David Syme, American piano virtuoso living in Ireland, has had a long and colorful career. He has performed in Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center, Wigmore Hall, and in major venues in 17 European countries, Canada and Mexico.
“Oscar Levant, Earl Wild, Phillipe Entremont, Andre Previn and Helene Grimaud have made notable recordings of the Gershwin Concerto In F, but if I had to choose one today, it would be a live performance by David Syme with Herrera de la Fuente leading Orquesta Sinfonica de Mineria.”…Fanfare Magazine
An alumnus of Juilliard and Indiana University, he was a protégé of the legendary Jorge Bolet. He was schooled in the grand tradition of the great masters, and also studied with Ozan Marsh, Sascha Gorodnitzki, Ania Dorfmann, Louis Kentner and Constance Keene. He has recorded two dozen CD’s with such orchestras as the Royal Philharmonic, the Vienna Symphony, and the Czech National Symphony, Concerto engagements in the past several seasons have featured the Tchaikovsky, Grieg, Schumann, Liszt E-Flat, Gershwin and Rachmaninoff 2nd and 3rd with orchestras in the U.S. and Europe.
“Syme evidently views the piano as a limitless resource of colour and nuance”...The Glasgow Herald
Since arriving in Ireland in 2005, he has been steadily forging a reputation as one of the finest pianists ever to grace its shores. He is best known there for his “Living-Room Concerts”, held about 25 times a year in his West Cork home on the Beara Peninsula. This series was profiled by Mary Kennedy on RTE Television’s “Nationwide” in 2011. Click here to view the interview.These concerts are social and musical events, with people driving from all corners of the country to attend. One of David’s biggest fans was the late legendary actress Maureen O’Hara, who annually celebrated her birthday by hearing him play. Christy Moore, Ireland’s most-loved musician, has been a loyal supporter as well.
David Syme performs regularly throughout Ireland and the European mainland as well as in the U.S.
In 2013, he made his Dublin debut at the National Concert Hall, John Field Room, to an oversold house, with people turned away due to fire regulations. David has since played 3 performances at the National Concert Hall in Dublin.
“He's a fearless player, with a go-for-it, heart on the sleeve approach, as his programming of Liszt's daunting arrangement of Wagner's Tannhauser overture made clear”…Michael Dervan, The Irish Times
David recently played, on the same program, both the Rachmaninoff 2nd and Tchaikovsky 1st concertos with the City Of Cork Symphony, Keith Pascoe conductor. They have since collaborated in the Gershwin Rhapsody In Blue and Rachmaninoff Concerto #1.
In October 2018, David played the Rachmaninoff 1st with the Rockford, Illinois Symphony. He continues to appear throughout the U.S, and Central Europe, particularly in the Czech Republic.
“He perches on the piano bench like an ungainly swallow, but the sounds that emerge from the Steinway are more beautiful than any a nightingale could make. David Syme is a consummate pianist — bold and forceful, subtle and tender, summoning whatever the notes call for, but injecting his own affinity, interpretation and flexibility.”…Prague Post
“The immensely-accomplished American pianist David Syme”...The London Times
