John Mannos began playing the piano at age 5 and has made music a central part of his life ever since. During high school, he attended the Interlochen Arts Camp and performed chamber music with the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra. In 2001, Mr. Mannos won the Concerto Competition at Interlochen and earned a bronze medal in the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition. He received his Bachelor of Music from Roosevelt University’s Chicago College of Performing Arts and his Master of Music from Purchase College, State University of New York. While at Purchase, Mr. Mannos started playing for classes and auditions at the Conservatory of Dance, marking the beginning of his career as a dance pianist. Since then, he has worked with nearly every dance studio and company in Chicago, including Ballet Chicago, Joffrey Ballet, Hubbard Street Dance, Ruth Page School of Dance, Chicago Ballet Arts, DanceWorks Chicago, and River North Dance. In 2014, he performed live on stage with Ballet Chicago dancers during their Spring Repertory performance, playing Brahms’ Intermezzi Op. 117  to choreography by Ted Seymour. Recently, Mr. Mannos was appointed principal pianist for Ballet Chicago and has gained proficiency in much of the classical Balanchine repertoire.