Piano Faculty
Instrumental Studies
The Hartt SchoolEducation
PhD, The Hartt School, University of Hartford
MM, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
MM, Manhattan School of Music
BM (with distinction), Cairo Conservatoir
Hailed as a “Deeply impressive pianist of tremendous flair and intellectual strength” and a “Spectacular pianist” by Herald Scotland’s Critic Michael Tumelty. Robert (Bob) Sherman has featured Mr. Shams’s selective live recordings on New York’s top classical radio station WQXR three times through McGraw-Hill Young Artist Showcase presents.
Pianist Mohamed Shams enjoys a varied musical life as a recitalist, soloist, chamber musician and accompanist. He has performed diverse repertoire in The United States, Europe, and Far East. As a recitalist, accompanist and chamber musician and Soloist, he has performed in important prestigious concert halls such as Carnegie Hall, Steinway Hall, Miller Auditorium and Bruno Walter Auditorium in Lincoln Center, Yamaha Hall in London, Royal Concert Hall in Glasgow, Usher Hall in Edinburgh, and Kolarac Hall in Belgrade. He has collaborated with well-known conductors such Enrique Batiz, Philippe Entremont, Sergio Cardenas, Edward Cumming, Christoph Muller, David Danzmyr, Ahmed El-Saedi and Nader Abbassi. As a soloist he has played with The Royal Philharmonic, The Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Gottingen Symphoniker, Cairo Symphony Orchestra, Manhattan School Orchestra, Hartt School Orchestra and Royal Conservatoire of Scotland Orchestra.
As a recipient of a Fulbright grant in 2006 in research of 20th century American composers, Mr. Shams performs frequently works by Elliott Carter, John Corigliano, Florence Price. He is also a champion of works by forgotten or rarely performed late 19th and early 20th century composers such Medtner, Bortkiewicz and Bacewicz. His musical studies earned him an MM from Manhattan School of Music and BM with distinction from Cairo Conservatoire. He earned another master from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. He earned his Doctorate from the Hartt School of music at the university of Hartford. Mr. Shams is currently a faculty member at the Purchase College of Music- SUNY (White Plains, NY) and University of Hartford, CT. His former teachers include Edgar Davilianidze, Elena Dzamashvili, Douglas Weeks, Marc Silverman, Aaron Shorr, Steven Osborne and David Westfall. He is also a regular collaborator of clarinetists Charles Neidich and Ayako Oshima.