Spencer McKee

Spencer McKee is a rising senior at The Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University pursuing a Bachelor of Music degree as a student of Dr. Heather Conner. A native of Florida, he began piano study at age 4 and continued through his high school years with his mother Dr. Mary Watanabe McKee. Since then, he has earned numerous local, national, and international awards. Most recently he has earned top prizes in the Vanderbilt University Concerto Competition, 2025 Knoxville International Piano Competition, Tennessee MTNA competition, Palm Beach Atlantic Young Artists Piano Competition, and the Lana M. Bailey National Piano Concerto Award.

In 2022, Spencer was awarded first place at the state competition of the Florida Federation of Music Clubs solo division and subsequently was invited to perform at the 2023 Junior Florida State Convention. He has participated in masterclasses with Boris Berman, Jack Winerock, Rachel Naomi Kudo, and Yakov Kasman, and had additional studies with Paul Schenly and Dr. Vera Oussetskaia Watanabe. Spencer has been a participant in such festivals as PianoFest in the Hamptons and the Gilmore Festival as a Fellowship recipient.

Spencer enjoys performing for churches, senior community centers, social events, and benefits. In one recital he was able to raise over $2500 for the World Central Kitchen to aid the people of Ukraine. His interests include co-hosting the podcast“WeHate Good Movies” for Vanderbilt student media, A/V production, baseball, and cooking.