On the brink of celebrating three decades as one of the world’s preeminent piano trios, the ever-inventive Gryphon Trio continues to break barriers and set precedent with their dynamic programming and powerful collaborations (Nordic Voices, Masumi Per Rostad, Rob Kapilow).

With an extensive performance and touring schedule, the Gryphon Trio expands their educational impact throughout the year with their recent appointment as Directors of Summer Programs for the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity.

The Gryphon Trio’s prolific catalog includes 22 releases on Analekta, Naxos, and other labels; 11 nominations and three Juno Awards for Classical Album of the Year in 2004, 2011, and most recently in 2019; and over 85 newly commissioned works.

The Trio is also dedicated to pushing the boundaries of chamber music and has commissioned and premiered over one hundred new works from established and emerging composers around the world, and has collaborated on special projects with clarinetist James Campbell, actor Colin Fox, choreographer David Earle, vocal ensemble Nordic Voices, and a host of jazz luminaries at Lula Lounge, Toronto’s leading venue for jazz and world music. Their most ambitious undertaking to date is a ground-breaking multimedia, vocal and instrumental production of composer Christos Hatzis’s epic work Constantinople, which they have shared with audiences across North America and at the Royal Opera House in London. 

Their most recent multimedia production Echo – Memories of the World was created in collaboration with an international group of Indigenous and non-Indigenous artists and features Indigenous singer Marion Newman, Indigenous actor čačumḥi Aaron Wells and the Gryphon Trio. Recounting experiences and stories from the lands now known as Canada, Norway, and Ukraine, Echo is a multimedia love letter to the richness of diverse cultural expressions, an emotionally charged exploration of history’s erasures, and a celebration of artists and knowledge keepers who defy suppression to breathe life into enduring works of profound significance. 

The Trio is currently collaborating with clarinetist Kinan Azmeh and visual artist Kevork Mourad to produce an evening’s length production that considers Olivier Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time in a 21st century context. 

In their 2024-25 season, highlights include performances for Crescent City Chamber Music Festival, Chamber Music Houston, Carmel Music Society and the Jay and Susie Gogue Performing Arts Center at Auburn University. They will also be presenting Echo – Memories of the World in Victoria and Vancouver British Columbia and Orcas Island in Washington State.

Deeply committed to the education of the next generations of audiences and performers alike, the Gryphon takes time out of their busy touring schedule to conduct master classes and workshops at universities and conservatories across North America. They are Artists-in-Residence at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Music where Parker also serves as Rupert E. Edwards Chair in Piano Performance and Annalee Patipatanakoon is Professor of Violin and Chamber music.

The Trio’s flagship educational program Listen Up!, was launched in 2010 and now includes year-long residencies, a video series, and teacher training sessions.  Listen Up! residencies take place over the course of a full school year and give  elementary school students a hands-on opportunity to express themselves through poetry and music composition, visual arts and choral performance. Each residency culminates with a joint performance by the Gryphon Trio with the school choir. The much-publicized project began in Ontario and has taken place in 18 communities across Canada. 

August 2024 - Please do not edit without permission.