pianist. collaborator. pioneer.
John Wilson is widely acclaimed as one of today’s foremost interpreters and advocates of American piano repertoire. Serving as Pianist of the San Francisco Symphony and San Diego Symphony and Principal Keyboard of the Marin Symphony, he occupies posts that place him at the center of the American orchestral landscape. Critics praise his performances for electrifying virtuosity, deep stylistic insight, and an uncanny ability to illuminate the uniquely American voice in classical music; the San Francisco Chronicle commended his “casual virtuosity on piano.”
The 2025‑2026 season underscores Wilson’s stature at the top tier of the field. This fall he joins conductor Jessica Bejarano for Beethoven’s Triple Concerto with the San Francisco Philharmonic; performs with the Marin Symphony for a blockbuster weekend of two of Liszt’s Piano Concerti in November with Music Director Designate, Fawzi Haimor; returns to Merced Symphony for its high‑profile Midsummer program; and mentors the next generation as collaborative pianist at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.
During 2024‑2025 he cemented his reputation as a defining voice in American piano music: a sold‑out Carnegie Hall recital; headline appearances with the San Francisco Symphony Chamber Series; and acclaimed interpretations of Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy (Berkeley Community Chorus & Orchestra) and Grieg’s Piano Concerto (Marin Symphony). He took center stage at Michael Tilson Thomas’s 80th‑birthday gala with the San Francisco Symphony—an event hailed by Bay Area media as a civic touchstone of musical excellence. Wilson also brought classical piano to the tech world, performing live on the main stage of World Summit AI USA.
In a landmark cross‑disciplinary collaboration, Wilson partnered with Philadelphia’s BalletX for the 2025 Laguna Dance Festival. The Los Angeles Times highlighted the performance’s fusion of movement and sound, and noted that Wilson’s playing functioned as a character on stage.
Wilson’s artistry has been recognized with First Prize at the 2019 International Respighi Prize, the 2021 American Competition, and the 2023 Ernst Bacon Memorial Award—the latter honoring exemplary performances of American music. Earlier milestones include a last‑minute triumph in Beethoven’s Triple Concerto at the Sun Valley Music Festival (described as “breathtakingly assured” by Idaho Press) and a standout Mozart K. 491 at the 50th‑Anniversary Midsummer Mozart Festival.
A keen and collaborative musician, Wilson has partnered with violinist Joshua Bell, cellist Johannes Moser, and iconic vocalists Frederica von Stade, Sasha Cooke, and Michael Feinstein. International tours with the San Francisco Symphony under Michael Tilson Thomas and Esa-Pekka Salonen have carried American music from Carnegie Hall to Europe’s foremost venues; guest appearances with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra as Guest Principal Keyboard further attest to his stature.
Wilson records extensively, focusing on American composers. His Avie Records debut introduced the world‑premiere of Michael Tilson Thomas’s Upon Further Reflection, while his follow‑up Rachmaninoff • Gershwin: Transcriptions by Earl Wild surpassed one million streams within its first year. He appears on two GRAMMY‑winning recordings of Meditations on Rilke and Adriana Mater by the San Francisco Symphony, and on the PENTATONE release GRACE: The Music of Michael Tilson Thomas, which is praised for bringing American piano music to a global audience.
A passionate advocate for new work, Wilson has premiered scores by Michael Tilson Thomas, John Adams, Steve Reich, Timo Andres, and Gabriela Lena Frank, while his lectures and masterclasses—spanning major concert halls, universities, and technology forums—illuminate the past, present, and future of America’s piano heritage.
“another of the year’s excellent piano albums … celebrates both [Michael Tilson Thomas] and his influences”
- The Arts Fuse, reviewing the world premiere of Michael Tilson Thomas Piano Suite “Upon Further Reflection”
”Upon Further Reflection”, John’s first solo release, named by The Arts Fuse as “Top 10 Classical Performances and Recordings of 2022”
What People Are Saying
"Pianist John Wilson plays all the repertoire on this recording gorgeously. Most note worthy is his tone, which is almost always rich, warm, and expressive, even in massive chordal statements and brilliant passagework".
— Myron Silberstein, Fanfare Magazine
"The Wild set, with their knowing adaptations of familiar tunes, fit smartly alongside Reflection. And Wilson, whose playing is magnificently secure and flawlessly balanced, gives a reading of the heptalogy that rivals Wild’s own for character; it exceeds it for recorded quality."