BIOGRAPHY Anders Martinson made his national television debut as a pianist in 1988 at the age of fifteen performing on Johnny Carson's Tonight Show. By eighteen, he was concertizing throughout the United States and abroad. He made his Los Angeles Philharmonic debut under Esa-Pekka Salonen in 1991, and his New York recital debut at Carnegie's Weill Hall the following year where he received a rave New York Times review. European debuts in Rome and London soon followed.
Martinson has won numerous competitions and garnered multiple awards. In 1991, he placed 2nd in the prestigious Robert Casadesus International Piano Competition, and 1st in both the solo and concerto categories of the Joanna Hodges International Piano Competition, in each case as the youngest competitor. In 1992, again as the youngest competitor, he won 1st place in the international D'Angelo Young Artist Competition. Martinson received the United States Presidential Scholar Award in 1991, and the Gilmore Foundation Young Artist Award in 1992, which recognized him as an outstanding young American pianist.

In early 1992, Martinson’s concert career was cut short by focal dystonia (the misfiring of certain specialized neurons in the brain) which affected the control of his right hand, and forced him to cancel all future performances, including engagements in Zurich and Sao Paolo. Subsequently, he attended Yale University, where he turned his attention to conducting. Martinson took over as Music Director of the Berkeley Orchestra at Yale in 1994. During his final two years there, he guided the orchestra to a new level, drawing full crowds to the performances, and building the 45-piece chamber orchestra into a 75-piece orchestra capable of performing standard orchestral literature. He completed his Bachelor of Arts in Music in 1996 and accepted one of the top awards bestowed on graduates at Commencement, the David Everett Chantler Award. He also received the New Prize for his work as the director of the Berkeley Orchestra.

In 2004, Martinson decided to focus on teaching piano. Currently, he teaches privately out of his studio in Santa Monica.

FIRST-PLACE AWARDS
International and National
1. International D'Angelo Young Artist Competition (1992)
2. Joanna Hodges International Piano Competition: Solo Category (1991)
3. Joanna Hodges International Piano Competition: Concerto Category (1991)
4. National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts: ARTS Level 1 Awardee (1991)
5. Santa Barbara Symphony/Esperia Foundation Young Artists' Competition (1990)
6. Joanna Hodges International Piano Competition: Solo, Intermediate Division (1989)
7. Joanna Hodges International Piano Competition: Concerto, Intermediate Division (1989)
8. International Piano Recording Competition, High School Division Grand Prize (1988)
9. International Piano Recording Competition, Intermediate C-D Division First Prize (1984)

Statewide and Regional
10. Marina del Rey-Westchester Symphony Concerto Competition, Senior Division (1992)
11. Young Artists Concerto Competition of the South Coast Symphony (1991)
12. Marina del Rey-Westchester Symphony Concerto Competition, Intermediate Division (1991)
13. Christine Piper Plumb Award of the Music Teachers Association of California (1990)
14. Los Angeles Philharmonic Bronislaw Kaper Award (1990)
15. Los Angeles Music Center Spotlight Award (1990)
16. Concerto Competition of the California Association of Professional Music Teachers (1990)
17. Young Artist Competition of the Pasadena Symphony (1990)
18. Downey Symphony Young Artist Competition (1990)
19. Young Pianist Competition of the Southwest Youth Music Festival (1986)
20. Artists of Tomorrow Competition of the Brentwood-Westwood Symphony Orchestra (1986)

HONORS AND SCHOLARSHIPS
United States Presidential Scholar Award
David Everett Chantler Award (Yale University)
New Prize (Yale University)
Robert Casadesus Competition Yamaha Prize
Gilmore Young Artist Award
Palm Springs Friends of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Scholarship
Young Musicians Foundation Scholarship

MISSION STATEMENT
It is my goal to teach my students the skills necessary to reach a high level of musical achievement, a level at which I believe they are most capable of experiencing the joy and power that music offers. Certain musical skills required are sight-reading, technique, ear-training, practice technique and interpretation. However, there are other skills too, such as patience, perseverance, discipline, courage, commitment, and focus. I call these life skills. They are just as important and indispensable. These life skills, which are key to an individual's growth amidst the challenges of life, also are key to a musician's growth amidst the challenges of music. It is only through the acquisition of these two sets of skills that a young musician can grow and bloom into a mature, highly accomplished, and multi-faceted artist. It is then, I believe, that they can truly feel and experience the awesome joy and riveting power of music on the deepest and most rewarding level.

