Anna BULKINA

Helen CHA

Anastasia DEDIK

François DUMONT

GE Xiaozhe

Aysedeniz GOKCIN

Vladimir GURYANOV

HAN Mudi

HSIEH Cheng Feng

HUANG Ruoyu

Adam JACKSON

KIM Mi-Eun Sarah

KIM Min Hwan

LEE Yejin

Anna STARZEC

Larry WENG

WONG KaJeng

ZHAI Weiwei

ZHANG Cheng

Born in Oklahoma, USA in 1982, Jun Asai has been studying music for over 21 years. Past teachers have included Eduardo Delgado, Daniel Pollack, Oxana Yablonskaya, and Yoheved Kaplinsky. She entered The Juilliard School as an undergraduate freshman at the age of 15 and graduated in 2004 with a Master's degree.

At age six, she first played with an orchestra, performing the first movement of Mozart Concerto No. 27 in Bb major, K. 595. At age nine she gave her first full-length solo recital, and since then has given many recitals throughout the US. She made her debut with the Glendale Symphony, playing Beethoven's Concerto No. 1, conducted by Lalo Schiffrin in 1994. She has won first prizes in both the MTAC Piano Competitions and SYMF Competitions consecutively for 5 years (‘91-‘95), and the Bach Festival (‘92). She was also a prizewinner at the Joanna Hodges International Piano Competition in ‘92. In 1998 she took first place in the Los Angeles Philharmonic's Bronislaw Kaper Awards for Young Artists, and made her L.A. Philharmonic debut in 1999 playing Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2 at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion (Music Center). In 2000, she won second place at the National Chopin Competition in Miami, Florida. She has since gone back to Miami to give solo recitals. In 2001, she won the Artists International Auditions and as a result, was presented in her debut recital at Carnegie's Weill Recital Hall in January of 2002. She was also a prize/award winner at the 2001 Gina Bachauer Int'l Young Pianists' Competition, 2003 Hilton Head Int'l Piano Competition, and 2003 William Kapell Int'l Piano Competition. She won a Special Jury Prize at the Russian International Music Competition this past May and was a semi-finalist at the New Orleans International Piano Competition in July, 2005. At the Shanghai International Piano Competition in November, 2005, she was a finalist and won the prize for Best Mozart Concerto Performance. In July, 2006, she won the Audience Favorite Prize at the New Orleans International Competition. She appeared on the TV program “Musical Encounter” in ‘90, twice in ‘93, and again in 2003. She also played the role of a piano prodigy in the movie “Sneakers” with Robert Redford in 1991.

She has been the recipient of various scholarships and awards: William Petschek Scholarship, Vladimir Horowitz Scholarship, Van Cliburn Alumni Scholarship (all from The Juilliard School), Ahmanson Foundation Scholarship (The Colburn School of Performing Arts), and Sylvia Kunin Scholarship (Young Musicians Foundation). Most of her musical education was supported by the Tenaglia Fund Scholarship from the Boys and Girls Clubs of Pasadena, California.

Jun began to write music at age four and has been composing on and off since then. Her 35-minute composition for string orchestra “Peace be with You,” was performed by the Colburn Chamber Orchestra in 1995. She is currently serving as the Music Director for Davar Church in Los Angeles.

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Anna Bulkina was born in 1986 in Krasnovodsk ( Turkmenistan ). She has been playing piano since she was 6 years old. In 1993, she entered the music school of Rostov State Conservatory. Her teacher was N. Zaitseva.

Since 1998, Ms. Bulkina has been studying in the piano class of P rofessor R. Skorokhodova. In 1998, she was the 1st prize winner of the International Piano Competition in Szafarnia ( Poland ). In 2000, she was the 2nd prize winner in the International Piano Competition in Andorra . In 2002, Ms. Bulkina performed with Chopin's Concerto No. 1 with the Rostov State orchestra. In September 2003, she performed Rachmaninoff's “Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini” with the Rostov State orchestra.

