The Piano Pod - a global hub for innovation, education, and connection in classical piano music

The Piano Pod - a global hub for innovation, education, and connection in classical piano music

por Yukimi Song

Artes escénicas Entrevistas musicales

Temporada 6

Official Trailer: Season 6 Eps.15, The Sound of Perseus feat. Michael Ostrzyga, Composer

Here is the trailer for Season 6, Episode 15 of The Piano Pod. Guest: Michael Ostrzyga — Composer & Conductor In this episode, we explore his piano writing, centered around his album Perseus — a body of work shaped by structure, memory, and lived experience. In our conversation, we talked about: where music begins — sound, structure, or something more intuitive how memory finds its way into composition expanding the language of the piano writing for different kinds of performers how personal experience shapes artistic work 🎥 YouTube Premiere tonight at 8:00 PM ET (April 7): https://youtu.be/M_932Hlo-Xg?si=UB8J69nP3tM03Fyi 🎧 Audio (available on all platforms): https://linktr.ee/ThePianoPodAudio 📕Read our blog about Michael Ostrzyga: https://thepianopod.substack.com/p/meet-our-guest-michael-ostrzyga-composer Join us tonight.

Official Trailer ✅: The Infinite Staircase feat. GRAMMY-nominated Pianist Han Chen

Here is the trailer for our upcoming episode with GRAMMY-nominated pianist Han Chen. From mastering Ligeti to building Infinite Staircase, this conversation goes beyond performance — into vision, risk, and creating something that lasts. 🎥 Premieres tonight at 8 PM ET: https://youtu.be/2JqDeHYSk58?si=QgFPTfWf0ch_7WBl 🎧 Audio: https://linktr.ee/thepianopodaudio Read Our Blog: https://open.substack.com/pub/thepianopod/p/meet-our-guest-han-chen-concert-pianist?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web

Official Trailer for Season 6 Eps.13 Vivian Fang Liu

Here is the trailer for our upcoming episode of The Piano Pod. Concert pianist, singer-songwriter, and composer Vivian Fang Liu joins us for a powerful conversation about music, identity, and belonging. From her award-winning children’s albums to cross-genre artistry shaped by classical piano, Vivian shares how her work brings together performance, storytelling, and education to empower the next generation. 🎥 Full episode premieres tonight, March 17, at 8 PM ET on YouTube.https://youtu.be/bH4YCXAZX5M 🎧 The audio episode will be released simultaneously on all podcast platforms. We hope you’ll join us for this inspiring conversation. #ThePianoPod #VivianFangLiu #AccentsOfLove #PodcastPremiere #MusicAndIdentity

Official Trailer: "Sapiens - A Human History on the Piano feat. Sean Hickey

🎥 Here is the trailer for our new eps featuring Sean Hickey, Composer/Record Label Executive Composer Sean Hickey joins The Piano Pod to discuss Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind for the Piano — his monumental piano cycle inspired by Yuval Noah Harari’s bestselling book. From imagined orders and human cooperation to empire, biology, AI, and the future of artistic sustainability, this conversation explores what it means to create — and remain human — in a rapidly accelerating world. Performed by pianist Vladimir Rumyantsev, Sapiens translates sweeping philosophical questions into sound, structure, and silence. This episode moves from macro-history to the deeply personal — from Detroit and electric guitar to leading major international record labels — and ultimately asks: What allows music to endure? 📆 Join the premiere tomorrow, Tuesday, February 24, at 8:00 PM ET. 📺 Set a reminder and join us live via YouTube: https://youtu.be/sx0nR48wNYg 🎧 Listen on your favorite podcast platforms: https://linktr.ee/ThePianoPodAudio 📖 Read our blog review on Substack: https://thepianopod.substack.com/p/meet-our-guest-sean-hickey-composer

"Building Artists Through Music & Mentorship" Pavlina Dokovska on Pedagogy, Leadership, and the Mannes International Piano Festival

This surprise bonus episode was created in collaboration with Mannes School of Music at The New School. In this conversation, I sit down with Pavlina Dokovska — internationally active concert pianist, Chair of the Piano Department at Mannes School of Music, and Artistic Director of the Mannes International Piano Festival — to explore what it truly means to build artists in today’s musical and cultural moment. We discuss serious piano study, long-term mentorship, artistic identity, and the role institutions play in shaping the next generation of musicians. Toward the end of the episode, you will also hear from Jiwon Yang, current Mannes graduate student and First Prize winner of the George and Elizabeth Gregory Concerto Competition, sharing her experience studying in downtown Manhattan and participating in the festival. 🎹 Mannes International Piano Festival 📝 Festival Application 🏫 Mannes School of Music at The New School 📝 Meet Our Guest — Pavlina Dokovska: ABOUT THE PIANO POD 💖 Become a VIP Member / Unlock Exclusive Content 📫 Join Our Newsletter 🌐 TPP Website 📱 Follow The Piano Pod 🎧 Available on YouTube and all podcast platforms. Subscribe for more conversations on creativity, mentorship, and the future of classical music.

