Washington García, Piano

Biography

Born in Quito, Ecuador, Washington García began his musical studies at the age of 6. Dr. García holds a bachelor of music from the National Conservatory of Music in Ecuador, and master's and doctoral degrees from the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, where he graduated at the age of 25, becoming the youngest Latin American to have received a doctoral degree in piano performance from Peabody.

Dr. García was awarded first prizes at the Guillermo Wright-Vallarino National Piano Competition in Ecuador, the Elizabeth Davis Memorial Piano Competition and the 19th International Young Artist Piano Competition in Washington D.C., the 2004 Baltimore Music Club Piano Competition, and the Harrison Winter Piano Competition at the Peabody Institute. That award led to a performance with the Peabody Concert Orchestra. He was also a top prizewinner at the Yale Gordon Piano Competition and the Russell Wonderlic Piano Competition.  In addition to awards granted by the Peabody Institute and the Ecuadorian government, including the prize "Monseñor Leonidas Proaño" and the award "Al Mérito Laboral," Dr. García was also named a Presser Scholar and grant recipient by the Presser Music Foundation. Most recently, he was awarded the Friends of Fine Arts Scholarly/Creative Award presented by the College of Fine Arts and Communication at Texas State University-San Marcos.

Since his debut with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ecuador at the age of 15, Dr. García has performed extensively. He played at the Claudio Arrau International Piano Seminar in Chile for former President Patricio Aylwin and in Israel with the Campus Orchestra of the City of Tel-Aviv under the baton of maestro Sam Zebba. Dr. García was chosen by the Kennedy Center to receive one of two $25,000 grants awarded to pianists in its Fellowships of the Americas Program. That honor led to performances in venues throughout the United States, including the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater and Millennium Stage, the Organization of American States, the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Since his European debut in Rome, under the auspices of Continental Airlines, Dr. García has been an active recitalist, soloist and lecturer in prestigious venues in Italy, Switzerland, Austria, France, Spain, Hungary, Canada, Israel, Hong Kong, Chile, Mexico, Ecuador and the United States.

Dr. García served in the faculty of the Peabody Preparatory of Johns Hopkins University and is currently an assistant professor of piano at Texas State University-San Marcos, where he is the coordinator of the piano department. He also teaches at the Austin Chamber Music Festival. Dr. García has been sponsored by Continental Airlines since 1997. Upcoming engagements include performances for Hong Kong radio and a tour of Italy with the Texas State University Symphony Orchestra.