Jani Parsons

Praised for her “combination of tenderness and vivacious energy” (San Francisco Chronical) and “sheer virtuosity” (LA Splash), Canadian pianist Jani Parsons has established herself as a musician of warmth, brilliance, versatility, and vivid expression. An active soloist and chamber musician, Jani is a founding member and executive director of Latitude 49, a mixed chamber ensemble recently in residence at Princeton University and the pianist of the Aurora Trio with violinist Timothy Steeves and cellist Max Geissler. 

As an avid performer and supporter of living composers, Jani has worked directly with many composers including Steve Reich, Christopher Cerrone, John Zorn, Stacy Garrop, Marc Mellits, Roshanne Etezady, Augusta Read Thomas, Jared Miller and Shulamit Ran and has premiered upwards of eighty new solo and chamber works. A sought-after chamber musician, Jani has appeared with the Pittsburg New Music Ensemble, members of Bang On a Can All-Stars, Eighth Blackbird, and New Music Detroit as well as members of the Chicago and Detroit Symphony Orchestras. Performances across North America include the Chan Centre for the Arts (Vancouver, British Columbia), the Banff Centre for the Arts, Detroit Symphony Center, Detroit Institute of Arts, the Ravinia Festival and the Museum of Contemporary Art (Chicago) and at various educational institutions including the New England Conservatory, Indiana University, Southern Mississippi University, and Northwestern University among others.  She is especially enthusiastic about featuring a wide array of “classics” and undiscovered masterpieces in her programming that spans from pre-Baroque to newly inked works.

2020 was a prolific year of recordings for Latitude 49 (featuring Jani on piano) including the band's sophomore album, Wax and Wire released on the New Amsterdam Label, and albums released through New Focus Recordings and Furious Artisans. Other recordings include Lumina Duo’s album Beau Soir: French Music for Oboe and Piano on the MSR label and Latitude 49’s debut album Curious Minds hailed as an “Impressive debut” by Bandcamp Daily’s Peter Margasak. She has recorded on the Tzadik label and Çedille Records and has been featured on CBC radio, and WFMT in Chicago. 

Hailing from the West Coast of Canada, Jani studied with Lorraine Ambrose at the Vancouver Academy of Music (B.M. in Piano Performance), with graduate studies at the University of Michigan under Arthur Greene and John Ellis (M.M. and DMA in Piano Performance and Pedagogy). She holds a performer’s diploma from the Royal Conservatory of Music (A.R.C.T.) and a certificate of theory pedagogy from the University of Michigan. A dynamic teacher, she has taught many award-winning students and presented pedagogical research in various national conferences. Jani has recently published a two-book series, Technique Through Repertoire, alongside co-author Christopher Madden that was released in 2022 through Piano Education Press, and serves on the National (US) Program Committee of the NCKP Conference through the Frances Clark Center. Jani has given masterclasses across the United States and served on faculty at the Fresh Inc. Summer festival, the Interlochen Summer Arts Camp and the Piracicaba International Piano Festival in Brazil. She served on faculty at Baylor University's School of Music from 2017-2021 where was recognized as an OVPR Rising Star for her potential for research and early-career development. In 2021, she was appointed as Assistant Professor and head of the piano program at the University of Calgary School of Creative and Performing Arts.