David Gatien

David Gatien, from Bellevue, WA, studies piano with Professor Yoshikazu Nagai at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Pre-College. He has won numerous First Prize awards in local and international competitions, including the American Protégé International Music Competitions (with Judges’ Distinctions), the AADGT International Young Gifted Musicians Competition, the Charleston International and the ENKOR International Piano Competitions, among others. At age 12, David was the youngest competitor in the Concerto Division of the 2022 Northwest Chopin Competition and won Gold. A full grade level above same-aged peers, he has also received First Place awards in grade-based competitions such as the Washington State Music Teachers’ Association (WSMTA) Scholarship Competition. He is a twice-designated WSMTA State Recitalist and is the recipient of the 2023 Ida Zelikovsky Green Award for Outstanding Talent (Best Performer, Grades 5–11). More recently, he won First Prize at both the 2024 Seattle International Piano Competition and the San Francisco International Piano Competition.

David has participated in numerous piano festivals, including the Vivace International Music Festival, the Bay PianoFest (with scholarship), and the Southeastern Piano Festival (with scholarship), where he was a prize winner at the 2024 Arthur Fraser International Piano Competition. At the 2024 Amalfi Coast Music and Arts Festival, David was a featured solo artist in the “Rising Stars” Concert Series at the Palazzo Mezzacapo in Maiori, Italy. He has performed in masterclasses with renowned pianists such as Michelle Cann, Jon Nakamatsu, Awadagin Pratt, Boris Slutsky, Alvin Chow, Rebecca Penneys, and Boris Berman, among others. David has also appeared and performed on the Seattle-based radio show “Northwest Focus Live” on 98.1 Classical KING-FM.

As a selected pianist for the Academy for Chamber Music at the Seattle Chamber Music Society, David has been a featured Academy performer as a soloist in pre- and post-concert events in the Seattle area, as well as in a full concert with his chamber group. He has also been invited to perform in an upcoming masterclass with Evgeny Kissin which will feature the esteemed pianist’s own composition, Piano Trio, Op. 6, in April 2025.

In his free time, David enjoys cycling, geography, playing with his dog, watching movies, and listening to music.