Pianist and educator Jonathan Mamora strives to uplift and positively influence others using music as a means for service. An Indonesian-American and a native of Southern California, Jonathan has served as a church pianist and organist—the result of having been enrolled in piano lessons by his parents for the purpose of becoming a church musician. Jonathan aims to use music as service not only in the church, but also in the community through homes, schools, community centers, and the concert hall. Acclaimed for his “most assured pianism,” “natural, songful lyricism,” and for “rippl[ing] through virtuosic passagework” (The Dallas Morning News), Jonathan has performed throughout North America, South America, Europe, and Asia, and he is a prize-winner of several regional and international competitions, most recently winning first prize in the Dallas International Piano Competition, Virginia Waring International Piano Competition, “Sviatoslav Richter” International Piano Competition, and Eastman Piano Concerto Competition. Recent performances include Sergei Rachmaninoff ’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Eastman Philharmonia, Waring Festival Orchestra, and Dallas Chamber Symphony; Olivier Messiaen’s Oiseaux exotiques with the Eastman Wind Ensemble; and world premieres of Ariel Quintana’s Piano Concerto No. 1, Robert Morris’ Septet, and Michael Selvaggi’s An Inevitable Decay, Rot, among others. He has also performed as a soloist with the Coachella Valley Symphony, La Sierra University Orchestra, La Sierra University Wind Ensemble, and the Loma Linda University Church Orchestra. He was recently a featured artist for the LA Philharmonic Affiliates of the Desert. He has previously performed in masterclasses and lessons with pianists including Jerome Lowenthal, Robert Levin, Alexander Kobrin, Olga Kern, Stanislav Ioudenitch, Antonio Pompa-Baldi, Sara Davis Buechner, and Jon Nakamatsu. In the upcoming 2022-23 season, Jonathan will be making his Carnegie Hall debut at Weill Recital Hall in New York, NY. Jonathan currently serves as the Music Director and Organist of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Clifton Springs, NY. He often performs as a collaborative pianist for vocalists, instrumentalists, ensembles, and choirs. As a collaborator, Jonathan holds a graduate assistantship in accompanying at the Eastman School of Music and has received the Eastman Excellence in Accompanying Award. In addition to the piano and organ, this multi-talented musician has also performed as a percussionist, vocalist, historical keyboardist (harpsichord, fortepiano), and conductor. Jonathan also values education as an important tool in music making. He has previously taught piano and music theory/ear training for various institutions and has conducted a week-long series of master classes and concerts at the University of the Southern Caribbean in Trinidad and Tobago. He is currently serving as Instructor for Music Theory and Aural Musicianship at the Eastman School of Music, as well as teaching piano for the Eastman Community Music School. Jonathan is a candidate for the Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance and Literature at the Eastman School of Music, studying with and serving as studio assistant for Douglas Humpherys. He received his Bachelor of Music from La Sierra University and his Master of Music from The Juilliard School. Previous teachers include Elvin Rodríguez and Hung-Kuan Chen.
Jonathan is the recipient of The Lutheran Chautauqua Association Scholarship, The Mr. and Mrs. Don Greenhouse Scholarship, and Eleanor B. Daugherty Scholarship Fund.