Pianist. Composer. Teacher. Writer.
Praise for 2024 Release of Chopin and Debussy album:
"The pianism on this recital disc is unusually poetic, particularly for our time.....Gardels plays six selected Nocturnes as beautifully as I've ever heard them."
- Fanfare Magazine
"Carlos Gardels' Chopin is earthy and propulsive without abandoning the expected beauty or response. His Debussy is also majestic and sensitive"
- American Record Guide
"When one hears the name Carlos Gardels, one probably thinks of the French-Argentine tango composer Carlos Gardel (1890 -1935) – but let there be no confusion, as this young American artist seems destined to add new resonance to the name. His playing has a probing quality that goes a bit deeper than the typical output of young pianists today....There is more than a touch of “old school” expressivity here, and one wants to cheer for a player who is not straitjacketed by metronomes and such, as with many players today."
- The New York Concert Review.
"Occasionally, such an exceptional music album arises that requires special recognition. Should we give Gardels five stars or two thumbs up? For me that would be too mundane. Instead I am compelled to use a baseball metaphor to acknowledge it being akin to a grand slam greeted by a standing ovation in the bleachers"
- Cherry Grove Music Review
Listen: Wagner/Liszt Liebestod, recorded live
Biography
Hailed by the New York Concert Review for "playing that has a probing quality that goes a bit deeper than the typical output of young pianists today", and by International Piano Magazine as a composer for "music that is immediately accessible to listeners and players alike without being superficial or quasi-pop", Carlos Gardels has performed and taught throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia, and has forged a unique career that fuses elements of performance, composition, education, and arts outreach.
A Los Angeles native, Mr. Gardels made his debut appearance in Carnegie Recital Hall in 2016. He has been awarded prizes from the Los Angeles International Liszt Competition, the American Protégé Competition, and the National Society of Arts and Letters.
He has been invited to perform solo recitals in Paris at the American Church's Atelier Concert Series, in London at St. Martin-in-the Field's "Pianists Of the World" concert series, and has studied and performed at the Alion Baltic Festival in Tallinn, Estonia, and the International Keyboard Institute and Festival in New York City. He has additionally performed as a soloist and chamber musician at numerous venues around his native Southern California. His debut album of solo works by Chopin and Debussy was released to critical acclaim by the MSR Classics label in 2024.
Gardels completed his undergraduate studies at the Manhattan School of Music in New York City and received a Master's Degree at Indiana University Bloomington. His major teachers were Hak Soon Swiatkowski, Jeffrey Cohen, Émile Naoumoff, and Neil Stannard. Other mentors have included David Dubal, Cyprien Katsaris, and Ruth Slenczynska. He has also studied composition with Ian Krouse at UCLA.
An esteemed and versatile teacher, Mr. Gardels is on the faculty of Citrus College in Glendora, CA, where he coordinates the piano area, teaching applied piano, class piano, music history, and music appreciation. He has additionally developed a large and vibrant studio of private students in Los Angeles, working with students of all ages and levels. An active member of the Music Teacher's Association of California (MTAC), and the Music Teacher's National Association (MTNA), he currently serves as chairperson of the masterclass program for the Pasadena Branch MTAC. He was voted a 2021 "Top Piano Teacher" by Steinway and Sons, and his private students have won awards at the local an international level, performed in Carnegie Hall, and gone on to become music majors.
He regularly serves as a judge and evaluator for exams and competitions and appears frequently as a masterclass clinician. In 2014 he was a visiting faculty member at the FaceArt Academy of Music in Shanghai.
Gaining increasing notoriety as a composer, his 2017 piece "Late October" was a winner of the MTAC "Composers Today" Awards, and his "Three Fantasies" for Solo Piano were released in August 2022 by Theodore Presser Music. Most recently, his six songs on sonnets of William Shakespeare were premiered in 2024 in collaboration with soprano Nina Berman. As a writer, his articles on music , pedagogy, and composition have been featured in The Huffington Post, Clavier, Pianist Magazine, and the California Music Teacher.
A Los Angeles native, Mr. Gardels made his debut appearance in Carnegie Recital Hall in 2016. He has been awarded prizes from the Los Angeles International Liszt Competition, the American Protégé Competition, and the National Society of Arts and Letters.
He has been invited to perform solo recitals in Paris at the American Church's Atelier Concert Series, in London at St. Martin-in-the Field's "Pianists Of the World" concert series, and has studied and performed at the Alion Baltic Festival in Tallinn, Estonia, and the International Keyboard Institute and Festival in New York City. He has additionally performed as a soloist and chamber musician at numerous venues around his native Southern California. His debut album of solo works by Chopin and Debussy was released to critical acclaim by the MSR Classics label in 2024.
Gardels completed his undergraduate studies at the Manhattan School of Music in New York City and received a Master's Degree at Indiana University Bloomington. His major teachers were Hak Soon Swiatkowski, Jeffrey Cohen, Émile Naoumoff, and Neil Stannard. Other mentors have included David Dubal, Cyprien Katsaris, and Ruth Slenczynska. He has also studied composition with Ian Krouse at UCLA.
An esteemed and versatile teacher, Mr. Gardels is on the faculty of Citrus College in Glendora, CA, where he coordinates the piano area, teaching applied piano, class piano, music history, and music appreciation. He has additionally developed a large and vibrant studio of private students in Los Angeles, working with students of all ages and levels. An active member of the Music Teacher's Association of California (MTAC), and the Music Teacher's National Association (MTNA), he currently serves as chairperson of the masterclass program for the Pasadena Branch MTAC. He was voted a 2021 "Top Piano Teacher" by Steinway and Sons, and his private students have won awards at the local an international level, performed in Carnegie Hall, and gone on to become music majors.
He regularly serves as a judge and evaluator for exams and competitions and appears frequently as a masterclass clinician. In 2014 he was a visiting faculty member at the FaceArt Academy of Music in Shanghai.
Gaining increasing notoriety as a composer, his 2017 piece "Late October" was a winner of the MTAC "Composers Today" Awards, and his "Three Fantasies" for Solo Piano were released in August 2022 by Theodore Presser Music. Most recently, his six songs on sonnets of William Shakespeare were premiered in 2024 in collaboration with soprano Nina Berman. As a writer, his articles on music , pedagogy, and composition have been featured in The Huffington Post, Clavier, Pianist Magazine, and the California Music Teacher.