is a Philadelphia-based pianist with a wide-ranging repertoire that places a special emphasis on modern and lesser-known works, as well as chamber music. He has performed at the Kennedy Center, Amsterdam’s Muziekgebouw and the Carmel (CA) Music Society’s subscription series. In 2014 he was featured on Philadelphia’s WRTI radio station as part of their "Music Makers" series: an hour-long segment in which he both discussed and performed solo repertoire.  Mr. Hughes made his debut in Paris at the Cité Universitaire in a program of modern American works, sponsored by Orléans Concurs International. This event was preceded by a roundtable discussion about the state of contemporary music in France and America in which Mr. Hughes also took part.

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Mr. Hughes has a strong interest in contemporary music and received third prize in the Gaudeamus Interpreters Competition—one of the world’s premier competitions for modern music—as a member of Outer Banks Duo with saxophonist Stacy Wilson. This was followed by the release of their debut CD, L’Incandescence. He is also a prizewinner of the MTNA National Chamber Music Competition. He is a past recipient of the Tanglewood Music Center, where he participated in the renowned Festival of Contemporary Music and can be heard playing four different keyboard instruments (piano, harpsichord, celesta and electric keyboard) in a performance of John Zorn's violin concerto, Contes de Fées, released on the Tzadik label.

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Since relocating to Philadelphia in 2010 Mr. Hughes has worked extensively with a wide variety of the area's major musical institutions and venues. He regularly works with instrumentalists at the Curtis Institute of Music and has appeared on Curtis' student recital series. As a rehearsal pianist he has helped prepare contemporary vocal opera and oratorio productions for the PIFA festival at the Kimmel Center, International Opera Theater and Vulcan Lyric Opera. He has performed as an ensemble member of the Reading and Newark (DE) symphonies and is a frequent performer on composer Andrea Clearfield's popular "Salon" concert series in Center City Philadelphia, in addition to numerous other performances at smaller venues throughout the region. In 2016 Mr. Hughes joined the ranks of the newly-formed Arcana New Music Ensemble, a musicians' collective that is currently the in-house ensemble of Bowerbird, a concert presenting organization that specializes in experimental and "outsider" music.

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Mr. Hughes holds the Doctor of Music degree in piano performance from Indiana University Bloomington, where he served as an associate instructor of both private and class piano and conducted research into the writings of pedagogue Abby Whiteside. He also holds a Master's degree from Indiana and a Bachelor's degree from the Oberlin Conservatory, also in piano performance. His teaching is influenced by the Alexander Technique, Feldenkrais Method, and Zen Philosophy. He maintains a private studio in the Passyunk Square section of South Philadelphia.