An enthusiastic proponent of new music, pianist Manuel Laufer has presented world premieres at Merkin Hall, Le Poisson Rouge, Bang on a Can, June in Buffalo, and Festival Atempo (Caracas and Paris). He has concertized extensively playing contemporary chamber music, performing canonic works by composers including Babbitt, Cage, Crumb, Lachenmann, and Xenakis, in addition to newly commissioned repertoire. His solo work has championed modernist voices from his native Venezuela, placing particular emphasis on composer Diógenes Rivas.

A versatile musician, he is also passionate about traditional repertoire. He has performed with orchestras on both sides of the Atlantic, and appears yearly at the Blueridge International Chamber Music Festival. Manuel Laufer has been a visiting artist at Harvard University’s Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Studies, the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, and University at Buffalo’s Creative Arts Initiative. A committed educator, he serves as Director of Piano Studies at New York University, where he teaches pianists in solo and collaborative specializations.