Born, raised and schooled in Benoni, Braam van Eeden is hot on the heels of fellow Benonians Charlize Theron and Princess Charlene of Monaco.
The 29-year-old is now a New York-based composer, pianist, music teacher and newly discovered model.
He is currently taking a short breather in his hometown.
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He said he is reconnecting with his roots and working on a variety of new compositions.
The former Gekombineerde Skool Noorderlig and Hoërskool Hans Moore learner started his music career under the guidance of Dr Daleen Kirstein when he was 15.
He completed his bachelors and masters degrees in piano performance at the University of Pretoria (Tuks) under the guidance of Prof Joseph Stanford.
In 2008 during his first year at Tuks, he won the prestigious Hesse Trophy at the Beeld Eisteddfod for the best piano composition of the year and he won the Vladimir Viardo Prize for the best pianist and piano performance in the country, ages 20 and younger, in 2009.
In 2010, he fulfilled his passion for teaching by completing a higher diploma in teaching through the University of South Africa (Unisa).
Braam went to New York to visit his future composition teacher, the masterful orchestrator and one of America’s finest composers, Lowell Liebermann, and he never looked back.
It was under Liebermann, with the aid of a Susan W Rose Career Grant and an Oppenheimer Memorial Trust Scholarship, that Braam studied for his Professional Studies Diploma (PSD) in Composition at Mannes School of Music.
New York brought Braam international recognition.
In 2014 his work Intimitá for solo piano received an honorable mention in Austria.
In 2016, Braam’s trio for piano, violin and violoncello The Note was premiered by award-winning Olympus Trio.
He has received numerous recognitions; he was recently recognised as a distinguished music teacher by the International Music Organisation New York.
With his exceptional good looks, Braam was spotted by Hollywood talent scout Melann Starwood and he has not signed with any fashion houses yet.
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