Canadian-based piano duo ensemble of Deborah Grimmett and Iman Habibi, Piano Pinnacle, has been hailed as a “true tour de force[...], ” and “an absolute delight” (Musetta Stone). Piano Pinnacle won First Prize at the United States International Duo Piano Competition (USIDPC – 2014), and Second Prize at the International Northwest Piano Ensemble Competition (NWIPEC), and has twice attained the Audience Choice award at the latter. The duo’s performances have been heard across Europe and North America, in cities such as Paris, Chicago, Toronto, Seattle, Oslo, Colorado Springs, and Vancouver. Recent seasons included performances for Berkeley Symphony and The Heinz Foundation, and solo appearances with orchestras across Michigan and British Columbia, including The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (under the baton of Maestro Bramwell Tovey), Ann Arbor Camerata, and Dexter Community Orchestra.

Piano Pinnacle is dedicated to rejuvenating the piano duo genre by presenting an eclectic mix of old and new repertoire with “a passion that could only be achieved by years of patience [...]” (The Other Press). The ensemble aspires to promote and nurture the development of new music, and was the inspiration and dedicatees of over 80 new works for piano duo, of which 15 were selected for performance in New York City. Piano Pinnacle has thus far premiered over two dozen new works for piano duo and two pianos with various ensemble combinations.

Deborah and Iman started playing as a duo in 2006, while both students at The University of British Columbia, and formed Piano Pinnacle in 2010. They were married in 2014, and have had the honour of studying as a duo with the piano duo of Kenneth Broadway and Ralph Markham in Vancouver, Yaara Tal and Andreas Groethuysen in Munich, and with Amy I-Lin Cheng at The University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.