composer, piano

Stewart Goodyear

Last updated: September 8, 2023

Proclaimed “a phenomenon” by the Los Angeles Times and “one of the best pianists of his generation” by the Philadelphia Inquirer, Stewart Goodyear is an accomplished concert pianist, improviser, and composer. He has performed with, and has been commissioned by, many of the major orchestras and chamber music organizations around the world. 

Last year, Orchid Classics released Goodyear’s recording of his suite for piano and orchestra, Callaloo, and his piano sonata. His recent commissions include a piano quintet for the Penderecki String Quartet, and a piano work for the Honens Piano Competition. 

Stewart Goodyear’s discography includes the complete sonatas and piano concertos of Beethoven, as well as concertos by Tchaikovsky, Grieg, and Rachmaninoff; an album of Ravel piano works; and an album entitled For Glenn Gould, which combines repertoire from Gould’s U.S. and Montreal debuts. Goodyear’s recording of his own transcription of Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker (complete ballet), was chosen by The New York Times as one of the best classical music recordings of 2015. His discography is released on the Marquis Classics, Orchid Classics, Bright Shiny Things, Steinway and Sons, and Naxos labels.  

Last summer included performances with the Chineke! Orchestra at Southbank Centre (U.K.) and the Schleswig-Holstein Festival, the Grant Park Music Festival, and the Mostly Mozart Festival in New York. He also performed with Chineke! at the NAC in March 2023. Highlights of the 2023–2024 season are his recital debut at Wigmore Hall, his debut with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, his return with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, and his Carnegie Hall debut with Toronto’s Royal Conservatory Orchestra under Peter Oundjian.  

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Projects & initiatives

  • Illustration of 3 composers, Clara and Robert Schumann, and Johannes Brahms. New album

    Romance and Counterpoint

    The NAC Orchestra’s final album in a four-part recording cycle that explores the closely intertwined personal and artistic connections between three musical giants: Clara Schumann, Robert Schumann and Johannes Brahms.

  • Clara - Robert - Johannes, Atmosphere and Mastery New album

    Atmosphere and Mastery

    The NAC Orchestra’s new album is part three in a recording cycle that explores the closely intertwined personal and artistic connections between three musical giants: Clara Schumann, Robert Schumann and Johannes Brahms.

NAC media featuring Stewart Goodyear