From 2001-2004, Ms. Bulkina performed numerous recitals throughout Russia.
In 2004, she finished college at the Rostov State Conservatory. In December 2005, she received a diploma in “Premio Piano Frechilla –Zuloaga” Valladolid ( Spain ). Currently, Ms. Bulkina is a third year student of Rostov State Conservatory studying with Professor R. Skorohodova.

In 2006, she performed Mozart's Concerto No. 24 with the Sochi Symphonic Orchestra and Mozart's Concerto No. 17 with the Rostov Symphonic Orchestra of Music Theatre under the baton of M. Dones. Beginning in 2006, Anna Bulkina became a participant of an all-Russia program «Superior performing course» in St. Petersburg . In 2006, Ms. Bulkina received a scholarship for the young talents of Russia . In April 2007, she performed Chopin's Concerto No.1 with the St. Petersburg Philharmony.

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Helen Cha is currently in her 2nd year (Master of Music) at the Eastman School of Music ( University of Rochester ), majoring in Piano Performance and Literature under Dr. Nelita True. She is also pursuing a Master of Arts degree in Music Theory Pedagogy, and teaches as an Aural Skills Teaching Assistant at the Theory Department.

Born in Shanghai in 1984, Helen was brought up in Hong Kong where she began her piano lessons. She has received the fellowship diplomas of both the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (FRSM) and the Trinity College London (FTCL) by 2004. She has won the first prize in the 12 th Hong Kong ( Asia ) Piano Open Competition Open Class, and held her first joint-recital at City Hall Theatre in January 2004. She has performed Tchaikovsky's first piano concerto with Takuo Yuasa and the Academy Orchestra in June 2004 as part of La Fête de la Musique (The Music Days) launched by the French Ministry for culture. She has also performed with the Pan Asia Symphony Orchestra, the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra and the Eastman Symphony Orchestra and collaborate with Patrick Souillot, Yip Wai Hong, George del Gobbo, Neil Varon and so on.

Helen is the recipient of several scholarships, including the Jockey Club Scholarship for Bachelor Degree and the same scholarship for oversea studies. She also appears frequently in student recitals organized by the Rochester Teachers' Association and performs in various community schools. Her article “The Character Portrayal in Schumann's Carnaval Op .9” is accepted by an American piano magazine Clavier .

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Anastasia Dedik was born in 1981 in St. Petersburg , Russia, into to a family of musicians and started taking lessons from her mother at the age of 5. In 1999 she graduated from the pre-conservatory division of the St.Petersburg Conservatory (under the instruction of Asya Rubina) and was accepted to the Conservatory without any exams, studying at first with Prof. Elena Shishko and then Prof. Valery Vishnevsky, under whom she received her Bachelor of Music and Masters Degree in 2004. In 2006 Anastasia was enrolled to the Oberlin Conservatory of Music for the Artist Diploma Program with full talent scholarship where she studied with Professor Sedmara Z.Rutstein.

Anastasia has won numerous competitions, including:
'Music de France' International Piano Competition (France, Paris 1994), 2nd prize
Pavel Serebryakov International Competition ( Russia, Volgograd 1998), 2nd prize
Frederic Chopin Piano Competition ( Russia , St.Petersburg 2000) 1st prize
Ennio Porrino International Piano Competition ( Italy , Cagliari 2001, 2nd prize
Maria Judina International Piano Competition ( Russia , St.Petersburg 2002), 1st prize
Oberlin Concerto Competition ( USA , Oberlin 2004)
Russian International Piano Competition ( USA , San-Jose California 2005), 1st prize
Lee Biennal Piano Competition ( USA , South Dakota , 2006), 1st prize

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Twenty-one year old pianist François Dumont has already obtained the First Prize in the Steinway International Competition (2002), the First Prize in the Lagny Competition (2006) as well as the 1st Prize of the Forum Musical de Normandie and the Grand Piano Prize od Spedidam (2005), besides his degree from the Paris Conservatoire. He has been awarded those prizes by unanimous decisions of the juries. He has also won the Special Prize for the Best Interpretation of a contemporary piece in the International Weimar Chamber Music Competition (2005), and recently obtained the Second Prize, the Special Sacem Prize and the Critics Prize in the "Piano Campus" International Piano Competition (2007). He's a recipient of the Concertante Foundation Award in Italy as well as the "Declic" Prize from the French Government.

