Piano Island Festival | 9th edition
Tokyo, Japan
23 - 29 June 2027

Olga Kern won the Gold Medal at the 2001 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition and has performed with orchestras including the Czech Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic and NHK Symphony Orchestra. A Steinway Artist, she combines an international concert career with teaching at the Manhattan School of Music, where she joined the piano faculty in 2017. She is Artistic Director of the Olga Kern International Piano Competition and Director of Chamber Music at the Virginia Arts Festival. Her discography includes a Grammy-nominated Rachmaninoff recording, alongside albums devoted to Chopin, Tchaikovsky and chamber music.

Noriko Ogawa established her international career following her success at the 1987 Leeds International Piano Competition. Based in Britain and Japan, she performs internationally as a soloist and chamber musician. Her extensive discography for BIS includes the complete solo piano works of Debussy, alongside recordings of Satie and Japanese composers. She teaches at London’s Guildhall School of Music & Drama and Tokyo College of Music, and serves as Chair of the Jury of the Hamamatsu International Piano Competition. Alongside her performing career, she gives masterclasses and adjudicates at major international competitions.

Christopher Janwong McKiggan is a pianist, chamber musician and educator whose awards include the Gold Medal at the Seattle International Piano Competition and a top prize at the UNISA International Piano Competition. He has performed at venues including the Kennedy Center, Salle Cortot and Melbourne Recital Centre, and collaborated with the Dover Quartet. A co-founder of the Piano Academy of Bangkok, he has guided students to prizes at international competitions in Europe and the United States. He is also a founding pianist of the Bangkok Piano Trio, with artistic activities extending to recording and film production.

Murray McLachlan is a British concert pianist, educator and author whose career encompasses performances on five continents and more than forty commercial recordings. His discography includes the complete piano sonatas of Prokofiev and Myaskovsky, alongside extensive recordings of British music. He is Professor of Piano at the Royal Northern College of Music and Head of Keyboard at Chetham’s School of Music. Founder and Artistic Director of Chetham’s International Piano Summer School, he has also written three books on piano technique and contributes regularly to publications on performance and teaching.

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www.murraymclachlan.co.uk

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Australian pianist Tony Lee has won first prizes at the Lev Vlassenko Piano Competition, Australian National Piano Award and Australian Youth Classical Music Competition. In 2016, he received the award for Best Australian Pianist at the Sydney International Piano Competition. Born in Sydney, he studied at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and the Barratt Due Institute of Music in Oslo. He was also an artist in residence at Belgium’s Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel, working with Maria João Pires. His international distinctions include prizes at the Scriabin, Kerikeri and Nordic international piano competitions.

Winnie Tay is a Singaporean pianist and educator, Principal of Song Without Words Music Studio and co-founder of The Musique Loft. A Steinway Educational Partner, she works with young pianists through individual teaching, masterclasses and musical events. Her students have won prizes at competitions in Singapore and internationally, with many continuing their musical studies at specialist institutions. She has served on the juries of the Steinway Youth Piano Competition and the Zhongsin International Music Competition. Through The Musique Loft, she helps create opportunities for students and teachers to learn, perform and exchange ideas.

Chinese-American pianist and Steinway Artist Xun Pan combines international performance with an extensive teaching career. He studied at Beijing’s Central Conservatory of Music and Syracuse University before earning a Doctor of Musical Arts at Rutgers University. His recital appearances include Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall and Beijing’s National Centre for the Performing Arts. He directs keyboard studies at Millersville University’s Tell School of Music and is Artistic Director of the Lancaster International Piano Festival. An active chamber musician and competition adjudicator, he also gives masterclasses at conservatoires and universities internationally.

London-based pianist Ariel Lanyi received third prize at the 2021 Leeds International Piano Competition and was awarded the Prix Serdang by Rudolf Buchbinder in 2023. Born in Jerusalem, he studied at the Royal Academy of Music with Hamish Milne and Ian Fountain. He has appeared with the Israel Philharmonic, Mahler Chamber Orchestra and Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, and given recitals at Wigmore Hall and Frankfurt’s Alte Oper. His recordings include Schubert and Organ Reflections, featuring music by Mozart, Franck and Reger. Chamber music is also central to his work, including appearances at the Marlboro Music Festival.

