"There's an openhearted sincerity ... and a pervasive sense of personal investment ... Larson offer[ed] a soaring, anthemic rendition that I find quite moving ... great warmth and a fine sense of spaciousness ... subtle and elegant."

--Fanfare

 

At the age of two, Kaden Larson was struck with a severely crippling case of Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis in his hands and feet. The piano served, initially, as a therapeutic activity to fight the disease. What began as a trial became a triumph and a calling. Active as a solo and collaborative pianist, passionate teacher, and lifelong learner, Kaden uses music to promote faith, compassion, beauty, and a greater appreciation for the joys and challenges of life that bring people closer together.

 

Energized by a broad spectrum of musical styles from the academic to the popular, Kaden is an avid recitalist who regularly performs throughout his home state of Utah and has performed in locations throughout the United States and Europe. He has performed as soloist with the Oquirrh Mountain Symphony, Utah Philharmonic Orchestra, BYU Symphony Orchestra, BYU Philharmonic, and IU Conductor’s Orchestra, and as ensemble pianist with a number of orchestras including presently as Principal Keyboard of the Longview Symphony Orchestra. Working to make classical music accessible and enjoyable to new audiences, Kaden is a founding member of the Ensign Piano Quartet, as well as the consonari ensemble project with his wife, violinist Anna Larson.

 

Kaden earned a Bachelor of Music degree at Brigham Young University, graduating summa cum laude, during which time he also spent a term of music study in Vienna, Austria. Further studies at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music include a Master of Music degree, a Performer’s Certificate, and a Doctorate of Music in Piano Performance and Literature. His piano mentors include Tricia West, Chad Schumacher, Dr. Scott Holden, Dr. Stephen Beus, and Norman Krieger. Kaden also credits his angelically patient parents for many of the early victories and their continued enthusiastic encouragement. He has been either a prizewinner or finalist in the WPTA Finland International Piano Competition, Clara Schumann International Competition, Virtuoso Artists Festival (Seattle Int’l Piano Festival and Competition), MTNA Stecher and Horowitz Two Piano Competition, Brancaleoni International Online Piano Competition, Neapolitan Masters Competition, Tkaczewski International Piano Competition, Helen Taylor Johannesen International Piano Competition, MTNA Young Artist Division in both Utah and Indiana, UMTA Concerto Competition, and the International Great Composers Competition Series, among others.

 

Professor of Piano/Music at Tyler Junior College (Tyler, TX), Dr. Larson teaches applied piano performance, secondary piano, chamber music and ensemble skills, music literature, and aural skills. He maintains a private studio with students of all ages and abilities. His involvement with student and professional chapters of the Music Teachers’ National Association has included leadership, presentations at state and national pedagogy conferences, and organization of various music initiatives including concert, lecture, and workshop series. Kaden currently serves as vice president of the East Texas Music Teachers’ Association. He is also an adjudicator for the Bay Area Piano Competition. His students consistently demonstrate a high level of success in performance, exams, and other evaluations, but more importantly, they always seem to find that playing the piano is actually kind of growing on them.

 

When he's not locked away in a practice room, Kaden enjoys skiing, hiking, baking, and generally breaking the fourth wall. He also enjoys developing his skills at the organ, being involved with local choral arts, and composing and arranging. Kaden and his wife Anna are happily employed as domestic help for a loquacious orange tabby named Apollo.

 

Kaden’s first album, Phantasium, is available on the KNS Classical label.