Anantawan was born in
Canada to a
Thai father and a Hongkonger mother. Anantawan grew up in Toronto and began his violin training, at the age of nine, in
Mississauga with violinist Peggy Hills, and later under violist Mark Childs in
Toronto. In 1999 and 2000, Anantawan earned positions with the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, becoming one of its youngest members both years. Throughout his musical career, Anantawan has won many music awards and has received numerous recognitions. He has been profiled by CBC, CTV, YTV, CityTV, TVO, and many major newspapers and magazines. In 2001, Anantawan received the Mississauga Arts Council Emerging Music Talent award and the YTV (Canada) Young Achiever award. In 2002, he received the Starling Award for promising young soloist from the
Meadowmount School of Music, founded by
Ivan Galamian. In the same year, he won the International Rosemary Kennedy Award and debuted at the
Kennedy Center, Washington D.C. In 2005, he received the
CBC Galaxie Rising Star Award. 's Global Cultural Initiative in the
East Room, September 25, 2006 In 2006, after enjoying a full merit scholarship, Anantawan graduated from the world-renowned
Curtis Institute of Music in
Philadelphia. While there, he studied under
Ida Kavafian and Yumi Ninomiya Scott. In the summers of 2004, 2005 and 2006, he was awarded scholarships to the National Arts Center Young Artist Program and studied with
Pinchas Zukerman., where he now serves as an instructor in its pre-college division. Summer of 2006 and January 2007 also saw Anantawan with a full scholarship at the Perlman School of Music under
Itzhak Perlman. Anantawan has been performing regularly since 2001. He soloed with orchestras throughout Canada and the US. He represented the Canada Cultural Showcase at the 2004
Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece and at the Opening Ceremonies of the Vancouver Winter Games in 2010. In November 2005, he debuted with the
Toronto Symphony under the direction of
Peter Oundjian. Anantawan was inducted into Terry Fox Hall of Fame in 2008, Toronto. ==Disability activism==