He has recently performed solo recitals in Italy, Germany, Netherlands, Belfast, Luxembourg, Latvia, Slovenia, United-States, Mexico, Rio de Janeiro, Syria and others. He's considered by the press as “an extraordinary pianist”, “an authentic and true musical personality, able to give his own signature to the most famous pieces, while respecting their deep sense”, “a great revelation”.

Born in 1985, François Dumont began to play the piano at the age of five. He was fourteen years old when he obtained the First Piano Prize of Lyon Conservatoire National de Région, as well as the “Vallas and Passinges” Bursary. In the same year, he entered the Paris Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in the class of Bruno Rigutto. François Dumont later studied with artists such as Leon Fleisher, Dmitri Bashkirov, John O'Conor and Fou Ts'ong. He was also selected by Murray Perahia to play Brahms' Ballades op.10 during his public masterclasses at Salle Gaveau in Paris in 2003, which were part of the prestigious series Piano. He is a student at the Lake Como International Piano Academy . In 2002 he obtained the Litterature Leaving Certificate with Highest Distinction and he graduated from the Paris Conservatoire in 2004.

Since 2000 he has been invited to perform with orchestra (Lyon, Montpellier , Corsica and Paris) concertos by Poulenc, Mozart as well as Bach Concertos for 3 and 4 pianos with Bruno Rigutto. In March 2006 he was invited to perform Chopin's Concerto No. 2 in Latvia with the Liepaja Symphony Orchestra. He recently gave a very successful performance of Tchaïkovsky's Concerto No. 1 in Cergy , France . In June 2004 he was invited by Pr. Henry-Louis de La Grange to give a concert in Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris , with clarinettist Alex Fiterstein. Laureate of the "Concertante Foundation" he gave over forty solo recitals in Italy, besides accompanying singers and taking part in chamber music concerts. He has also taken part in many concerts at the Gulbenkian Foundation in Paris.

He is a member of the Trio Elégiaque, with whom he has recorded works by Messiaen and Dusapin (World Première) under the label “Triton” as well as Haydn “Gipsy Trio” and Dvoràk “Dumky” Trio. Upcoming recordings will include works by Bloch, Ravel and Shostakovich. He recently performed the complete Mozart sonatas for violin and piano with violinist Stephane Tran-Ngoc. He is also part of a duo with Irish soprano Helen Kearns.

He has played in many festivals such as the Festival Radio France Montpellier, Festival Chopin de Bagatelle in Paris, Hamburg International Steinway Festival, Festival de Lessay, Festival CIMA in Tuscany, Musicales de Pontivy, Rencontres Internationales du Piano « Ars Terra » in Boulogne sur Mer, Semaine Internationale du Piano in Hem, Festival « Carré d'As » in Chartres, Festival de Saint-Riquier, Festival « Piano en Arvor », Rencontres Musicales en Artois, festival « Jeunes Talents » in the Archives Nationales in Paris, series « Jeunes Talents » in théâtre du Volcan (Le Havre) among others. He has recorded for the National French Radio and Television as well as for the Irish, American, Italian and Brazilian Radios. He recently completed a 14 recital concert tour in France and is scheduled to perform the complete Mozart piano sonatas in Paris in August.

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Ge Xiaozhe was born in Zhejiang in 1989. He began to learn the piano at age 7 and studied with Mr.Chen Biao. In 2000, he studied with Mrs. Zhang Qi at the Shanghai Academy of Music, thus beginning his professional study of the piano. In September 2002, he had a test to become a member of the Shenzhen Art School , where he would study with Mrs. Miao Xiaoyan. Other teachers he has studied with include Eleanor Wong, Klaus Bassler, Ilja Scheps, Guo Jiate, Zhao Xiaosheng, Li Jian.

