Richard Octaviano Kogima

Biography

Richard Octaviano Kogima is a Brazilian pianist, composer and conductor. He is currently based in Switzerland, where he obtained a Masters Degree in Piano Performance and a Masters in Piano Pedagogy at the Zurich University of Arts in the class of Konstantin Scherbakov, and now pursues a Masters in Choir Conducting in the Class of Markus Utz. His performances have recently been defined as “memorable and revelatory” (Gregory Sullivan, Theater Jones), filled with “multifaceted nuance and transparent sound” (Badische Zeitung, Südkurier). Having graduated from High School as a valedictorian, Richard received his Bachelor in Piano Performance at Universidade de São Paulo. He then entered Ecole Normale de Musique de Paris where he obtained his “Diplome Superieur d’Execution” funded by a full scholarship from “Fond Brésil”. His former teachers include Eduardo Monteiro, Guigla Katsarava, Maria José Carrasqueira and his grandmother, Helgard Ostermayer Octaviano.

Richard has performed as a soloist and chamber musician throughout Brazil, United States and Europe in venues that include: Tonhalle Maag and Tonhalle Kleiner Saal (Zurich), Salle Cortot (Paris); University Aula (Oslo), Howard Performing Arts Center (USA); Theatro Castro Mendes (Campinas, Brasil) and Auditório Claudio Santoro (Brazil). A laureate of several international competitions, Richard has been awarded the 1st Prize at the 25th Concours Internationale Flame (Paris), Landolt Competition Zürich and the 5th Andrews International Music Competition (Michigan, USA), as well as the “Press Award For Outstanding Musicianship” at the Olga Kern International Piano Competition (Albuquerque, USA), and an Audience Prize and “Best Performance Of The Contemporary Work” prize at the Concours International Alain Marinaro.

Among the music festivals and masterclasses Richard participated are the Emil Gilels Festival, Usedomer Musikfest, Germany; Festspillene i Bergen, Norway; Chautauqua Institution Music Festival, USA; Festival Internacional de Inverno de Campos do Jordão, Brazil. He has worked in masterclasses and received musical insights from artist such as Maria João Pires, Leif Ove Andsnes, Herbert Blomstedt, Dimitri Bashkirov, Christian Zacharias, Jiri Hlinka, Robert Levin and Jean-Louis Steuerman, Marc Kissoczy, Aylton Escobar and Gil Jardim.

In 2013, he was the youngest appointed principal conductor of the Carlos Gomes Choir, following conductor Turibio de Burgo. He also worked as the concertmaster and assistant conductor of the UNASP Youth Orchestra. Richard also dedicates time to composing for various musical formations, with emphasis in sacred music. In 2019 Richard received a Medal of Honor from the Association Internationale Pour La Def́ense De La LibertéReligieuse in Geneva after performing a series of concerts dedicated to this cause.