Philipp Rhein, born in 1998 in Munich, is a versatile German-Afghan pianist and composer for film, theater, opera and dance. He has won numerous awards and prizes in national and international competitions.

 

In June 2024, he graduated from the Zurich University of the Arts with his final project, Forgotten Land, a unique five-movement work for two pianos and six dancers. Shortly after, the renowned Zurich Opera premiered his composition for #Takeoff. During the past years he composed numerous works for film, theater, and dance, with some of his scored films showcased at festivals in Germany, Portugal, Denmark, and the USA. 

​

From a young age, Philipp Rhein received various awards for piano and composition, including four special prizes at the International Piano Podium, two first prizes at the International Karel Kunc Competition, and the WESPE Special Prize for ”Best Original Work.”

 

He made his orchestral debut in 2017 as a scholarship holder of the Altenburg Music Academy in Vienna, performing Haydn’s Piano Concerto in D major with the Vienna International Orchestra. This was followed by performances with the Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra of Wernigerode (Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3) and the Pazardzhik Symphony Orchestra (Schumann’s Piano Concerto).

​

Philipp Rhein has also gained important artistic insights from masterclasses at the Juilliard School in New York and the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, studying with renowned professors like Boris Berman, Robert McDonald, Michelle Cann, and Ignat Solzhenitsyn. Festival performances have taken him across Europe (e.g., Piano Concerto Festival in Bulgaria, Hidalgo Lied Festival in Munich, Tenerife International Music Festival) and to California (USA), where he was invited to hold a masterclass at the Oakland School for the Arts. 

​

A highlight of the 2024/25 season will be the premiere of his first original opera at the Zurich University of the Arts in spring 2025.