Official Trailer: Building Artists Through Music & Mentorship feat. Pavlina Dokovska

🚨 Bonus Episode Drops Tonight Here’s the trailer. Building Artists Through Music & Mentorship with Pavlina Dokovska What does it really take to build an artist? In this special collaboration, The Piano Pod sits down with Pavlina Dokovska — internationally active concert pianist, Chair of the Piano Department at Mannes School of Music, and Artistic Director of the Mannes International Piano Festival — for a candid conversation on serious piano study, mentorship, and artistic formation. We discuss: • Why long-term training still matters • Balancing rigor and humanity in teaching • How community shapes resilient musicians • The vision behind the Mannes International Piano Festival You’ll also hear from Jiwon Yang, a Mannes graduate student and First Prize winner of the George and Elizabeth Gregory Concerto Competition, on what it feels like to train in an environment defined by intensity and support. 🎧 Premiering tonight at 8:00 PM ET 📺 YouTube: https://youtu.be/pMt6Jb-zOD4 🎙 Audio platforms: https://linktr.ee/ThePianoPodAudio A conversation about leadership, responsibility, and how artists are formed.

Official Trailer: "Fearless Vision" feat. Asiya Korepanova, Pianist/Composer/Visual Artist

🎬 Official Trailer — Fearless Visionwith Asiya Korepanova For our upcoming episode of The Piano Pod, host Yukimi Song sits down with Asiya Korepanova — pianist, composer, visual artist, and poet — for a deep conversation on long-form artistic commitment, transcription as a creative act, and what it means to build a life in music shaped by depth, curiosity, and fearless vision. Asiya is known for her daring piano transcriptions and for taking on extreme repertoire, including the complete solo piano works of Rachmaninoff and Liszt’s 24 Études. In this episode, she reflects on why she is drawn to projects that unfold over years rather than hours, and how imagination, rigor, and responsibility intersect in her artistic life. 📅 Episode Premiere: Tuesday, February 10 ⏰ 8:00 PM ET 🎥 Watch the full episode on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@thepianopod 🎧 Audio episode drops simultaneously: https://linktr.ee/ThePianoPodAudio 📝 Meet Our Guest — Asiya Korepanova (Blog) 🌐 Asiya Korepanova — Official Website Join us for a conversation that goes beyond performance — into process, scale, and artistic vision.

Official Trailer ✅: "Mirrors & Echoes" feat. Aïda Lahlou

🎬 OFFICIAL TRAILER Season 6, Episode 10 Mirrors and Echoes — Ravel, Resonance, and Reframing Tradition What happens when Ravel’s Miroirs becomes the center of a much larger listening journey? In this episode of The Piano Pod, I sit down with Aïda Lahlou — UK-based, award-winning pianist and multidisciplinary artist — for an in-depth conversation on her debut album Mirrors and Echoes and the ideas shaping her work today. At the heart of our discussion is Ravel: how Miroirs functions not as a self-contained cycle, but as a reflective axis — opening pathways to sound worlds across cultures, traditions, and time. We talk about programming as experience, sound as landscape, and why curiosity and risk are essential tools for artists working outside inherited models of success. This is a conversation about listening deeply, building artistic agency, and reframing tradition without abandoning it. ▶️ Join the premiere on Tuesday, January 27 at 8:00 pm ET 🎥 Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/bFeSehfSUck?si=oCYgW6ciVkkf1N-u 🎧 Audio episode drops simultaneously https://rss.com/podcasts/the-piano-pod/

Official Trailer: "Schubert Now" Ammiel Bushakevitz on Storytelling, Connection, and the Road to the 2028 Bicentennial

🎬 OFFICIAL TRAILER Season 6, Episode 9 Schubert Now — Concert Pianist, Ammiel Bushakevitz on Storytelling, Connection, and the Road to the 2028 Bicentennial Why does Schubert still matter today? In our first episode of 2026, I sit down with concert pianist and recording artist Ammiel Bushakevitz for a wide-ranging conversation on Schubert, the German Lied tradition, and why intimacy — not scale — may shape the future of classical music. From his bold Schubert 200 project and the journey toward recording Schubert’s complete piano works by 2028, to the return of Schubertiaden and the power of music in small, human spaces, this episode explores what it means to listen deeply in the 21st century. This is a conversation about storytelling, connection, and why 19th-century music continues to speak with urgency today. ▶️ Join the premiere here on Tuesday, January 13: https://youtu.be/uWoq0paUvCc?si=ePQCYgqFTY361VOK 🎧 Audio episode drops simultaneously: https://rss.com/podcasts/the-piano-pod/

Extra from Season 6 — The World of Microvids feat. Stefania de Kenessey

To close out 2025, The Piano Pod brings you a special year-end bonus episode featuring composer and storyteller Stefania De Kenessey. Earlier this season, we explored her MICROVIDS project; today, Stefania takes us behind the scenes of another major undertaking: her opera The Bonfire of the Vanities, based on Tom Wolfe’s iconic novel. In this conversation, Stefania reflects on the creative risks, structural challenges, and artistic values behind adapting a 700-page book for the operatic stage. She shares insights on distillation, libretti, character reimagining, and the emotional stakes of composing—offering a rare look at how large-scale musical works take shape. You’ll hear Stefania discuss: Transforming a sprawling novel into a cohesive opera The unique demands of crafting a focused, effective libretto Reimagining characters and narrative power dynamics What music can unveil that prose alone cannot Choosing a darker, more pointed ending The exhilarating—and sometimes brutal—reality of composing ICYMI: Revisit our full episode on MICROVIDS in Season 6, Episode 3 This episode is a thoughtful reminder that music is not only a craft, but a conviction. Stefania’s perspective highlights how storytelling, ethics, and imagination intersect in contemporary composition. Thank you for being part of The Piano Pod community this year. We return on January 13, 2026, with a brand-new episode to kick off the new year.

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