Tom Borrow
Biography
In January 2019, Tom Borrow was called on to replace renowned pianist Khatia Buniatishvili in a series of 12 concerts with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. At only 36 hours' notice, he performed Ravel's Piano Concerto in G to sensational public and critical acclaim. The chief music critic of the Israel Broadcasting Corporation, Yossi Schifmann, hailed his performance as "brilliant... outstanding," ending his review with the words, "Tom Borrow is already a star and we will all surely hear more about him." Following this successful series Tom was further presented by the IPO in gala concerts held in London and Mexico City, and reinvited for a subscription series in the 2020/21 season. International Piano magazine’s Summer 2019 issue included a two-page feature on Tom, naming him their ‘One To Watch’. Soon afterwards, Gramophone gave him the same accolade (“an exciting young pianist...individuality and elegance"). In 2021, he was named a BBC New Generation Artist 2021-23.
Born in Tel Aviv in 2000, Tom Borrow has performed as soloist with all major orchestras of his native country, including the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra and the Israel Symphony Orchestra, among others. He began studying piano, aged five, with Dr. Michal Tal at the Givatayim Music Conservatory, and currently studies with Prof. Tomer Lev at the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music at Tel Aviv University. Tom has been regularly mentored by Murray Perahia through the Jerusalem Music Centre’s program for outstanding young musicians.
Tom has won every national piano competition in Israel, including first prize at the Israeli Radio & Jerusalem Symphony Young Artist Competition in Jerusalem, and three first prizes at the "Piano Forever" Competition in Ashdod (in three different age categories). In the summer of 2018 Tom won the prestigious "Maurice M. Clairmont" award, given to a single promising artist once every two years by the America-Israel Cultural Foundation and Tel-Aviv University.
After the Israel Philharmonic success, Tom has been invited by major orchestras around the world - recent and forthcoming engagements include the Cleveland Orchestra, London Philharmonic, Santa Cecilia Orchestra (televised by RAI), Czech Philharmonic, Sao Paulo Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse, ‘La Verdi’ Orchestra of Milan, English Chamber Orchestra, Basque National Orchestra, New Jersey Symphony, Ulster Orchestra and others - and is invited by leading conductors including Semyon Bychkov, Sakari Oramo, Thierry Fischer, Xian Zhang, Robert Trevino, Omer Wellber, Dan Ettinger, Petr Altrichter and Yoel Levi. Tom has also toured to Eastern Europe with the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, to regular standing ovations, and to South Korea with the Tel Aviv Soloists.
Equally in-demand on the chamber music front, Tom made his Verbier Festival recital debut in 2021, and other international recital and chamber music engagements include Wigmore Hall, Vancouver Recital Society, James Ehnes’s Seattle Chamber Music Society, Festival Piano aux Jacobins (Toulouse), Bellerive Festival (Geneva), the Oxford Piano Festival, Tel Hai International Piano Masterclasses (Israel) and Music Fest Perugia.
Throughout the many masterclasses Tom has participated in, he has had the privilege of working under the instruction of Sir András Schiff, Christoph Eschenbach, Richard Goode, Menahem Pressler and Tatiana Zelikman, among many others.
Tom has started to attract attention from some of the piano world's leading media commentators. His 2021 performance at the Jacobins Piano Festival in Toulouse won superb reviews from Diapason (“He already has everything of a great… brought the audience to its knees”) and ResMusica (“The gem of the festival… Tom Borrow: a name to remember!”). And as well as the International Piano and Gramophone recognition, WWFM Radio in the US featured him as an outstanding young talent, with the much-respected presenter Jed Distler commenting, "Tom Borrow is an immensely talented young pianist... keep your eye on this really, really talented youngster - he is special". RAI televised his recent Rome concert. Tom’s first album is due for release in the near future, on Hanssler Classic.
"He already has everything of a great...he brought the audience to its knees"
Diapason
"The very definition of 'one to watch'"
International Piano
"A true piano artist, a performance to inspire superlatives"
Haaretz