Benjamin Goodman

Benjamin Goodman was born in Oxford, England, in 1990 and moved to Israel at the age of thirteen. He had played both piano and violin since the age of five, but soon after arriving in Israel, decided to concentrate solely on piano. It was then that his first serious study of the piano began, under the guidance of his teacher Esther Narkiss. He served as an Exceptional Musician in the Israel Defense Forces for three years, where he initiated a series of explained  concerts for trainee officers and combat soldiers, and facilitated the donation of pianos to two army bases.

Following his army service Benjamin continued studying piano with Prof Eitan Globerson at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance, receiving a 100% for his BMus and MMus graduating recitals. He won first prizes in the Academy’s Piano Solo Competition (2015) and the piano Concerto Competition (2013), and second prize in the Chamber Music Competition (2015). He won second prize in the Tel Hai International Masterclasses Piano Concerto Competition (2012), and third prize at the Ashdod National Piano Solo Competition (2013).

Goodman received the 2017 Steinway Award, a prize donated by Steinway & Sons to an outstanding pianist at Mannes College, The New School, NYC.

He has performed with the Texas Festival Orchestra (2017), the Raanana  Symphonette Orchestra (2013), the Jerusalem Academy Symphony Orchestra (2014) and the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra (2005). He has also given public solo performances throughout Israel and the US, as well as in Germany, Spain, Italy, Serbia.

Benjamin has been privileged in recent years to have had masterclasses with: Prof Lydia Artymiw, Francois Dumont, Prof Eteri Andjaparidze, Maestro Dmitri Bashkirov, Prof Arie Vardi, Prof Malcolm Bilson, Prof Emanuel Ax, Maestro Murray Perahia, Prof Joseph Kalichstein, Prof Matti Raekallio, Prof Claudio Martinez-Mehner, Prof Emanuel Krasovsky, Prof Hung-Kuan Chen, Prof Gabriel

Chodos, Ilana Vered, and Prof Joan Havill, among many other distinguished piano teachers.

He attended several summer music festivals on full scholarships. Amongst them are Avila “Spaincellence” Summer Music Festival (2012), Siena Academy Summer Music Festival (2013), Chautauqua Institute Summer Music Festival (2014), Aspen Summer Music Festival (2015) and Round Top Summer Festival Institute (2017).

His studies have been generously supported by scholarships from the Jerusalem Academy, and since 2008, by the America-Israel Cultural Foundation. He is grateful to Mannes College, which recently awarded him a scholarship to study with Prof Pavlina Dokovska on a two-year study program for a Professional Studies Diploma.

Benjamin produced, presented and performed in a unique concert for Israeli Artists in Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall (2016) and performed his solo recital debut there in October 2017.