Sara Davis Buechner is one of the leading concert pianists of our time, praised worldwide as a musician of “intelligence, integrity and all-encompassing technical prowess” (New York Times). Japan’s InTune magazine says: “When it comes to clarity, flawless tempo selection, phrasing and precise control of timbre, Buechner has no superior.”

In her twenties, Ms. Buechner was the winner of a bouquet of prizes at the world’s première piano competitions – Queen Elisabeth of Belgium, Leeds, Salzburg, Sydney, and Vienna. She won the Gold Medal at the 1984 Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition, and was a Bronze Medalist of the 1986 Tchaikovsky International Piano Competition in Moscow.

With an active repertoire of more than 100 piano concertos ranging from A (Albeníz) to Z (Zimbalist) – one of the largest of any concert pianist today – she has appeared as soloist with many of the world’s première orchestras. Audiences throughout North America have applauded Ms. Buechner’s recitals in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center, and the Hollywood Bowl; and she enjoys wide success throughout Asia where she tours annually.

Sara Davis Buechner’s numerous recordings have received prominent critical appraisal. Her extensive discography includes music by Bach, Brahms, Busoni, Dvořák, Mozart, Stravinsky, and Turina; Hollywood piano concertos by Bernard Herrmann and Franz Waxman; rare American music of George Gershwin, Dana Suesse, Pauline Alpert, and Joseph Lamb; and the complete piano music of Miklós Rózsa. Her piano artistry may also be heard on the recent DVD of Carl Dreiser’s 1925 silent film Master of the House, available through the Criterion Collection.

Sara Davis Buechner is the most prominent transgender musician appearing on the classical concert stage today. She received the Eleanor Roosevelt Award of Brandeis University, and is a member of the National Museum of Women in the Arts. She often presents talks and workshops to LGBTQIA+ groups, and has received praise for her solo autobiographical theater show “Of Pigs and Pianos,” which premièred at New York City’s TheaterLab in 2021 to rave reviews.

Dr. Buechner is a professor of piano at Temple University in Philadelphia, and formerly taught at New York University and the University of British Columbia. She has presented lectures and masterclasses worldwide, is a regular adjudicator of prominent international piano competitions, and served as chief music editor for Dover Publications International. In 2022, Sara Davis Buechner marked her 35th year as a dedicated Yamaha artist.

Photo by Yukiko Onley