second Piano Concerto with the North Bay Symphony under the direction of Thomas Jones after garnering praise throughout the competition for her " Outstanding Performance and Masterful playing." ( NBSO Published Jury)
A top prize winner at the Canadian Music Competition, the National Music Festival Competition, the Knigge International Keyboard Competition, the Interlochen Arts festival Concerto Competition, The Saskatchewan Festival Concerto Competition, the Canadian Kinsmen Competition, the MidWest WMTA Competition (Madison, WI), and the Trustee Conservatory Competition, Kashap is the recipient of several major scholarships and awards including a Major professional development grant from the Canada Council of the Arts- an award given each year to a handful of Canada's most promising artists, a FACTOR Canada CD recording grant, the Chalmer's Professional Development Grant from the Ontario Arts Council, the prestigious Schulich Scholarship (McGill's top music performance and academic award), the Lubka and Kolessa piano prize awarded to an outstanding pianist entering his/her final year of study at McGill's Schulich School of Music, the Presidential Scholarship from the Interlochen Arts Academy, the Centennial Arts Scholarship from the Saskatchewan Arts Board, and several study scholarships from the Banff Centre for the Arts, the Aspen Summer Music Festival, Toronto Summer Music Festival, the Williamson Foundation for Music and the Orford Arts Centre in Quebec.
A former artist in residence at the Banff Centre for the Arts, Kashap has participated in the Banff Summer Piano Masterclass program several times as a student of Robert McDonald, Marc Durand, and Julian Martin. Other masterclass participation and studies include with Menahem Pressler, James Giles, Ann Schein, Henk Guittart, Andre Laplante, Marietta Orlov, and James Anagnoson. A frequent festival participant, Kashap continued her studies with Julian Martin, Robert McDonald, Dominique Weber, and Marc Durand at the Gijon International Keyboard Festival in Gijon, Spain, the Aspen Summer Music Festival, the Orford Arts Centre, and the Toronto Summer Music Festival.
A native of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, Kashap completed her Master of Music degree at the Cleveland Institute of Music in Cleveland, OH under the tutelage of Antonio Pompa-Baldi where she was the grateful recipient of the Cleveland Musical Arts Scholarship. Previously, Kashap was a Schulich Scholar at McGill's Schulich School of Music in Montreal where she completed her undergraduate studies with Sara Laimon. While in Montreal, Kashap also worked extensively with vocal coach Michael McMahon, and studied the fortepiano with Tom Beghin, one of the leading fortepianists of today. A graduate of the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan, Helen received high honors in music and was awarded the top English and Political Science prizes in her 2006 graduating class.
Kashap is also very interested in exploring other diverse mediums of expression including theater, writing, languages, dance, and photography. Having lived in Canada, the United States, and France, Helen has been awarded several academic prizes throughout her educational career and during her time in Montreal, was a feature writer for the McGill Music Journal 'The Phonograph' , in which several articles of hers became feature pieces.
In addition to studying music, Kashap's early training was in theatre, with mainstage appearances throughout Canada and the United States from the age of eight. Of Kashap's affinity as a young child for acting, director Denis Beerling says, " The one who's going to steal the show is my ten year old [Kashap] (The Star Phoenix, 1998) Playhouse performances include with the Gateway Theatre, the Gateway Childrens Theatre, the Persephone Theatre, the Interlochen Arts Festival Theatre, the Lawrence Players Troupe, among others. Kashap's theatrical studies began at the early age of five with Rosemary Hunt and continued at the Interlochen Arts Academy and the Banff Centre for the Arts. In 2014, Kashap participated in the Core Training Program at the HB Studio in New York CIty where she and her colleagues underwent extensive threatrical training. Additional theater/ Film studies have been undertaken at the Stella Adler Conservatory , the William Esper Studio, and Terry Schreiber studio in NYC. Helen's acting coaches have included Todd Thaler, William Esper, Jon Korkes, and the talented team of faculty at the HB Studio. Kashap continues her investigation of theater and the body with vocal coach Ilse Pfeifer and Alexander technique teacher Martha Bernard.
Kashap currently resides in Manhattan.
Demo recording, FACTOR Canada
Oscar Peterson Concert Hall
Montreal, QC, Di Condax Planet Studios
Mixon Hall, the Cleveland Institute of Music, Cleveland, OH
2013
Mixon Hall, Cleveland Institute of Music, 2013
Helen Kashap, piano
Ludek Wojtkowski, violin
"A Saskatchewan-born talent is joining the Regina Symphony Orchestra in a concert in honour of what would be composer Franz Liszt's 200th birthday"
"Renown pianist , opera singer collaborate in Huntsville"
"Pianist Sets High Standard: Helen Kashap is a bit of a rebel. Her parents play violin but she plays piano"
"In honour of Franz Liszt's 200th birthday, the RSO will perform Hungarian music. Saskatchewan-born Helen Kashap is proud to take the stage for her professional orchestral debut playing Liszt's Piano Concerto No. 2."
"Helen Kashap returns home to perform Grieg Concerto with the Saskatoon Symphony"