A brilliant musician, J.Y. Song brings a unique personality and background to her career as a pianist. Raised in Switzerland and the United States, J.Y. Song has combined her cross-cultural roots with a curiosity that spans multiple disciplines: music, science, and entrepreneurship.
A Steinway Artist, Ms. Song has appeared in concerts at Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie Hall, and at the Mostly Mozart Festival in Avery Fisher Hall; at the Théâtre de l’Athénée and Salle Cortot in Paris; at the National Gallery and Kennedy Center; and at the Beijing Center for the Performing Arts. She is the founder of the Classics Abroad Piano Programs and served as the artistic director of EAMA piano program at the Ecole Normale de Musique de Paris.
Highlights of her numerous awards include the Pro Musicis International Award, the Christel Award from the American Pianists Association, the distinction of Pro Piano Artist of the Year, the Sudler Prize for outstanding achievement in the arts from Stanford University, and the Petschek Award from Juilliard. Her recording of Debussy Etudes was distinguished with a Diapason d’Or and designated a “Desert Island Selection” by Gramophone’s International Piano Quarterly.
Based in New York City, J.Y. Song has been on the piano faculty of Mannes School of Music for 20+ years and teaches Leadership & Innovation at The Juilliard School after a stint teaching piano at the Oberlin Conservatory. Her students include prize winners in major competitions in the U.S. and abroad. In addition to teaching at the conservatories, Ms. Song regularly serves as an adjudicator and gives master classes in the U.S., Europe, and Asia at summer festivals such as the Chautauqua Institute and the Beijing International Music Festival.
Born to a family of pianists, J.Y. Song studied at the Conservatoire de Genève and the Conservatoire de Lausanne with Alexei Golovin, Edouardo Vercelli and Jean-François Antonioli, and at The Juilliard School with Jerome Lowenthal. She holds B.A. in Music & B.S. in Microbiology and Immunology (distinction and honors) from Stanford University, D.M.A. in piano performance from The Juilliard School, and M.B.A. in Entrepreneurship and Leadership from NYU Stern School of Business.