Long Bio
Godwin Friesen is a pianist and composer from the Canadian Prairies, exuberantly discovering where a life in music can take him. Winning the nationwide Concours OSM (Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal) in 2022 has led to several collaborations with the leading orchestra of his current hometown of Montréal. Meanwhile, first prize and audience prize in the 2023 Trondheim International Competition with the Rilian Trio (Daniel Dastoor, violin, and David Liam Roberts, cello) have opened doors to professional trio engagements in Europe and across Canada.
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Godwin grew up performing frequently not as a pianist, but as a member of the Friesen Family Band, singing and playing various instruments in styles ranging from folk to church music to jazz. Through over one hundred concerts, three album recordings and several Canadian tours with his parents and five siblings, he developed instincts for ensemble playing and improvisation. Later as a teenager, diving into the trio repertoire with his siblings, he discovered an affinity for chamber music.
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Composing has become another important part of Godwin’s musical life thanks to an early piano teacher, Sheila Wright, who taught all her students to compose. Today, his solo and ensemble concerts regularly include his own works, several of which are inspired by the Psalms. This composing experience has contributed to his insight as an interpreter, recognized by the prizes for best interpretation of the imposed contemporary work both in the Concours OSM and the Trondheim Competition.
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After five formative years studying with pianist Bonnie Nicholson in Saskatoon, Godwin went to The Glenn Gould School in Toronto for a bachelor’s degree and an Artist Diploma, studying with John O’Conor. Highlights from those years include conducting a Mozart concerto from the piano and winning the Audience Communication Award at the PianoArts North American Competition for his verbal introductions. Next, he completed a master’s degree in 2024 at l’Université de Montréal with Henry Kramer and Jean Saulnier.
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Since then, Godwin has devoted himself to performing and composing. Last season included over forty performances with cellist David Liam Roberts as the Prairie Sons (through Prairie Debut and Music Toronto) as well as his first performance of the complete Goldberg Variations. The 2025–26 season includes solo engagements with the Montréal and Regina symphony orchestras, concerts in Oslo and Bergen with the Rilian Trio, and the premiere of his latest Psalm composition in the OSM’s summer festival.
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August 2025
Short Bio
Godwin Friesen is a pianist and composer from the Canadian Prairies, exuberantly discovering where a life in music can take him. Winning the nationwide Concours OSM (Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal) in 2022 has led to several collaborations with the leading orchestra of his current hometown of Montréal. First prize in the 2023 Trondheim International Competition with the Rilian Trio (Daniel Dastoor and David Liam Roberts) has opened doors to professional engagements in Europe and across Canada. Godwin’s musical formation began with singing and playing in the Friesen Family Band. An early piano teacher, Sheila Wright, introduced him to composing; his new compositions inspired by the Psalms have become an important element of his performances, including in his recent duo tours organized by Prairie Debut. After five formative years learning from pianist Bonnie Nicholson in Saskatoon, he studied with John O’Conor at the Glenn Gould School in Toronto and then with Henry Kramer and Jean Saulnier at l’Université de Montréal, where he finished a master’s in 2024.
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August 2025
