Concerts and Events

North American Competition 2026

The PianoArts North American Competition and Festival celebrates the piano and pianists in all of their roles – as soloist of the piano’s vast repertory, as duo partner, performer with a chamber ensemble, and as soloist with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. During the competition, each competing pianist will perform in all of those roles and communicate in two important ways: through the music they play and through the inspiring stories they share with the audience. Get your tickets today!

The PianoArts North American Competition and Festival celebrates the piano and pianists in all of their roles – as soloist of the piano’s vast repertory, as duo partner, performer with a chamber ensemble, and as soloist with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. During the competition, each competing pianist will perform in all of those roles and communicate in two important ways: through the music they play and through the inspiring stories they share with the audience. Get your tickets today!

Programs and Tickets

A pianist performs on a grand piano with an orchestra on stage. The conductor stands in front of the musicians, who play violins, cellos, and other instruments. Everyone is dressed formally.

Festival Pass

Includes one seat to all competition recitals and concerts, May 27 to June 2

Wisconsin Conservatory of Music, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Peck School of the Arts, Bradley Symphony Center

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Prelude Concert

May 27, 2026
Lucas Amory, first-place winner in the 2024 North American Competition, opens the 2026 competition. This recital features a collaboration with special guest, Jay Shankar, Assistant Principal Clarinet, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, of Brahms’s Second Clarinet Sonata. This will be followed by Lucas’s solo performance of Debussy’s technically and musically demanding Twelve Etudes.

7:30 pm | Wisconsin Conservatory of Music

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Solo Competition Recitals - Group One

May 28, 2026
Yoav Roth, Alex Nam, Duy Vu, and Marie Wurtz are among the seven PianoArtists in the 2026 North American Competition.  In their 45-minute solo recitals, they will perform an artistic range of diverse repertoire from the Baroque era to recently composed works. A unique PianoArts requirement is that each pianist must give a spoken presentation about a work written after 1950 by a North American composer.

6:00 pm | Wisconsin Conservatory of Music

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A pianist performs on a grand piano in an ornate, floral-decorated room as an audience watches attentively.

Solo Competition Recitals – Group Two

May 29, 2026
The competition’s solo recitals continue with another three PianoArtists, Evelina Kleczek, Quang Vo, and Mohan Jia, performing 45-minute programs. In addition to the required repertoire and spoken presentation about a post-1950 work by a North American composer, the semifinalists can choose selections unique to the performer and design their own programs.

6:00 pm | Wisconsin Conservatory of Music

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Duo Competition Recitals

May 30, 2026
All seven PianoArtists return to the stage for 45-minute recitals, featuring a duo performance with a Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra musician. The collaborating artists include violinists Elliot Lee, Dylana Leung, and Kyung Ah Oh, along with cellists Madeleine Kabat and Scott Tisdel.

10:00 am to 5:30 pm | St. Paul’s Episcopal Church

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Competition Concerto Lecture-Recitals

May 31, 2026
Seven PianoArtists perform 30-minute lecture-recital of the first movements of concertos, demonstrating their communication skills alongside their mastery of the concerto. The concertos are by Mozart, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Grieg, Schumann, and Tchaikovsky. Stefanie Jacob and Michael Rector perform the orchestral reductions on a second piano.

12:00 pm to 5:00 pm | Recital Hall at the Peck School of Music

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Concert by the Masters

June 1, 2026
Concert by the Masters will feature Michael Mizrahi, a PianoArts preliminary jury member and frequent pianist with Present Music, performing Prelude and Fugue in A-flat Major, and Prelude and Fugue in F-sharp Minor, by J.S. Bach. Also performing is Simone Dinnerstein, a semifinal jury member and artist known for her 15 albums, many topping the classical Billboard charts. For this concert, Ms. Dinnerstein will perform a Bach concerto with a string quartet from the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. Concert by the Masters will take place at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music on June 1 at 7:30 p.m.

7:30 pm | Wisconsin Conservatory of Music

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A Grand Finale

June 2, 2026
The 2026 North American Competition reaches its exciting culmination on June 2! Three PianoArtists will advance as finalists, taking the stage with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and conductor William Eddins, to perform a concerto that will mark the beginnings of classical careers. 

4:30 pm to 10:00 pm | Bradley Symphony Center

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Competitions

Finalists perform concertos with the renowned Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra in the majestic Bradley Symphony Center.

Community & Education Concerts

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