Peter Kolkay - Bassoon

Photo Credit: Janette Beckman

First Prize, 2002 Concert Artists Guild International Competition

• Recipient, 2004 Avery Fisher Career Grant
• First Prize, 2001 William C. Byrd Competition

A gifted performer of both extraordinary musicality and virtuosic artistry, bassoonist Peter Kolkay claimed First Prize at the 2002 Concert Artists Guild International Competition and was awarded the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant in 2004, the first artist on his instrument to receive both honors. The San Francisco Classical Voice proclaimed his “…star ascendant,” and the New York Sun praised his performance as “extremely moving.”

Highlights of the 2008 - 2009 season include debut performances at the Music from Angel Fire and Spoleto USA Festivals (the latter including chamber music and Vivaldi’s A minor bassoon concerto) and a concerto with the Waukesha Symphony (WI), as well as return engagements at the Bravo! Vail Valley and Bridgehampton Chamber Music Festivals. Mr. Kolkay is a member of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s CMS II program, with numerous performances at Alice Tully Hall, and he also performs regularly as a member of both the Iris Chamber Orchestra and the South Carolina Philharmonic.

Mr. Kolkay recently performed the world premiere of Full Faith and Credit (a concerto for two bassoons and strings) by composer Harold Meltzer (2004-05 Rome Prize) with the San Francisco Chamber Orchestra, which led The San Francisco Classical Voice to write: “His reputation is blossoming at a remarkable rate, perhaps not so surprisingly considering his many virtues. It wasn't merely technical control, but expressive depth that impressed.” Mr. Meltzer’s work, commissioned by CAG and supported by a joint partnership between the Brooklyn Friends of Chamber Music, the Westchester Philharmonic and the SFCO, was written to encourage orchestras internationally to engage Peter Kolkay as a guest soloist in collaboration with their principal bassoonists. The New York premiere with the Chamber Orchestra Kremlin was presented by the Brooklyn Friends of Chamber Music, followed by performances with the Westchester Philharmonic, and he has since performed the piece with members of the Utah Symphony in a special performance in July 2008 for the annual conference of the International Double Reed Society.

Other recent featured engagements include a recital at Lawrence University, Mr. Kolkay’s alma mater, featuring the premiere of Judah Adashi’s The Dark Hours (co-commissioned by CAG and the BMI Foundation) and a joint performance at New York’s Symphony Space with flutist Christina Jennings on CAG’s New Music at the Thalia series. Mr. Kolkay has been heard in recital at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall and on Chicago’s Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concert Series. As a chamber musician, he was a featured guest on a national tour with the ensemble Concertante and has performed at the Savannah Music Festival, La Musica Festival of Sarasota, FL, as well as the Bridgehampton, Cooperstown and Newport Chamber Music Festivals.

Mr. Kolkay’s recording of Elliott Carter’s Au Quai was recently released by Bridge Records as part of a critically acclaimed CD of the composer’s chamber music. His performances have been broadcast on National Public Radio’s Performance Today and on New York’s WQXR-FM. He has also appeared on the A & E’s “Breakfast with the Arts,” hosted by Elliott Forrest, as a result of his Avery Fisher Career Grant.

Peter Kolkay is on the faculty of the University of South Carolina as Assistant Professor of Bassoon. He previously spent four years as Visiting Assistant Professor of Bassoon at West Virginia University. He holds a doctorate from Yale University as a student of Frank Morelli and a master’s degree from the Eastman School of Music, where he studied with John Hunt and Jean Barr. A native of Naperville, Illinois, Mr. Kolkay holds a Bachelor’s degree from Lawrence University in Appleton, WI.