In January 2006, he began his studies with Professor Dan Zhaoyi. In 2004, he won the 3rd prize in the 6th Asian Chopin International Piano Competition China Qualification Match Concerto B group(1, 2 vacant position) and 6 th prize in Junior middle school group, 1 st prize in the Nation Art Occupation Universities and Colleges Piano Teaching Invitational Tournament B group. He has performed the Chopin “Grande Polonaise Brillante” with the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra. In 2006, he also participated in special performance concerts commemorating the 250th anniversary of Mozart's birth.

Aysedeniz Gokcin, born in 1988, studied with Elif and Bedii Aran, when she was five and a half. At the age of nine, she made her first orchestra debut with Gordion Chamber Orchestra. When she was ten, she played Mozart's A major Piano Concerto with Cemal Resit Rey Orchestra in Istanbul .  

She won the concerto prize at IBLA International Piano Competition. She played with Borusan Orchestra, Presidential Symphony Orchestra, Kiev Symphony Orchestra, Kiev Philharmonic, Akbank Orchestra, Bilkent Symphony Orchestra and others. She was a diploma prize winner of The Third Horowitz International Piano Competition.  

Aysedeniz has participated in many music festivals around the world over the years such as the Aspen Music Festival, Music Academy of the West, and the Verbier Festival. She studied with many distinguished artists and teachers including Robert Achucarro, Veda Kaplinsky, Lang Lang, Jerome Lowenthal, Menahem Pressler and Rita Sloan. At the Goslar Konzerterbeitswochen in Germany, she performed in masterclasses given by Arie Vardi, Lori Sims and Matti Raekallio.


Besides her solo appearances, she also performs with chamber groups in different festivals and at the Eastman School of Music. Her past coaches include Gabor Takacs Nagy, Tim Ying and Yehuda Hanani.   She is now in Douglas Humpherys' studio at the Eastman School of Music as a second year student seeking a piano performance degree.

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Born in Moscow in 1988, Vladimir Guryanov studied piano at the Gnessin Music School , under Professor Elena Ivanova, from 1995 to 2006. He graduated with a Diploma with Honours. Since 1999, Vladimir Guryanov has been supported by the Vladimir Spivakov International Charitable Foundation. He has taken part in numerous concerts presented by this Foundation, as well as in concerts promoted by the Vladimir Krainev Foundation for Young Pianists.

He won the Bronze Medal at the Sixth International Competition in Memory of Vladimir Horovitz ( Kiev , 2005). He has participated in several international festivals, namely “Moscow Meets Friends” (2004-2006) and the seventh “Kiev Nights” (2005). In July 2006 he gave a recital at the Colmar Festival in France . As a soloist, Vladimir Guryanov has performed with the Academic Philharmonic Orchestra of Ukraine and the Pavel Slobodkin Centre's Chamber Orchestra, in the most prestigious halls of Moscow and Kiev . Under the aegis of the Vladimir Spivakov Foundation he has toured the United States, Austria , Bulgaria, Germany, Ukraine, and Russia.

In 2004-2005 he took part in master classes given by the renowned pianist Rudolf Buchbinder, who subsequently invited Vladimir Guryanov to study with him at the Basel Music Academy (Musik-Akademie der Stadt Basel ). These studies commenced in October 2006. Vladimir recently became a Swiss Global Artistic Foundation Artist.

The Swiss Global Artistic Foundation is proud to underwrite the participation of Vladimir Guryanov in the 2007 PianoTexas.
http://www.swissglobal.org

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Considered a thoughtful pianist with a formidable technique by audiences and music professionals alike, Han Mudi always manages to bring new insights to often-played repertoire with virtuosity that never outshines musicality.

A native of China , he started playing piano at the age of 5. The local community soon discovered his talent and he went on winning numerous local competitions. He made his orchestral debut at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music at age 14. Two years later, he was sponsored by Dr. Solomon Mikowsky of MSM to study in the US . Soon after his arrival, as the First Prize winner of the L. B. Balakian Award presented by the Music Teacher's League of NYC, he made his solo New York debut at the Steinway Hall on his 17 th birthday. In the subsequent years, he became a featured artist of the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra in its Mozart's Birthday Bash concert, the highlight of the season, and the newspaper praised the performance for its "clarity, beautifully delineated phrases and delicacy of touch' as 'the hallmarks of his Mozart playing." He also participated in the Aspen Music Festival with a full scholarship (2004), where his solo performance at the Wheeler Opera House of Aspen was broadcasted by KAJX (91.5, The Aspen Public Radio). In 2005, as by far the youngest participant, he won the First Prize at the 11th Biennial International Beethoven Piano Sonata Competition held in Memphis , Tennessee.

