Zany Denyer

Zany Denyer is an award-winning pianist specialising in chamber music and vocal accompaniment. A Samling Artist, he is recognised for his insightful approach to music-making. His performances have been described as having “real flair, while never losing that sense of balance” (CAVATINA, 2022).

 

As a co-founder of Trio Havisham, he has performed extensively with the ensemble, which has gained recognition through major awards and artist programs. Having won the Musicians' Company Award at Wigmore Hall (2023), they are now part of the Worshipful Company of Musicians’ five-year Young Artist Program. They have also been selected by the Kirckman Concert Society as Kirckman Artists for the 2024/25 season, after previously being part of the Tunnell Trust’s roster of artists in 2023/24. The trio is also grateful for the support of ChamberStudio UK, who invited them to participate in three residencies at the University of Cambridge as part of the Hans Keller Forum (2023/24). Most recently, they were invited to the 2025 IMS Prussia Cove Masterclasses, where they were in the class of Anthony Marwood. In summer 2025, they will be an Ensemble en Résidence at La Roque d'Anthéron International Piano Festival.

 

The trio has also had success in international competitions, winning 2nd Prize at the Concours International de Musique de Chambre de Lyon (2023). Previously, they were awarded 1st Prize at the CAVATINA Intercollegiate Chamber Music Competition at Wigmore Hall (2022) and were finalists in the Birmingham International Piano Chamber Music Competition (2022). More recently, they were semi-finalists at the 12th International Chamber Music Competition: Franz Schubert and Modern Music (2025) in Graz, Austria.

 

As an accompanist, Zany has also received numerous awards, including the Kathleen Ferrier Society’s Dennis Horner Accompanist Prize (2023), the Rex Stephens Schumann Lieder Accompanist Prize at the Royal Academy of Music (2022), and the Audience Prize at the Worshipful Company of Musicians’ Prince’s Prize (2024). With one of his regular duo partners, baritone Aksel Rykkvin, he has been invited to various festivals and summer programs, including the Franz Schubert Institute’s six-week course in Baden bei Wien (2023). More recently, they were selected as Leeds Lieder Young Artists (2024).

 

Zany is currently pursuing an Artist Diploma at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, where he studies with Caroline Palmer, Carole Presland, and Charles Owen, generously supported by The Countess of Munster Musical Trust. During his time there, he was invited by Graham Johnson to perform in his annual Song Guild (2025), who also awarded him The Paul Hamburger Prize for Piano Accompaniment. He also performed in the Guildhall Chamber Music Festival alongside David Waterman. He has previously studied with Michael Dussek and James Baillieu at the Royal Academy of Music, where he was invited onto the Sir Elton John Global Exchange Programme, and graduated with the Evelyn German Prize. His earlier studies were at the Royal Northern College of Music, where he studied with Murray McLachlan.

 

Throughout his studies, Zany’s musicianship has been strongly shaped by several musicians he was fortunate enough to have coachings and masterclasses with. These include Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, Robert Levin, Steven Osborne, Kathryn Stott, Stephen Hough, Philippe Cassard, Piotr Paleczny, Ralf Gothoni, Petr Prause (Talich Quartet), David Waterman (Endellion Quartet), John Myerscough (Doric Quartet), Wu Qian (Sitkovetsky Trio), the Takács Quartet, the Gould Piano Trio, Trio Karénine, Trio Gaspard, Graham Johnson, Hartmut Höll, Helmut Deutsch, Wolfram Rieger, Benjamin Appl, Sir Thomas Allen, Elly Ameling, and Robert Höll.