STUDIO EXPECTATIONS POLICY
I work with families for whom piano education is a priority. I am likely to be a good match for your family if you (the parents) and your child (the student) are as enthusiastic about learning as I am about teaching. Our collective goal will be to help your child build a solid musical foundation. This will happen if the parents, the student, and the teacher perform the following roles:

1. The Parents
It is vital that parents participate in all phases of their child's piano education. Not only does learning require adult supervision to be effective but also, by involving themselves in the lessons and in practice, parents demonstrate to their child that this is an important activity worthy of their own participation.

a) Attend lessons.
Parents should actively participate in the lessons, taking notes as necessary. It is important to observe what is being taught to the child in order to assist in the practice at home.

b) Practice with the child at home.
Parents should sit next to their child at the piano and guide their child as they practice. This is especially important for very young children who are not yet proficient at reading and cannot read their assignments or their music books' instructions. A child needs active parental guidance in order to effectively apply the concepts and practice techniques introduced at each lesson.

c) Insure that the child practices regularly.
By far, this is the most challenging responsibility for the parents. Taking the approach that music homework is important just like academic homework is the first step towards successfully fulfilling this responsibility. It will be an ongoing, ever-changing process as the child gets older. As the teacher, I will do my best to help in this regard. NOTE: I understand that some students and their parents may not wish to work together like this. In these cases, I would recommend other studios that do not stress parental involvement.

2. The Student
a) Practice regularly and well.
Just as academic students are expected to do all homework regularly and well, so also music performance students are expected to do all homework (practice) regularly and well. Students should practice a minimum of six days a week. 20-45 minutes of practicing per day is appropriate for 5 and 6 year-olds. Students should strive for at least an hour per day by the time they are 7 or 8 years old.

b) Take a minimum of one lesson per week.
Students should take a minimum of one lesson per week. 30-minute lessons are appropriate for 5 year-olds. 45-minute or 1-hour lessons are appropriate for 6 year-olds. 1-hour lessons are a minimum for 7 year-olds.

c) Perform in monthly studio musicales or recitals.
Students are expected to perform at each monthly musicale. Musicales serve three key functions. One, they are important social events that allow students to develop friendships with their peers in a musical setting. Two, musicales provide concrete goals that students can strive for. Three, musicales help the students to develop the ability to perform in front of others.

3. The Teacher
a) Apply highly individualized instruction.
I apply this type of instruction to address the unique personal qualities, learning style, strengths and weaknesses of each student. This includes creating weekly, individualized practice charts.

b) Teach good practice habits.
I teach students how to solve problems, think systematically, and pay attention to detail.

c) Motivate and inspire the student.
I aim to engender perseverance in the student in attaining their goals, and to stimulate the student to tap into their innate musicality. I strive to teach the student to embrace, rather than fear challenges.

d) Communicate with parents.
I will keep an open line of communication with the parents regarding the progress of the child. This will be achieved though emails, phone calls, and parent-teacher conferences.

PRESS HIGHLIGHTS
"Martinson…manages hair-raising technical difficulties with easy assurance; he has a good ear for proportion, tempo and linear movement, and he demonstrates a precocious confidence in his own interpretive ideas."
          New York Times

"Martinson gave casual and easy utterance to even the most involved passage work. The big, sweeping tunes reached their peaks naturally…and along the way he found room for sensitive, pointed shading….crisply emphasizing melody in scampering virtuoso formulations. In short, a pianist with fingers and a personality."
          Los Angeles Times

"Sparkling, penetrating, passionate, poised, his pleasure in playing was palpable, and his poetry endless."
          Le Monde

"Amusing and capricious…passionate, pungent, always supremely musical."
          Corriere Della Sera

"Brilliantly sensitive….aristocratic, refined, elegantly lyrical. Expressive and nuanced in all the touchingly personal passages, empirical, tidy, never too emphatic….capable of tremendous pianistic feats of strength."
          Santa Barbara News-Press

"Crystal-clear articulation, a sense of structure and absolute technical accuracy."
          Cleveland Plain Dealer

"I could hardly believe his performance….perfect grace, ease and pianistic style."
Desert Weekly

"A cool breeze of artistic relief….a blazing display of skill….coupled with passion and insight."
          Ventura County Star

"Martinson…created such powerfully intense moments from even the most fragmentary of phrases, one could hear the tortured, angst-riddled thoughts and feelings of ….Rachmaninov."
"A virtuosic tour de force that did not ignore the …pensive, lushly lyrical portions…which he infused with a longing melancholy and even a delicate wistfulness."
          Irvine World News

"Martinson's …light, fine touch and impressive technique…were enhanced by his strong lyrical style."
          Williamsburg Gazette

"Masterful…cannot be improved upon."
          Santa Monica Outlook