Misha Piatigorsky is emerging as one of the most innovative musicians on the international music scene today. His unique marriage of powerful melodies with an unusual harmonic sensitivity gives his sound a deeply personal yet cosmopolitan dimension, reflecting his experience as a Russian-Jewish émigré growing up in urban America. The winner of the 2004 Thelonious Monk Composers Competition, his works were recently hailed as “beautifully merging of the worlds of serious jazz and pop” by the Boston Globe. His music can also be heard on the soundtracks of major motion pictures including Chaos Theory, Pretty Persuasion, Victory Over Darkness, RX, and Danika. Piatigorsky has also produced over thirty award-winning albums in various genres ranging from Hip-Hop and Jazz to Brazilian and Jewish Music, writing for a variety of ensembles ranging from intimate duos to string orchestra, choir, and big band.

Piatigorsky has been a highly sought-after pianist in New York City for almost two decades, regularly performing with his own groups and acting as music director for vocal legend Mark Murphy. He has toured extensively across Europe, North and South America, Australia and Japan, performing at venues such as the Montreux Jazz Festival, the North Sea Jazz Festival, the Perugia Jazz Festival, to name a few. Distinctions have come from the American Pianists Association, Rutgers University, the Manhattan School of Music, and the John Lennon Songwriter’s Competition. Renowned for his virtuosic flair onstage, Piatigorsky’s technique, charisma and electric energy have been described in the Jazz Review as combining “the chalice of modernism with the stew-pot of soul.”

Piatigorsky currently has two working bands. The Misha Piatigorsky Octet, an ensemble featuring New York's finest soloists, features Tatum Greenblatt on trumpet, Eli Degibri on saxophone, Douglas Yates on clarinet, Michael Dease on trombone, Gilad Hekselman on guitar, Danton Boller on bass, and Rudy Royston on drums. The Octet's repertoire is predominantly Piatigorsky's compositions. His other working ensemble is his trio with electric bassist Buster Hemphill and drummer Chris Wabich. Under the name 'Paris Troika', the band's repertoire is classic rock tunes, arranged and filtered through Piatigorsky's distinct sound.

Born in Moscow, Piatigorsky began his musical education at age five, immigrating to the US at age eight. He earned his Bachelors Degree under pianist Kenny Barron at Rutgers University, and his Masters Degree at Manhattan School of Music.