Mudi Han was a full-scholarship student at Oberlin College and Conservatory of Music, and is currently a MM student and Associated Instructor of Piano at Indiana University-Bloomington. His teachers include Wan Chen ( China ), Bigang Chen ( China ), Yiqi Sheng ( China ), Solomon Mikowsky (MSM), Peter Takacs (Oberlin), Evelyne Brancart ( Indiana ). He also had private lessons and/or master classes with Zhaoyi Dan, Richard Goode, Yoheved Kaplinsky, Melvyn Tan, Russell Sherman, and Paul Badura-Skoda. Throughout his years in the US , he has been a recipient of the Stecher and Horowitz Foundation Award (2001) from MSM, the Three Arts Scholarship (2003, 2004) from the Three Arts Club of Lakewood (OH), the A. J. Yockey Prize (The Premier Prize, 2004) from the Akron Tuesday Musical Club, and the Rislov Foundation Award (2005) from the Rislov Foundation.

Mudi Han also excels in academics. Besides having a bachelor degree in music from Oberlin Conservatory of Music, he also received an Honorary Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Oberlin College . His paper titled China 's Population Growth, Economic Growth, and Family-Planning Policies has been permanently archived in Oberlin College 's Mudd (main) library. He is also a member of Omicron Delta Epsilon, the International Honor Society of Economics. In his spare time, Mudi Han enjoys reading, collecting recordings, playing sports, designing and hand-building audio components.

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Hailing from Taiwan , Hsieh Cheng-Feng has established himself as one of the best young pianists of his native island. The winner of several prizes in Taiwan , Mr. Hsieh has played recitals in some of the most prestigious halls in his country, especially the National Music Hall in Taipei , Chang-Shin Hall in Taichung , and Zua-Dai Hall in Koahsiung. Mr. Hsieh has also performed extensively in Europe, notably Italy, Belgium, and Spain, and has made his mark in the United States, playing for audiences at Indiana University, Werner Recital Hall in Cincinnati, and Mannes School of Music in New York City.

Mr. Hsieh's honors include winning First Prize in Taiwan's National Piano Competition, finishing in the Top 10 of Taiwan's National Musical School audition, securing a Yamaha Scholarship Award, and winning second place in the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) Piano Concerto Competition. He has collaborated with Tunghai Keyboard Electronic Symphony Orchestra for many years, and his interpretations of the piano concerti of Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, and Prokofiev have met with great acclaim.

Cheng-Feng Hsieh has worked with and drawn praise from some of the most distinguished and internationally renowned teachers and pianists of the day, including Nelita True, Fernando Laires, Ann Schein, Thomas Mastroianni, Ian Hobson, Diane Andersen, Luiz de Moura Castro, Steven Mayer, Fabio Bidini, Victor Rosenbaum, Robert Shannon, Thomas Schumacher, James Tocco and Warren Jones. Mr. Hsieh has also participated in the International Keyboard Festival at the Mannes School of Music in New York , the Amalfi Music Festival in Italy , the Piano Festival in Barcelona , the Eighth International Piano Week in Belgium , and Grandin Vocal Festival at CCM.

Born in Changhua, Taiwan, Mr. Hsieh began piano lessons at age six and clarinet lessons at age nine. Before dedicating himself to a piano career, Mr. Hsieh showed a talent for the clarinet, winning several prizes in Taiwan, and playing in the national youth symphony orchestra. During his adolescence, Mr. Hsieh also delved into composition, having taken lessons for six years. Outside of music, Mr. Hsieh has a high interest in Chinese martial art, especially Tai-Chi.

