Pianist Jonathan Mamora To Be Presented In Recital By Hilton Head International Piano Competition At Weill Recital Hall At Carnegie Hall, Oct 25, 2025

Pianist Jonathan Mamora, who won the First Prize at the 2025 Hilton Head International Piano Competition, is being presented by the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra and the Competition in a solo recital at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall on Saturday evening, October 25, 2025, 8 pm.

The program includes the New York premiere of distinguished American composer Lowell Liebermann’s Moment Musical, Op. 144. This piece was commissioned by the Competition and was world premiered by the competitors of the March 2025 Competition. Mr. Mamora’s repertoire will also include works by Mozart, Schubert, Scriabin, and Liszt. The full program follows:

Reserved seating at $50 is available for purchase through CarnegieCharge or at the Carnegie Hall Box Office, 57^th & 7^th Avenue, 212 247-7800. For more information please visit Hilton Head International Piano Competition’s website and pianist Jonathan Mamora’s website.

This recital—known as the Mona Huff Carnegie Hall Recital, named in honor of the director Emeritus of the HHIPC—is one of many prizes awarded to Mr. Mamora resulting from his victory in Hilton Head in March.  Other prizes include: $20,000 cash; a return engagement with the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra and Maestro John Morris Russell in April 2026; a studio recording on the Steinway & Sons label; management services for up to three years provided by HHIPC Director, Steven Shaiman; and numerous performance prize engagements provided by the HHIPC’s artistic partners in South Carolina, Georgia, and Wisconsin (orchestras, music festivals, and recital series).

HHIPC Director Steven Shaiman says, “We are very excited to present Jonathan in recital at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall this fall, not only because he is an artist of substance, but also because he is a remarkable HHIPC success story.  He performed in our competition twice before—as a young artist in 2011 and as an adult in 2022—so it shows his impressive growth and perseverance by coming back a third time to win the whole thing, especially after winning first prize at a few other prominent international competitions.”

Acclaimed for his “most assured pianism,” and “natural, songful lyricism” (The Dallas Morning News), pianist and educator Jonathan Mamora strives to uplift and positively influence others using music as a means for service. An Indonesian-American and Southern California native, he was first enrolled in piano lessons by his parents with a goal of becoming a church musician.  Now with a burgeoning performing career, Mr. Mamora’s commitment to service is steadfast—whether playing in church or in the community or on the concert stage.

Mr. Mamora has performed throughout North and South America, Europe, and Asia, and he has enjoyed remarkable recent success, winning first prize at numerous prominent international piano competitions (IPC’s), including: Hilton Head IPC; Scottish IPC; Concurs Internacional de Música Maria Canals Barcelona; Olga Kern IPC (New Mexico); AntwerPiano International Competition; Dallas IPC; and the Palm Springs IPC (formerly the Virginia Waring).  In May 2025, he performed as one of 30 elite pianists invited to compete in the Van Cliburn IPC in Fort Worth, TX.

His May 2023 debut recital at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall drew great praise from the New York Concert Review: “Mr. Mamora’s playing itself is larger than life…(with) a technique so solid that it seemed at times that he couldn’t play a wrong note if he tried (and)…an encyclopedic array of dynamics and articulations.” Current recital engagements include: the L’Auditori Festival Emergents in Barcelona; Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in Glasgow; Bachauer Festival in Salt Lake City; Chautauqua Institution in upstate New York, and Savannah Music Festival in Georgia.

Following his concerto debut at age 13 with the La Sierra University Orchestra, young Jonathan went on to perform with such orchestras as the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Orquesta Sinfónica de Madrid, New Mexico Philharmonic, Simfònica Sant Cugat, Orquesta Ciudad de Granada, Bilbao Orkestra Sinfonikoa, and Dallas Chamber Symphony, among others. Upcoming concerto engagements include: Orquesta Sinfónica de Tenerife, Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra, Greenville Symphony Orchestra, and the South Carolina Philharmonic Orchestra.

Mr. Mamora has served as a church musician much of his life, most recently as Music Director and Organist at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Clifton Springs, NY. He often performs as a collaborative pianist for vocalists, instrumentalists, ensembles, and choirs, and has received the Eastman ‘Excellence in Accompanying’ Award. In addition to piano and organ, he also performs as a percussionist, vocalist, historical keyboardist (harpsichord, fortepiano), and conductor.

Mr. Mamora values education as an important tool in music making. He previously taught piano and music theory/ear training for various institutions, including the Eastman School of Music and The Juilliard School, and has conducted master classes in North and South America, and Europe. He will serve as Director of Keyboard Studies at La Sierra University starting in fall 2025.

He is a candidate for the Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance and Literature at the Eastman School of Music under the tutelage of Douglas Humpherys, whom he served as studio assistant. He received his Bachelor of Music from La Sierra University and his Master of Music from The Juilliard School. His previous piano teachers include Elvin Rodríguez and Hung-Kuan Chen.

One of the leading international piano competitions in the United states, the Hilton Head International Piano Competition operates with a three-year rotation of events; an adult competition for pianist 18 -30 years of age, a young artist competition for pianists 13 – 17 years of age, and a festival – BravoPiano! – which showcases past prize winners and other prominent  keyboard artists performing music ranging from classical to jazz.  The HHIPC, inaugurated by the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra in 1996, draws applicants, artists, and audiences from numerous countries the world over, and many HHIPC artists are now enjoying thriving professional careers. Its mission is to encourage and support excellence in the performance of classical piano music by showcasing the talents of young pianists on the threshold of their careers in competitions adjudicated by internationally acclaimed judges, and to offer additional performance opportunities.

For more information, please contact Hemsing Associates at (212) 772 1132 or visit www.hemsingpr.com.

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