The Jordanian-Palestinian pianist Iyad Sughayer has performed across the United Kingdom, Europe and the Middle East. He has been a soloist with the European Union Chamber Orchestra and the Manchester Camerata as well as the Royal Northern College of Music, Chetham’s, and the Prague Youth, the Cairo, and the Amman Symphony Orchestras.
Recent performances have taken place in Manchester, at the Bridgewater Hall, the Cathedral, and The Stoller Hall where Iyad made his debut on BBC Radio 3; at the Laeiszhalle and Steinway-Haus in Hamburg, as well as the Cairo Opera House and, in London, at Wigmore Hall and Kings Place. Future engagements include recitals in the United Kingdom, Europe and the Middle East, and his concerto debut with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra. In February 2020, BIS will release Iyad’s debut disc, featuring the solo works of Aram Khachaturian.
Born in Amman in 1993, Iyad received his first lessons at the age of five from the pianist, conductor and composer Mohammad Sidiq, at Jordan’s National Music Conservatory. He made his concerto debut at the age of eight with the National Music Conservatory Orchestra. In 2008, he continued his piano studies at Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester, with Marie Louise Taylor and Dr Murray McLachlan, and received many prizes and awards. These included the Dennis Midwood Keyboard Prize and first prize in Chetham’s Concerto Competition. In 2012, Iyad was awarded a full scholarship to continue studying with Dr Murray McLachlan at the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) in Manchester. At the RNCM, he was the winner of both the RNCM Concerto Competition and the EPTA Piano Competition, and received the Peter Frankl Piano Prize. Having gained a full scholarship at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London, Iyad studied with Martino Tirimo and Peter Tuite, completing his Master’s degree in 2018. He was the recipient of the David and Margaret Lipsey Award and was the Derek Butler scholar. In his final year at Trinity Laban, Iyad was awarded the Trinity Laban Gold Medal, the college’s most prestigious prize. In September 2018, Iyad returned to the RNCM on the International Artist Diploma course, studying with Murray McLachlan, Martino Tirimo and Graham Scott, receiving both the FW Wright Piano Scholarship and the Stanley Picker Trust Scholarship.
