After his studies on the piano from 1998-2004 with Rudolf Buchbinder at Musik-Akademie Basel, where he received a piano performance degree (Konzertdiplom) with highest honors, Armenian-born Mikayel Balyan studied harpsichord/ pianoforte with Prof. Carsten Lohff (Hochschule für Künste Bremen), clavichord/harpsichord with Prof. Menno van Delft and music theory as a main subject with Prof. Volkhardt Preuß (both Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg). In 2008 Mikayel Balyan himself started teaching historical keyboard instruments and thorough bass at these two schools (until 2012). 2012-2013 he studied historical improvisation at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis with Rudolf Lutz and Nicola Cumer.
Mikayel Balyan worked with numerous conductors and orchestras, Vladimir Spivakov and „Virtuosi Moskvi“ and Howard Griffiths and Zürcher Kammerorchester, Moreover he has appeared as a soloist and chamber music partner at many venues within Europe and South America and at various festivals e.g. Resonanzen Wien, Festival Radovljica Internationale Barocktage Stift Melk, Fränkischer Sommer, Musikfest Bremen, Festival Oude Muziek Utrecht , Tage Alter Musik in Herne, Salzburger Festspiele. He performed in radio broadcasts und interviews at Deutschlandfunk, NDR and ORF.
As a member of the ensemble „amikal“ he has won 1st prize at the German Music Conservatory Competition (2007 Stuttgart) and 2nd prize at the International Schmelzer Competition in Melk /Austria (2008).
In 2010 and 2011 he and his colleagues from the Early Music Departement Bremen were invited to teach at the International Summer Academy in Salzburg. In the same years Mikayel Balyan worked as musical assistant of Renè Jacobs in the opera production „ Antigona“ (music: Tommaso Traetta) at the Staatsoper unter den Linden Berlin.
In September 2012 he together with his cello partner Davit Melkonyan won the scholarship „Artist in residence 2012“ sponsored by the Bremen Music Festival and the radio station Deutschlandfunk. This scholarship included two CD productions with Sony Classics/Deutsche Harmonia Mundi (Bernhard Romberg, 3 sonatas for Pianoforte and violoncello, op.5- released 2013 and J. Brahms, sonatas op.34 and op.99- released 2014).
In September 2014 he has been appointed professor of the fortepiano at the Music and Arts Privat University of Vienna. Since 2019 he also teaches fortepiano at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna.
2020 a new CD recording on the VIVAT label was released, including both sonatas for fortepiano and violoncello and first piano trio by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy with Viola de Hoog (cello) and Marten Root (first recording of Mendelssohn’s first version with flute) on original period instruments.
