Dutch/American pianist Shane van Neerden (b. 1999, United States) has performed as a soloist, in chamber music ensembles, and as a soloist with orchestra in concert halls in Germany, the Netherlands, England, Italy, Portugal, Austria, France, and in the United States, as well as for radio in the U.S., Portugal (Antena 2), and in the Netherlands (Radio 4, NTR, and in the television program Podium Witteman).

 

In May 2024, Shane won the Dutch Classical Talent Award with which he completed a trajectory that included a tour of fourteen concerts at the most important Dutch classical music venues (Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ, Muziekgebouw Eindhoven, Musis Sacrum Arnhem, Philharmonie Haarlem, SPOT Groningen, Theater aan het Vrijthof Maastricht, TivoliVredenburg Utrecht, De Vereeniging Nijmegen, etc.). For the competition he developed the performance "Lantaarns," including a new commissioned work for a piano in a complete new just intonation by composer Rick van Veldhuizen. During the final of the competition in TivoliVredenburg, the jury praised his courage, musical wealth, and imagination. According to NRC reviewer Marnix Bilderbeek, "his velvet touch, sensitive phrasing, and warm color palette make his a deserved winner". ​​

 

In 2022/2023, Shane was one of the four musicians in Toonzetters, the project out of which the current ensemble emerged, where he played, together with pianist Ramon van Engelenhoven and percussionists Arjan Jongsma and Agostinho Sequeira, 20 new pieces by 20 young composers (a.o. Mathilde Wantenaar, Jan-Peter de Graaf, Celia Swart, and Rick van Veldhuizen) in a tour throughout the Netherlands and Italy. A CD for this project was released by the label 7 Mountain Records.

 

Highlights from Van Neerden's 2023-2024 season include a solo CD recording with radio and television broadcaster AVROTROS, his solo recital debut in the Small Hall of the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, and a chamber music recital with the Berlin Philharmonic's former first viola player Máté Szücs, Frankfurt Radio Orchestra's former first cellist László Fenyö, and Kremerata Baltica's concert master Stella Zake. In February 2025, Shane made his debut as a soloist with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra at the Vrijdagavondconcert in TivoliVredenburg and the Zondagochtendconcert in the Great Hall of the Concertgebouw Amsterdam. In May 2026, Shane will give a lecture-recital in the Concertgebouw Amsterdam's Small Hall that will include the "Three-Page" Sonata and "Celestial Railroad" by American composer Charles Ives and Samuel Barber's piano sonata. He has also recently toured with PHION orchestra playing Prokofiev's 1st piano concert and conducted by Michał Nesterowicz.

 

In February 2026, Shane will release a solo CD with the independent Dutch label 7 Mountain Records (including Charles Ives' Concord Sonata, Maurice Ravel's Gaspard de la Nuit, and Sergei Rachmaninoff's 2nd Piano Sonata), a documentary about him will be released by iAmsterdam (for which he was recommended by the Concertgebouw Amsterdam), and he will play at the pre-concert of the famous Prinsengracht Concert in Amsterdam.

 

In February 2027, he has his Polish debut with the Arthur Rubinstein Philharmonic conducted by Michał Nesterowicz.

 

Shane began piano lessons at the age of six and has studied with celebrated pianists Jacques Rouvier, Robert Levin, Heinrich Schenk, Sasha Starcevich, Peter Takács and Susan Starr. Shane has also had private lessons from French-Canadian pianist Marc-André Hamelin and Portuguese percussionist and conductor Pedro Carneiro. After private lessons from age of 12 to 18 with pianist Carl Cranmer at West Chester University, he began his undergraduate studies at the Conservatory of Amsterdam with Frank Peters. He concluded his studies in 2022 with 10 "cum laude", the highest possible distinction. Shane also graduated from his masters with a 10 "cum laude". Shane also studied in 2021 at the Scuola di Musica di Fiesole in Italy with Eliso Virsaladze.