David Sharpe is a versatile pianist and educator who has performed and presented across Canada, the USA and Europe. Born in Summerside, PEI, Sharpe obtained bachelor degrees in music and education from Mt. Allison University, where he was Valedictorian, studying piano with Edmund Dawe. While at Mt. Allison, Sharpe won the 1995 Atlantic Young Artist Competition, resulting in an eight-city solo concert tour of Atlantic Canada. He attained master and doctoral degrees in piano performance and pedagogy from Arizona State University, under the guidance of Janice Meyer Thompson, where he also completed a law degree.

During his time at ASU, Sharpe was the state collegiate winner in Arizona of the MTNA performance competition in piano three years in a row, and won several awards for the performance of contemporary music. He has premiered new works, performed in contemporary music ensembles, and taken part in festivals at Adamant, Vermont; Las Vegas, Nevada; and Deutscher Tonkünstlerverband in Münster, Germany. He has taught in the summer piano program at Interlochen, Michigan.

Having attained the piano performer’s ARCT, Dr. Sharpe later became a senior piano examiner for RCM Examinations, as well as an examiner for both written and practical piano pedagogy levels, and a mentor to examiner trainees. He has conducted examinations across Canada and the USA, and continues in the examiner role presently. In addition, Dr. Sharpe has served as a reviewer for materials of the Frederick Harris Music Company, and presented workshops on their publications to piano teacher associations in several states in the USA.

Dr. Sharpe has presented at national and international music conferences including the European Piano Teachers’ Association in Novi Sad, Serbia, the CFMTA-MTNA-RCM Collaborative Conference in Toronto, the national conference of the MTNA in Kansas City, USA, and various state conferences. Sharpe’s piano students have won top honors in music competitions and examinations, and he has adjudicated at festivals and competitions in Canada and the USA. Dr. Sharpe has recently returned to PEI where he based in Stratford, and divides his time between PEI and Mexico.  He provides piano instruction both in person and online and serves as Registrar of the PEI Registered Music Teachers’ Association.