James Janssen, fortepiano, made his debut as a pianist at age 13 performing Haydn’s Piano Concerto in D Major with the Anderson Symphony Orchestra. A native of Indianapolis, he received his education from Indiana University and Oberlin Conservatory’s Baroque Performance Institute, where he studied with such luminaries as Penelope Crawford, Patrick Allen, and Lisa Goode Crawford. He is the artistic director and co-founder of Haydn by the Lake, a period instrument chamber ensemble specializing in music of the Baroque and Classical periods. Janssen has toured extensively in recital with Mark Crayton, countertenor. He has been broadcast on Chicago’s WFMT in recital with Crayton and in concert with Haydn by the Lake. He has appeared in the Chicago area with Music of the Baroque, Ars Antigua, and the St. Clement Orchestra. Outside the Chicago area, he has performed across the country, including several appearances at the Phillips Collection in Washington DC and in recital at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall. Internationally, he has played on the Amstelrande Concerten series in Amsterdam and in Grosvenor Hall in London and will be appearing with Crayton in the fall of 2018 at the Handel and Hendrix in London. Equally at home at the piano, fortepiano, harpsichord, and organ, Janssen is also a conductor and composer. In 2016, he conducted the world premiere performances of Francis Lynch’s Christmas opera, Joseph’s Gift. In February of this year, he will conduct the world premiere of another Lynch opera, For Those in Peril. Janssen is artistic director of Evanston Chamber Opera Company (EChO), organist/associate choir director at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church, Evanston, and he can occasionally be found playing the melodica and music saw.