Olga Kern

With a vivid stage presence, dazzling technique, and passionate musicality, pianist Olga Kern

captivates audiences around the globe. Born into a family of musicians, she began piano studies at the age of five and, at seventeen, won First Prize at the Rachmaninoff International Piano Competition.Her historic 2001 Gold Medal win at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition was a career-defining triumph that launched her international reputation. She is the only woman in more than fifty years to claim the honor.

Her 2025–2026 season features a return to Carnegie Hall with a solo recital. She joins the Hawaii Symphony Orchestra in Honolulu; appears at the Sun Valley Music Festival; and will appear at venues throughout Europe, Asia, and North America. She will perform both Shostakovich piano concertos with the Orchestra dell’Accademia Teatro alla Scala, and she will also appear with Illes Balears Symphonic Orchestra and the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra in Katowice.

Kern has performed with major orchestras including the St. Louis Symphony, Pacific Symphony, Detroit Symphony, National Symphony Orchestra (Washington, D.C.), Czech Philharmonic, Filarmonica della Scala, Tokyo NHK Symphony, and Cape Town Philharmonic, and has toured with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, and National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine. Highlights of recent seasons include performances of all four Rachmaninoff piano concertos and Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, a nationwide telecast with the Czech Philharmonic, and engagements with the Colorado, Dallas, Minnesota, and Baltimore symphonies; Orquesta Filarmónica de Gran Canaria; Ireland’s National Symphony; Prague Symphony; Taipei Symphony; Tokyo Symphony; and a tour of South Africa.

In addition to her performing career, Kern is deeply committed to fostering the next generation of musicians. She is Artistic Director of the Olga Kern International Piano Competition and has served as Jury Chairman for the Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition and the Chopin Animato International Piano Competition in Paris. Since 2017, she has been on the piano faculty of the Manhattan School of Music and is Connie & Marc Jacobson Director of Chamber Music at the Virginia Arts Festival. In recognition of her artistic contributions and cultural leadership, she received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 2017. She will be on the jury for the Paderewski Competition in Poland in 2025 and president of the jury of the Cleveland International Youth Piano Competition in 2026.

Kern’s acclaimed discography (olgakern.com/recordings/) includes a Grammy-nominated recording of Rachmaninoff’s Corelli Variations and transcriptions, Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Rochester Philharmonic (Harmonia Mundi), Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Warsaw Philharmonic, Chopin’s Sonatas Nos. 2 and 3, Rachmaninoff’s Sonata for Cello and Piano with Sol Gabetta (Sony), and Brahms and Shostakovich quintets with the Dalí Quartet (Delos). She is also featured in award-winning documentaries including The Cliburn: Playing on the Edge, They Came to Play, and Olga’s Journey. She is a Steinway Artist and an ambassador for Spirio R Steinway pianos as well as a laureate of numerous international competitions.

In 2012, she founded the Kern Foundation “Aspiration,” dedicated to supporting talented young musicians worldwide. Known for her elegance onstage, she collaborates with designer Alex Teih and jeweler Alex Soldier, whose creations complement the artistry and charisma she brings to every performance.