Born with a severe cleft palate in a small village in Nicaragua, Donald Vega already had the odds stacked against him. Almost becoming deaf due to his birth defect, Vega learned to love the sounds created from making music and wanted to pursue that enjoyment further. Wanting to escape the Nicaraguan Revolution, Vega arrived in Los Angeles, California in 1989. Determined to support him and his passion for music, Vega’s friends and supporters rallied to stop his deportation in 1996 by helping him become a legal United States resident.

After this, Vega received his degree in Jazz Studies from the University of Southern California, he currently lives in New York City. When he’s not studying at the Juilliard School in NYC, Vega is feverishly pursuing a fast-growing jazz career.

In 2008 Vega released his first album, Tomorrows, which launched his career even further. Determined to increase his popularity further, Vega recorded three more albums, Future Child in 2012, Spiritual Nature in 2014 and With Respect to Monty in 2015. He went on to tour Europe in 2013 as a pianist in Ron Carter’s Golden Striker Trio and still tours clubs in the NYC and LA music districts.

Some of Donald Vega’s competitive winnings include Down Beat’s 2007 Jazz Student Soloist Award and 1st place at the 2008 Philips Jazz Piano Competition at the University of West Florida. Always one to push himself further, Vega is determined to not only win more awards but release better and more wildly acclaimed albums. His pursuit for piano mastery is done not through the desire of fame, but rather his love of jazz and the personal feeling of gratitude he has in being able to live out his musical career to its fullest potential.