Called a “pianist’s pianist” by The New Yorker, Cecile Licad’s artistry is a blend of daring musical instinct and the superb training. Her natural talent was honed at the Curtis Institute of Music by three of the greatest performer/pedagogues of our time: Rudolf Serkin, Seymour Lipkin and Mieczyslaw Horszowski. Licad's large repertoire as an orchestral soloist ranges from acclaimed interpretations of the Classical works of Mozart and Beethoven to the Romantic literature of Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Schumann and Rachmaninoff to the 20th century compositions of Debussy, Ravel, Shostakovich, Prokofiev and Bartok.

Licad's engagements for the 2007-08 season include performances with Seattle Symphony, playing Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2 under Gerard Schwarz; Honolulu Symphony playing Chopin's Concerto No. 2 under newly-named Principal Conductor Andreas Delfs, as well as with the Spokane Symphony under Eckert Preu; Virginia Symphony with JoAnn Falletta in Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 3; and Tucson Symphony playing Saint-Saens No. 2 under George Hanson. She tours in Germany with the Wurtemburg Philharmonic playing Beethoven’s No. 2 and appears with the Freiburg Orchestra performing the Shostakovich Concerto for Piano and Trumpet. She also plays a series of piano/cello duos with Alban Gerhardt in Germany and the United States, and participates in the La Jolla Chamber Music Festival.

Licad has appeared regularly in North America with orchestras such as the Chicago Symphony, Boston Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, National Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic and many others. In Europe she has played with the London Symphony, London Philharmonic, Bayerisches Rundfunk Orchestra, and Orchestre de la Suisse Romande. In Asia, she has performed with the Hong Kong Philharmonic, New Japan Philharmonic, Tokyo's NHK Symphony and her native Philippine Philharmonic.

Licad has performed in recital with Murray Perahia, Peter Serkin and Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, with whom she has appeared at Lincoln Center, Orchestra Hall in Chicago, and the Kennedy Center, respectively. She performs regularly with cellist Alban Gerhardt, throughout Europe and the United States, including at the Frick Collection in New York City. She appeared as soloist in the Steinway Piano Sesquicentennial Celebration at Carnegie Hall, performing six Rachmaninoff songs with tenor Ben Heppner, and has made television appearances with Mstislav Rostropovich.

As a highly regarded chamber musician, she has performed regularly with ensembles such as the New York Chamber Symphony, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Guarneri Quartet, Takacs Quartet, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and Music from Marlboro. She also appeared as guest soloist on tour with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra in Leipzig, Hamburg, Dusseldorf and Cologne, among other European cities. Her summer festival appearances have included Caramoor, Tanglewood, the International Music Festival of Seattle, Mostly Mozart Festival (in both New York and Tokyo) and the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival.

On the Music Masters label, Licad released a recording of three works by Ravel: Le tombeau de Couperin, Gaspard de la Nuit, and Sonatine. She has an all-Gottschalk recording on the Naxos label. And on Sony Classical, she has recorded Schumann's Carnaval, Papillions and Toccata in C Major; and Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2, and Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini with the Chicago Symphony, conducted by Claudio Abbado. Her Sony Classical release of Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 2 and Saint-Saens' Piano Concerto No. 2, with André Previn conducting the London Philharmonic, was awarded the Grand Prix du Disque Frederic Chopin. Angel/EMI produced her solo all-Chopin recordings, which include Études, op. 10. Also for Angel/EMI, she recorded, with Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, the Franck Sonata in A Major, the Brahms Sonata No. 2 in A Major, and Sonatensatz in C Major. Cecile Licad began her piano studies at the age of three with her mother, Rosario Licad, in her native Philippines, and later studied with the highly regarded Rosario Picazo. At seven, she made her debut as soloist with the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Philippines. As one of the youngest musicians to receive the prestigious Leventritt Gold Medal, Licad won immediate international recognition, and her career was launched.