Widely recognized as an extraordinary musician on the global stage, Vietnamese-Canadian pianist Dang Thai Son rose to international prominence in October 1980, when he was awarded the First Prize and Gold Medal at the 10th International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw. It was also the first time that an Asian pianist won one of the world’s most prestigious piano competitions.
He began piano studies with his mother in Hanoi. Discovered by the Russian pianist Isaac Katz, who was on visit in Vietnam in 1974, he pursued his advanced training at the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Russia with Vladimir Natanson and Dmitry Bashkirov.
Since his victory at the Chopin Competition, his international career has taken him to over forty countries, performing frequently in world-renowned concert venues such as Lincoln Center (New York), Barbican Centre (London), Salle Pleyel (Paris), Herkulessaal (Munich), Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), Sydney Opera House, and Suntory Hall (Tokyo).
He has performed as a soloist with many of the world’s leading orchestras, including The Philharmonia Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre de Paris, St. Petersburg Philharmonic, Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, Czech Philharmonic, Staatskapelle Berlin, Warsaw National Philharmonic, Prague Symphony, NHK Symphony, New Japan Philharmonic, Helsinki Philharmonic, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Hungarian State Orchestra, Moscow Philharmonic, and the Ensemble Orchestral de Paris. He has performed under the baton of conductors such as Sir Neville Marriner, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Pinchas Zukerman, Mariss Jansons, Paavo Järvi, Iván Fischer, Frans Brüggen, Vladimir Spivakov, Dimitri Kitaenko, Sakari Oramo, and John Nelson, among many others.
Other career highlights include a New Year's Day concert (1995) with Yo Yo Ma, Seiji Ozawa, Kathleen Battle, and the late Mstislav Rostropovich, in a major international event produced by the Japanese Broadcasting Corporation NHK; in January 1999, a Gala-concert opening the Chopin year, where he was the only foreign artist invited to appear as soloist with the Warsaw National Opera Theatre Orchestra; concerts in Isaac Stern's last festival in Miyazaki, Japan in 2001, which included three performances with Pinchas Zukerman; a special performance in 2005 as the only guest artist at the Opening Gala Concert of the XVth International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, where he was also a member of the jury; and on Chopin's 200th Birthday, March 1st, 2010, he played at the Gala Concert the Concerto in f-minor with the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century under the direction of Frans Bruggen at the Warsaw National Opera Theatre.
He is frequently invited to give masterclasses worldwide, and his students have gone on to win top prizes at major international competitions — most notably Bruce Liu, winner of the 2021 Chopin International Piano Competition in Warsaw.
His discography includes recordings for Deutsche Grammophon, Melodya, Polskie Nagrania, CBS Sony, Analekta, Victor JVC, and the Chopin Institute.
In September of 2018, Dang Thai Son received the Gold Medal "Zasluzony Kulturze Gloria Artis" (Medal for Merit to Culture) from the Ministry of Culture of Poland. This is the highest level of distinction awarded to people for their distinguished contributions to Polish culture and national heritage.
