Erik Thomas Tawaststjerna (born 8 June 1951 in Helsinki, Finland) is a Finnish pianist and pedagogue who teaches at the Sibelius Academy.
After taking private piano lessons in his youth with Genrietta Mirvis in Moscow, Tawaststjerna enrolled at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna and Juilliard School of Music, where he studied with Dieter Weber and Sascha Gorodnitzki, respectively.
Subsequently, Tawaststjerna studied with Eugene List at New York University, where he obtained his doctorate.
[1] His students (including Janne Mertanen, Henri Sigfridsson, Victor Chestopal, Julia Mustonen, Risto-Matti Marin and Terhi Dostal) have been successful in numerous Finnish and international competitions.
Tawaststjerna performed as soloist in the Finnish premiere of Leonard Bernstein's Symphony No.