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Born in Beirut, Lebanon to a family of Armenian descent, professor Avedis Kuyumjian began his studies when he was 12 years old at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna. He was the youngest student at the time majoring in piano performance. At the University he studied with professors Dieter Weber, Noel Flores, Alexander Jenner, Georg Ebert, and continued his postgraduate work with Djanko Iliev, Stanislaw Neuhaus and Alica Kezeradze.
Professor Kuyumjian's career as an artist-performer, professor, director, and administrator is marked by the many accomplishments he has achieved in the field of music since he won the 1st prize at the 6th International Beethoven Competition in Vienna in 1981. After that he has performed in well renowned concert halls in Europe, the United States, Canada and Japan. He has appeared a soloist with well renowned orchestras around the world, and taken part in many different festivals. He is a sought out jury member in major international competitions, in addition to the conduct of masterclasses in many universities in Europe, Canada and Japan. His recordings with many great artists and, especially, with his long time duo partner Takumi Kubota, well demonstrate his artistry as a pianist and a chamber musician.
In 1997, he was appointed professor of piano and chamber music in the Keyboard Department at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna, where he began his pedagogical career as an assistant professor in 1987. He is the initiator and founder of the International Joseph Haydn Chamber Music Competition at the same University, and in 2002 he became the co-founder and director of the Joseph Haydn Chamber Music Institute of the University. From 2004 to 2008, he has been the artistic director of the Piano à Saint-Ursanne festival in Switzerland. In October 2010, he was appointed dean for the Department of Performance and Instrumental Studies at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna. In October 2016, he was appointed professor-artist in residence for piano at the Chapelle Musicale Reine Elisabeth in Belgium.
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