Olga Kern - NOSPR

With a vivid stage presence, dazzling technique, and passionate musicality, pianist Olga Kern captivates audiences around the globe. Her historic 2001 Gold Medal at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition launched her international reputation. She is the only woman in more than fifty years to do so.

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

Kern has performed with major orchestras including the St. Louis Symphony, Pacific Symphony, Detroit Symphony, National Symphony Orchestra (Washington, D.C.). She has toured with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, and National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine. Recent seasons included 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.

Kern is artistic director of the Olga Kern International Piano Competition and the director of the Kern Foundation “Aspiration”, and since 2017, she has been on the piano faculty of the Manhattan School of Music. 

She is the 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. In 2025, she will be on the jury for the Paderewski Competition in Poland, and in 2026, she will be president of the jury of the Cleveland International Piano Competition for Young Artists.

She collaborates with designer Alex Teih and jeweler Alex Soldier, whose creations complement the artistry and charisma she brings to every performance. She is a Steinway Artist and an ambassador of the Steinway Spirio R pianos. Her extensive discography can be found at www.olgakern.com.