As Director of Operations, Umi oversees the everyday operations of NADIA and develops solutions and procedures to keep the organization running smoothly.
Umi Garrett (she/her/hers)
Director of Operations
Most recently, 20 year old Umi was awarded 4th prize at the 2020 National Chopin Competition and 1st prize in the Juilliard School’s concerto competition, performing Ravel’s G Major Concerto. She has performed in a solo charity concert at Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church in Berlin, Germany in summer of 2016 to collaborate with the IPPNW, the International Physicians for Prevention of Nuclear War; a concert tour with the Symphonia Boca Raton lead by Adam Glaser in Florida in early 2016; a debut concert at the Mainly Mozart Festival in San Diego, California; a debut with the Hiroshima Symphony Orchestra lead by Maestro Kazuyoshi Akiyama in Hiroshima, Japan; a solo-recital concert tour in Japan and a return engagement with the Missouri Symphony Orchestra. Past engagements include a concert with Nicholas McGegan with the Pasadena Symphony and Pops, and the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Alexander Mickelthwate. She made an appearance at the TEDxOC conference and the TEDxHarkerSchool conference in California as both a performer and a speaker. In addition, Umi gave solo recitals in the 2013-2014 and the 2014-2015 seasons in total of nearly 60 cities throughout the United States.
Umi’s other previous engagements with symphony orchestras include the Wuhan Symphony Orchestra in China; the Liepaja Symphony Orchestra in Latvia; the Thayer Symphony in Massachusetts and the Indiana Chamber Orchestra in Indianapolis, Indiana, among others.
Among her honors are first prize at the 13th Osaka International Music Competition in Japan, the Chopin International Competition Chopin Plus in Budapest, Hungary, and the Bradshaw and Buono International Piano Competition in New York in 2012.
In response to the 2011’s devastating tsunami and earthquake in Tōhoku, the northern region of Japan, Umi volunteered to serve the Japanese community by organizing the Kizuna Concert Tour in 2013, during which she performed at four elementary schools in the area for the children affected by the tragedy. In 2015, she returned to Tōhoku for a concert tour and also to perform once more for the students. In 2017, Umi co-founded a non-profit organization, Pacific Academy Foundation, which gives scholarships to young, aspiring artists and athletes.
A devout student of the piano, Umi is currently at the Juilliard School, studying with Prof. Hung- Kuan Chen. Umi has participated in international music festivals such as the Aspen Music Festival, Perugia Music Fest, the Amalfi Coast Music Festival, Banff Music Festival and more. Umi has taken classes from internationally acclaimed pianists such as Julian Martin, Leon Fleisher, Lang Lang, Aldo Ciccolini, Ilana Vered, Felix Gottlieb and Pascal Devoyon.
Umi was nine years old when she recorded and released her first album, Just For You. Her performance of Chopin’s Fantasy-Impromptu in C-sharp minor, Op. 66 from this album appears on the soundtrack for the major motion picture, Jobs. Her second recording, Music in Life, was recorded in 2013, at the age of 12. Her third CD, Storybook, was recorded at age 16. At age 13, Umi was granted a title of the Young Steinway Artist.