BIOGRAPHY
Described as “… a musician of exceptional intelligence who stands out whether playing chamber music or solo…,” Patil Harboyan is a Montreal-based Armenian pianist who leads a versatile musical career as a performer, chamber musician and educator.
Patil Harboyan has appeared in solo recitals and chamber music concerts throughout North America. She has collaborated with some of the best musicians of our time, such as Kimy McLaren, Isabel Bayrakdarian, Aline Kutan, the Fibonacci Trio and members of the Fitzwilliam Quartet. Her album with cellist Heather Tuach called “Music from Armenia” (Divine Art Records) was described in Gramophone magazine as a “delightful disc of discoveries”. The duo presented the recording in concert at Carnegie Hall in 2015.
Patil is a founding member of the Ararat Trio, which had its debut appearance at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, in 2007. She is also a founding member of the Quebec-based Trio de l’Île. Released in 2020, the Trio de l’Île’s first album was nominated for the Prix Opus and named “MusicWeb International Recording of the Year”. It was also among the featured releases in BBC Music Magazine, which hailed it as “…terrific stuff, excellently played.”
In 2020, Patil Harboyan started the Healing Notes initiative within the Cedars Cancer Foundation of the. With over 150 concerts since its founding, this program presents weekly performances by music students and professionals to the patients and staff of the Cedars Cancer Centre of the McGill University Health Center. She worked on building a similar program, called Tempo Concerts, at the Montreal Jewish General Hospital, in partnership with community-based organizations.
Patil Harboyan holds a Doctorate in Musical Arts from Stonybrook University, where she studied with Gilbert Kalish on a full scholarship. Previous teachers include Richard Raymond, Anton Kuerti, Eugene Plawutsky and Viktor Bunin.
Parallel to her performing career, Patil is also an active pedagogue. She is often invited on jury panels for various examinations and competitions. She has taught in the
Department of Music at the University of Québec in Montreal and has been on the piano faculty at the Schulich School of Music at McGill University since 2010.