Joshua James Kelly
Biography

Biography

Joshua Kelly is a British pianist, educator and researcher based in Manchester, UK. He obtained his first-class Bachelor of Arts (B.A Hons) performance degree in classical music from Leeds Conservatoire and was awarded the Joseph Stones Prize for B.A Music (classical) for distinction in performance. Joshua was the recipient of the Robert Tebb Scholarship to further his studies and complete the Master of Music (M.Mus) degree program at Leeds Conservatoire under the direction of Dr. Nico de Villiers and Dr. Anastasia Belina.

Joshua continued to study with Prof. Heather Slade-Lipkin, part of the piano faculty at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and Andrew Wilde, faculty at Manchester University. He was awarded first place in the Leeds Conservatoire Concerto Competition and Besbrode Piano Competition, receiving financial prizes alongside engagements throughout the UK.

Joshua has worked under the notable direction of Prof. Dorian Leljak, Phillipe Raskin, Wolfgang Manz, Mei Yi Foo, Andrew Snedden, The Vienna Piano Trio and the Doric String Quartet within chamber and solo masterclass contexts, among others.

Joshua regularly performs in lunchtime concerts, evening recitals and festivals throughout the North of England, notably including invitations to perform at the Knaresborough festival and the World Piano Conference in Serbia. He was an artistic resident at the International Chopin Music Festival in Warsaw, Poland and the White House, Harrogate, for the International Harrogate Arts Festivals. Following this, Joshua has been invited and performed for BBC radio on several occasions and has given masterclasses at Queen Ethelburgas College in York, exploring works relating to 18th Century Vienna.

Joshua has been a frequent performer and guest artist at Steinway Hall, London, alongside solo and concerto performances with the Lewisham Choral Society, Macclesfield Symphony Orchestra, Halifax Symphony Orchestra and the Chester Youth Symphony Orchestra.

In 2017, Joshua founded the Warrington Piano Academy, focussed at bringing music into the heart of his home community and has over 90 active students studying for ABRSM and diploma exams and works as a practitioner to students studying for entry level exams for B.A degrees in music.

His current projects include the recomposition of the Bach Goldberg Variations and the experimentation of Romantic and Eastern harmonies used in an improvisational and compositional context.