Natalia Vanegas Escobar

Colombian pianist Natalia Vanegas is currently building a promising career as a performer and teacher. Her pedagogical journey started in 2012 in her home city Medellin, working as a private instructor at the Amadeus school of music. Since then, she has developed a passion for teaching and started to work in different academies and to build her private studio. Currently, she is a doctoral candidate and graduate assistant at the University of Memphis where she studies with Dr. Jonathan Tsay and teaches class piano.

Competitions include third place at the Beethoven Club Competition (2019), finalist at the Teatro Colon National Piano Competition (2019), first price at the Costa Rica Piano festival (2020), second prize at the Pianissimo (2020 Colombia) and Concerto Competition winner at the University of Memphis (2021). Performances include different festivals and concert series in Colombia, USA, and Brasil. She also collaborated with Amadeus orchestra and the University of Antioquia students ‘orchestra in Medellin and debuted as a soloist with the Cameratta Udea orchestra and the ArteCamara orchestra. In November 2020 Natalia was invited as a guest artist and teacher at the 2020 CIMA festival in the city of Manizales, Colombia.

Natalia has adjudicated competitions such us Memphis International Piano Festival and Competition, Shelby County schools fall Piano Festival and has been assistant judge and staff in several versions of the Pianissimo competition in Medellin.
Her interests include Colombian and Latin-American living composers and she plans to promote these works on her following performances and an upcoming recording. Currently, Natalia is an active member of the MTNA collegiate chapter at the University of Memphis group that was selected to present at the MTNA and NCKP 2021 the conference entitled, Innovative Intermediate Piano Music from Latin America.

Natalia holds a bachelors’ degree from the University of Antioquia where she studied with Dr. Carlos Eduardo Betancur, Dr. Ana María Orduz and the renowned Colombian pianist Teresita Gómez; and a Masters’ degree from the University of Memphis where she studied with Dr. Cathal Breslin.