Mr. Hsieh earned his Bachelor's and Master's degrees from Tunghai University in Taichung , Taiwan under the instruction of Dr. Tzong-Kai Kuo, Chia-Huei Ai, and Rosemary Platt. Currently, Mr. Hsieh is a doctoral candidate in piano at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, where he studies with Professors Eugene Pridonoff and Elizabeth Pridonoff. An enthusiastic devotee of chamber music, Mr. Hsieh also works actively with CCM Professor Sandra Rivers in instrumental accompanying. Mr. Hsieh's upcoming activities include a lecture recital at CCM on Maurice Ravel's Valses Nobles et Sentimentales and Morton Gould's Ghost Waltzes , and the scholarly paper Beyond Traditional Perspectives: The Solo Piano Waltz in the Twentieth Century.

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Adam Jackson, winner of the 2004 Entergy Young Texas Artists Competition, just recently completed his Bachelor's in Music Performance at Texas Christian University .  He currently studies with John Owings, Chair of the Piano Division at TCU.  Adam has also won prizes in competitions sponsored by Hellam National Piano Competition, TMTA Student Affiliate, Texas Christian University , Baylor University , Dallas Music Teachers, Ft. Worth Music Teachers and Mountainview College . He has performed in master classes given by Jerome Lowenthal, Jose Feghali, Miyoko Lotto, Russell Sherman, Aviram Reichert, as well as others.  Adam has appeared as soloist with the Laredo Philharmonic Orchestra, Las Colinas Symphony Orchestra, TCU Symphony Orchestra, and Conroe Symphony Orchestras.

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Born in 1987, Kim Min Hwan began his musical studies at the age of six in South Korea . Just after a year he began playing the piano, he was named a top prizewinner in the Fifteenth Korean National Students Music Contest.

Since Min Hwan made his orchestral debut with the Antelope Valley Symphony Orchestra in 2004, he has since collaborated with the with Peninsula Symphony Orchestra, Bellflower Symphony Orchestra, and Los Angeles County High School for the Arts Symphony Orchestra. As a young pianist, he has already performed in prestigious venuew such as the Carnegie Weill Recital Hall , New York ; Mozarteum, Salzburg ; and Herbert Zipper Concert Hall, Los Angeles ; as well as in other venues in South Korea , Italy and throughout the United States. He has also played in numerous master classes given by artists such as Alexander Braginsky, Emanuel Krasovsky, Mykola Suk, Douglas Humpherys, Susan Starr, Norma Fisher, Akiko Ebi, Aquiles Delle-Vigne and Vincenzo Balzani. His major music festival participation includes International Keyboard Institute and Festival, New York ; London Master Classes, London ; and International Summer Academy Mozarteum, Salzburg.

A top prizewinner of several regional and international competitions, Min Hwan has won, among many others: First Prize from International Isabel Scionti Piano Solo Competition and Second Prize from Kingsville International Concerto Competition (2004); First Prize in Duo Category from Second New York Piano Competition (2004); First Prize from Bradshaw and Buono International Piano Competition (2005); First Prize from Edith Knox Performance Competition (2006); and Third Prize from Jefferson Symphony Young Artists Competition (2007).

After immigrating to the United States in 1999, Min Hwan has been studying the piano in Los Angeles with Walter Ponce while attending Los Angeles County High School for the Arts. He is currently pursuing his Bachelor of Music degree at the Eastman School of Music as a scholarship student under the tutelage of Natalya Antonova.

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José Pablo Quesada Rosales entered the Intensive Program of the National University and the Superior Institute of Arts in 2003 majoring in piano. His teachers include Dr. Alexandr Sklioutouski, M.M. Ludmila Melzer, M.M. Luis Monge, and Lic Gerardo Meza. During the years 2003, 2005, and 2006, José Pablo has recieved magistral lessons with Dr. Arcady Aronov ( Manhattan School of Music, N.Y.), with the great composer and pianist Jorge Pepi Alós ( Conservatory de la Chaux-de- Fonds, Switzerland), with pianist Alexander Vershinin ( State Conservatory P. Tchaikousky, Russia) and with Kirk A. Severtson (The State University of New York).