Thai pianist and Steinway Artist Poom Prommachart combines an international performing career with his role as Head of Junior Music at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts’ School of Young Talents in Singapore. He trained at the Royal College of Music in London and the Moscow Conservatory, and earned his doctorate at the Université de Montréal. Winner of the 2010 Isidor Bajić International Piano Competition and recipient of the Royal College of Music’s Tagore Gold Medal, he has performed with orchestras including the Hong Kong Philharmonic. He also gives masterclasses internationally and champions the music of Carl Vine.

Chikako Kuboyama is a Japanese piano educator and adjudicator based in Fukuoka. A graduate of Kunitachi College of Music, she combines teaching with concert production and international musical exchange. She presents seminars on the Bastien teaching method and serves on competition juries throughout Japan. Her educational activities include organising PTNA Piano Step events and supporting regional rounds of the Japan Bach Competition and Chopin International Piano Competition in ASIA. Through her work with the Kyushu International Festival and the youth group Shonen Shojo Minami, she also promotes cultural exchange and peace through music. Since 2025, Chikako Kuboyama founded the Pleiades International Music Competition based in Japan.

Michiko Sumino is a Japanese piano educator and director of Sumino Piano Academy. Following her studies at Toho Gakuen School of Music, she pursued postgraduate training at the New England Conservatory in Boston. Her teaching encompasses young beginners, conservatoire applicants and fellow piano teachers. More than 100 of her students have reached the national finals of the PTNA Piano Competition, and she has received numerous PTNA teaching awards. Alongside her studio work, she lectures and writes on piano pedagogy and serves on competition juries, including the Chopin International Piano Competition in ASIA.

Award-winning Japanese pianist and educator, Natsumi Kuboyama graduated at the top of her class from the Toho Gakuen School of Music. Her distinctions include the top prize in the Professional Division of the Chopin International Piano Competition in Asia, First Prize at the Izuka New Artist Competition, and First Prize at the Salzburg-Mozart International Chamber Music Competition. An active recitalist, chamber musician, teacher and competition juror, she performs and teaches internationally, with recent activities spanning Japan and Europe. Her debut album Plays Chopin was released in 2021 and received recognition from Japan’s Record Geijutsu magazine.

Graduated from the Kunitachi College of Music Junior & Senior high school, Kunitachi College of Music completing a master course abroad in Vienna. In addition to his solo career, Minoru Igarashi has performed with n numerous artists and is active as an ensemble pianist. Currently vice principal of the Junior and Senior high schools affiliated with Kunitachi College of Music.

Jikyo Jung is a Korean pianist, chamber musician, educator, international competition juror, and Artistic Director of Trio Gonggam, with an active career across Korea, Europe, and Asia. A graduate of the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw with a doctorate from the Istituto Musicale Gaspare Spontini in Italy, he performs internationally while mentoring young musicians through masterclasses, competitions, and educational programs.

Founder and Artistic Director of BespokeArts, Bryan curates concert experiences with artistry at the centre, from intimate recitals to full orchestral productions in Singapore. He is also Co-Director of IAPMT Competition in Singapore, an international adjudicator, and faculty at international festivals. He teaches masterclasses across Japan, Thailand, the Philippines, Malaysia, and the United States.

Taiwanese conductor Brian Liao, based in Paris, is building an increasingly international career across Europe and Asia, with recent and upcoming engagements spanning the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Poland, Türkiye, Italy, Spain, Croatia, France, and Taiwan.Liao has developed long-term artistic and international projects. Since 2023, he has served as Artistic Director of the National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra International Youth Orchestra. The 2027 season marks his fourth year in the position, culminating in an international tour to South Korea following concerts in Taiwan. He also serves as Principal Guest Conductor of the Counterpoint Ensemble in Kaohsiung.

Singaporean pianist and Steinway Artist Congyu Wang performs internationally as a soloist and chamber musician. He studied at the École Normale de Musique de Paris with Jean-Marc Luisada and Odile Catelin-Delangle, and later with Gabriel Tacchino at the Schola Cantorum. His recordings include Charme, devoted to Poulenc, and Reflets, dedicated to Debussy. In 2022, he received second prize and the Germaine Mounier Prize at the Albert Roussel International Piano Competition in Paris. He is Founder and Artistic Director of the Piano Island Festival and Piano Concerto Festival.