Foto: Shirley Suarez

Barbara Mayer´s highly developed artistic skills are complimented by her friendly and sensitive nature, something I truly appreciate. I am deeply impressed by her intellectual brilliance and versatility.

Adriana Hölszky

Barbara Mayer is a highly versatile, award-winning artist with unique talents for piano, composition, and improvisation in a variety of styles. Moreover, Barbara revels in playing the works of seldom-performed composers (particularly from those dating from 19th century onwards) and is passionate about interdisciplinary projects.

A young artist, Barbara was born in Schwabmünchen, Germany, receiving her first piano lessons at the age of 5. By the age of 14, she made her piano debut in the “Concert for Young Talents of the Region of Augsburg”, performing Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy’s Piano Concerto n. 1. Her performance was broadcast by Augsburg TV.

Barbara went on to pursue her musical studies in composition and piano at the prestigious Mozarteum Salzburg and Anton-Bruckner-Universität Linz, where she studied with renowned Professors such as Adriana Hölszky and Margit Haider-Dechant. Barbara attended the Escola Superior de Música in Lisbon with an OEAD scholarship. She undertook musicological research abroad at the Instituto Moreira Salles in Rio with the support of the Austrian Ministry for Culture and attended the Bayreuth Festival with an International Richard Wagner Foundation scholarship.

Her current composition projects are supported by the Free State of Bavaria (scholarship programme “Young art and new paths”) and the “Neustart Kultur” programme of the German Music Council.

Barbara has since continued her artistic development through numerous masterclasses, taught by highly acclaimed artists such as Anatol Ugorsky, Alexander Jenner, Filippo Faes and Roger Muraro.

In 2010, the Augsburg Philharmonic Orchestra commissioned her to compose a piano concerto inspired by themes of Richard Wagner’s “Tristan und Isolde”. Her project culminated with the premiere of her concerto “Tristanesk”, performed by Mayer herself and the Augsburg Philharmonics in 2011.

After completing her Master studies with the highest honours, Barbara has recently received her PhD in Musicology at Mozarteum with an outstanding final grade. Her PhD thesis on Brazil`s multiethnic influences in the works of the composer Hekel Tavares (1896-1969) has already been published by the renowned Springer publishing company.

Barbara Mayer has received the following awards to date:

• Absolute first prize (piano) in the Fanny Mendelssohn International Music Competition, Brussels

• Third prize (Piano - Contemporary music) in the American Virtuoso International Music Competition (New York), associated with a piano recital in Carnegie Hall (organized by the American Society of Musical Excellence)

• First female winner of the Young Artists’ Award for Composition of the City of Augsburg in their 50 years of history: The jury remarked:

  Barbara Mayer shows an astounding professionalism in her compositions, and proves to have the necessary confidence to sucessfully navigate the current state of affairs in composition. She effortlessly combines structural clarity with a wide range of subtle tonalities, creating great atmospheric density as well as intense, sensuous sound experiences. In her work she succeds in reconciling elements percieved as irreconciliable, and bridges the gaps between styles and genres, bursting with ideas and expressivity. Her eagerness to experiment shows her outstanding talent to integrate non-musical methods and elements. We foresee a sensational artistic career ahead of her.

• Laureate in the Mozarteum String Quartet Composition Competition winning a performance of her string quartet by the renowned Austrian Ensemble for Contemporary Music (OENM)

• Laureate in the String Quartet Composition Competition launched by the Ligeti Quartet, London

• First prize winner (Piano) in the International Music Competition Paul Harris, Verbania/Italy (associated with a masterclass taught by Konstantin Bogino, Milan),                                                                                                                                   

• Multiple first prize winner in the Ibla Grand Prize World Music Competition, Ragusa/New York both in Piano and Composition sections, and

• Special Distinction for her interpretation of her composition "Rigoletto im Spiegelland" receiving personal congratulations from Maestro Marcello Abbado.

Her numerous concerts, musicological activities and commissioned works further highlight her excellence in her musical career, having composed for the Augsburg Philharmonics, the Summer Academy Prachatice in the Czech Republic, the Edition Apollon Musikoffizin in Bonn, the Ligeti Quartet in London, the OENM (Austrian Ensemble for Contemporary Music), the Ensemble Flex (Australia), the Lamont Trio (USA) and the Pelgrim Trio (the Netherlands). Barbara Mayer`s compositions are distributed by the renowned publisher “Universaledition” in Vienna.

She has performed her own works across various countries, including Austria, Australia, Germany, France, Finland, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Brazil and the USA. Barbara has performed in numerous festivals, like the Young Generation Festival of ZKM Karlsruhe in Germany, the Piano Festival “Piano City Pordenone”, the Festival-Estival Annecy in France, and the International Concert Series "Klangfarben der Orgel" in Salzburg. Some performance highlights include prestigious venues, such as the Mozarteum Wiener Saal, the Gasteig in Munich and the Carnegie Hall.

Barbara Mayer is represented by the renowned Price Attractions Artist Management, USA.

Her current international concert series “Internationale Metamorphosen” has already been highly acclaimed by the press:

(…) Mayer has without doubt found her musical path with which she opens up innovative perspectives and encourages other artists to explore new avenues far from the traditional concert repertoire. The young musician leaves a lasting impression through the unique combination of her pianistic, compositional and improvisational talent, her spell-binding virtuosity, her brimming creativity and her subtle design abilities. (Die Neue Musikzeitung, ed. 07/22, p. 46)