Eri Mantani, Pianist

“ The Japanese Eri shows a lively nature, brilliant, even electric;an intense personality. ”− Anne Queffélec, pianist

“ She plays con spirito, with nobility, with elegance, with charm, with taste,with pronounced sense of phrasing and articulation, very beautiful. ”− Gerhard Oppitz, pianist

“ Huge young talent to follow. ”− Classiquenews.com

Eri Mantani
© Eri Mantani

Born in Osaka, Eri Mantani began learning piano at the age of four. She studied at the Tokyo University of the Arts with Yu Kakuno and the Rostock University of Music and Theatre in Germany with Bernd Zack as a scholarship student of Yamaha music foundation and Rohm music foundation. More inspirations have been acquired in master classes of Vladimir Ashkenazy, Jörg Demus, Alexander Jenner, Arnulf von Arnim and others.

 

Eri Mantani won in 2010 the second prize at the 29th “Alessandro Casagrande” International Piano Competition in Terni (the first prize was not awarded), and also received a special prize for the best interpretation of Schubert. Her interpretation of Schubert’s Sonata B-flat major was highly praised by Annarosa Taddei who was one of Alfred Cortot’s master students. Sie has also won prizes at several international competitions, including the Liszt Competition in Wroclaw (top prize), Romanian Music Competition in Tokyo (1st prize), Schubert Competition in Dortmund and Brahms Competition in Pörtschach. She got a diploma at the Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw. 

 

Since her first recital in 2001, Eri has performed regularly in numerous solo recitals and with orchestras in Europe and Asia. She has been invited to perform at international music festivals and concert series, e.g.; Raiding, Rouen, Saintes, Miyazaki, Milan, Bergamo, Caserta, Cervo, Wroclaw, Bucharest, Sinaia and Eutin. Since 2017, she has been a regular guest in the chamber music concert series of the Hamburg Symphoniker at the Laeiszhalle, including a world premiere. In 2009 she was awarded the critic’s choice award for her recital at the Izumi hall, Osaka. In 2015 she was awarded one of the most acclaimed japanese music awards, the "Aoyama Music Award" for her recital with works of Schubert and Liszt (Sonata B minor) at the Barocksaal in Kyoto. Her performances and recordings have been broadcast on NDR-Kultur, Radio France, Rai Radio, Radio Stephansdom, Polskie Radio and NHK-FM. 

 

Eri's first solo CD recording of works by Franz Liszt and George Enescu (sonata No.3) “East Side Rhapsody” was released in 2011 for the label of the Romanian Music Society in Japan. In 2017, her second CD "Domenico Scarlatti Sonatas" was released by MDG (Music production Dabringhaus and Grimm), which received excellent international reviews in music magazines and radios. Her extensive repertoire from Buxtehude to Messiaen can also be seen on her YouTube channel.

 

Eri Mantani is teaching piano at the Rostock University of Music and Theatre since 2007. She is also the co-founder and artistic director of the music festival Klavierfest Berlin-Weißensee, which has been taking place since 2023, and lives in Berlin.

 

Webseite www.erimantani.com

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