About Jonathan

Jonathan Shih began his piano studies with various Chicago-area teachers (most notably Emilio del Rosario), and continued briefly at Northwestern University under James Giles before a minor hand injury and recession-induced career introspection led him to forgo piano for an engineering degree. After a decade-long hiatus due to work travel, he resumed playing and now studies with Peter Mack. Jonathan has performed live on 98.7 WFMT (Chicago) and won first prize in the 2025 Oberlin International Adult Amateur Piano Competition. He was also a finalist in the 2024 Washington International Piano Artists Competition, where he received special awards for "Best Classical Performance" and "Most Imaginative Programming". When not at the piano, Jonathan works as a product designer at a small startup and enjoys cooking, traveling, and collecting other hobbies.