Alexander Vollmer

Alexander Vollmer, a 10th grader at Lakeside School in Washington, is a talented and dedicated pianist. He began his piano studies at the age of nine and is currently studying with Dr. Yelena Balabanova and Professor Peter Takács.

Alexander made his orchestral debut at the age of thirteen. As a winner of multiple concerto and young soloist competitions, he has performed with the Bellevue Symphony, Eastside Symphony, Utah Philharmonic Orchestra, Grande Ronde Symphony, and Mukilteo Community Orchestra. He has garnered numerous accolades in state, regional, and international competitions. Highlights of his achievements include being a multiple-time Grand Prize winner/Gold Medalist at the Chopin Northwest Festival in both the Solo Division (2024, 2025, 2026) and the Concerto Division (2026), as well as a Grand Prize winner at the 2024 Russian Chamber Music Festival (in both solo and concerto divisions). He is a First Prize winner at the Thomas F. Hulbert International Young Artist Piano Competition; the Korean Music Association Youth Scholarship Competition; the American Virtuoso International Music Competition; and the UK International Music Competition. He was awarded the Gold Medal and Best Prokofiev Award at the Carles & Sofia International Piano Competition and was named a Distinguished Gold Medalist at the Seattle International Piano Competition Classical Viennese Festival in both 2022 and 2023. He has also received top prizes at the 2025 San Francisco International Piano Competition and the 2024 Piano Star International Competition. He was designated a WSMTA State Recitalist for three consecutive years (2023–2025) and was an MTNA Senior Piano Duet National Finalist (2025). He received the Josephine Bryant Memorial Award Scholarship at the 2025 Performing Arts Festival of the Eastside. Most recently, he was one of only three piano finalists in the Seattle Symphony Young Artist Audition.

Alexander is a selected pianist in the Academy of Chamber Music at the Seattle Chamber Music Society, where he and his chamber group performed Beethoven’s Piano Trio No. 3 at the Academy Showcase in 2026.

Alexander attended the Seattle Piano Institute at the University of Washington School of Music in 2023 and has performed in masterclasses with renowned pianists such as Craig Sheppard, Eric Lu, Mikhail Korzhev, and Jacques C. Després. In addition to PianoTexas, he will attend the Oberlin Piano Festival and the Cleveland Piano Seminar in the summer of 2026.