Throughout his carreer, José Pablo has performed in concerts and recitals at important national and international theatres: National Theater of Costa Rica, Melico Salazar Theater, Eugene O'Neil Theater, Mozart Theater, Room 1887, Juan Santamaría Auditoriun in Alajuela, the National University Music School`s Auditorium, National Theater of Guatemala City and the Anderson Auditórium of the Hurley School of Music Louisiana, USA. In 2006 he was featured as soloist with the Millenium Orchestra, in the Viva Mozart Festival, and the June Festival, both directed by Dieter Lehnhoff in the National Theater of Guatemala.

José Pablo is a fourth year professional in the Music Carreer Program with an enphasis in teaching and perfomance of piano at the National University .

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Pianist Anna Katarzyna Starzec was born on the 23rd of September 1982 in Walbrzych, Poland. She started her musical education in 1989 at the St. Moniuszko Primary School and later attended the St. Moniuszko Music High School from 1997-2001. In 2006, she graduated from I.J.Paderewski Academy of Music in Poznan, from the piano class of Prof. A.Organiszczak. Ms. Starzec came to the
U. S. in August 2006 to study at the Wanda L. Bass School of Music at Oklahoma City University on a full scholarship. She is currently a graduate student studying with pianist Amy I-Lin Cheng. Anna enjoys reading, traveling and learning different languages and cultures.

During 2001-2007, Ms. Starzec concertized in Poland, Norway, Italy and Germany. She was also invited to participate in numerous music courses in Norway, Italy, Germany, and throughout Poland in Duszniki Zdroj, Krzyzowa, Wroclaw, Warszawa, Poznan, and Gdansk. She has studied with Grzegorz Kurzynski, Wlodzimierz Obidowicz, Anata Paleta-Bugaj, Walter Hautzig, Charlotte Mueller, Wiera Nossina, and Aleksiej Orlowiecki.

Ms. Starzec won the third prize at the International Piano Competition hosted by Associazione F. Chopin in Roman, Italy in 2003. During the same year, she received the Erazmus Sokrates Scholarship to study piano at the Hogskolen I Agder University in Norway. In 2005, she received "Distinction" at the Ibla Piano Grand Prize in Sicily, Italy. In November 2006, she was chosen the winner of the OMTA (Oklahoma Music Teachers Association) Graduate Level Piano Competition and will perform at the OMTA Annual State Conference in Norman, Oklahoma in June 2007. In March 2007, Ms. Starzec was among the 25 pianists in the Senior Division invited to compete at the Kingsville Competition in Texas. In February 2007, she won the second prize for the Oklahoma Community Orchestra Concerto Competition. She will perform the first movement of the Ravel Piano Concerto in G Major with the orchestra on their final concert of the season on April 17, 2007. Most recently, she was selected a winner for the Oklahoma City University School of Music Concerto Competition, and will perform with the OCU Symphony during the 2007-08 season. She is also a recipient of the Burton/McCasland Funding Support from the Wanda L. Bass School of Music.

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Zhang Cheng is currently a high school 3rd Grade student of the Shenzhen Arts School , majoring in Piano Performance. He was born in Hunan , China in 1989 and has loved music since an early age.  At age of 4, he started his piano lessons with Chen Mo and his musical talent shone through the competitions he won throughout the years. In September 2001, he entered the Shenzhen Arts School , studying piano with professors Lu Mei and Li Jian, and has been under the tutelage of Professor Dan Zhaoyi since 2005.

Zhang Cheng won the 1st prize in the 11th Hong Kong-Asia Piano Open Competition in both the Youth and Four Hands categories as well as  5th prize in the Hong Kong Tchaikovsky Piano Competition. At PianoTexas 2006, he was selected to perform Liszt Concerto No. 1 with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. He is also an active chamber musician and participates regularly in concerts.

Zhang Cheng has played in master classes by Andrea Bonatta, Eleanor Wong, Gabriel Kwok, Tamás Ungár, Ilja Scheps, Piotr Paleczny, Christopher O'Riley, Zhao Xiaosheng and Li Qifang.