Conrad Tao is celebrated for his boundary-defying artistry and powerful performances of traditional repertoire. Described by New York magazine as “the kind of musician who is shaping the future of classical music” and praised by The New York Times for his “probing intellect and open-hearted vision,” Tao appears regularly as a soloist with leading orchestras and at major venues worldwide.

In the 2025/26 season, Tao returned to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra as both soloist and recitalist, performing Bartók’s Piano Concerto No. 3 with conductor Karina Canellakis and presenting a recital featuring Gershwin song arrangements alongside works by Schoenberg, Strayhorn, Ravel, and others. Recital highlights include his debut at Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie, as well as appearances at Klavier-Festival Ruhr, at the Celebrity Series of Boston, and with the Seattle Symphony in a program combining works by David Fulmer, Rebecca Saunders, Todd Moellenberg, Brahms, and Ravel.

Tao reunites with Robert Spano for John Adams’ Century Rolls with the San Diego Symphony and Bernstein’s The Age of Anxiety with the Atlanta Symphony. Additional engagements include performances of Matthias Pintscher’s NUR with the Konzerthausorchester Berlin, Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 17 with the NHK Symphony and Jaap van Zweden in Tokyo, and his harpsichord debut at Princeton University in Patricia Kopatchinskaja’s Dies Irae project.

Recent highlights include a return to Carnegie Hall with Debussy’s 12 Études and Tao’s Keyed In, as well as appearances with the San Francisco, Philadelphia, Boston, New York, and Cleveland orchestras. In 2024, he toured Europe with the Kansas City Symphony and Matthias Pintscher to mark the centenary of Rhapsody in Blue, with sold-out performances at the Elbphilharmonie, Berlin Philharmonie, and Concertgebouw.

A prolific composer, Tao continues to perform his own works, including Flung Out and The Hand, commissioned by the Kansas City Symphony. His orchestral work Everything Must Go premiered with the New York Philharmonic. He also tours Counterpoint with dancer Caleb Teicher and performs with the Junction Trio. His recordings include Voyages, Pictures, and American Rage (Warner), as well as David Lang’s the loser and Bricolage. Honors include the Avery Fisher Career Grant, a Gilmore Young Artist Award, and a New York “Bessie” Award.