MEET THe Artists

**Éva Polgár, piano**
Pianist Éva Polgár is a sought-after recitalist, concerto soloist, chamber musician, recording artist, educator, and adjudicator. Critics praise her for her “intelligent interpretations” (Funzine Magazine) and “emotional power” (New York Concert Review). Her dedication to her native Hungarian culture has led her to research Béla Bartók’s piano arrangements of his original orchestral compositions and to specialize in the music of Franz Liszt. Her solo album, Liszt: Harmonies patriotiques et religieuses, was released under Hunnia Records. She has appeared as a panelist and expert on BBC World Service’s program The Forum: Franz Liszt – Hungarian pianist and painter in sound.
Polgár has toured the Americas, Asia, and Europe. As the Hungary Foundation’s Cultural Ambassador of the Year in 2022, she performed a full program of musical treasures from Central Europe and Hungary at prestigious venues such as Carnegie Hall in New York City and Nichols Concert Hall in Chicago. Her concerto performances include appearances with conductors Horst Förster at the Gewandhaus zu Leipzig, Tamás Vásáry at the Danube Palace in Budapest, and Okko Kamu at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki.
Her chamber music debut recitals at Carnegie Hall featured violinist Kristóf Baráti and clarinetist Bence Szepesi, and at the Kennedy Center she performed with pianists László Borbély and Gábor Varga, all to high critical acclaim. She has also collaborated with Klára Csordás (voice), Márta Ábrahám (violin), and Vilmos Szabadi (violin), among other renowned artists. Her long-standing duo partner is flutist Lisa Bost-Sandberg, with whom she recorded Asha Srinivasan’s virtuosic work Utthishta.
An avid promoter of contemporary music, Polgár actively collaborates with composers and new music performers. Her solo and collaborative repertoire ranges from Pierre Boulez to emerging composers. As a member of the InterSpheres Trio, alongside flutist Lisa Bost-Sandberg and percussionist Jacob Harpster, she has built an impressive performance history, commissioning and premiering works such as i/o (2017) by Daniel Tramte and dualith (2017) by Balázs Horváth, in addition to performing other trio and duo repertoire on national and international tours. She gave the world premiere of Andrew S. Lloyd’s Préludes: Book II at the University of Texas at San Antonio, supported by the Barlow Endowment. In the realm of cross-disciplinary endeavors, she collaborates with visual artist Sándor Vály. Their experimental music albums, released under Ektro Records, have been broadcast by Finnish Radio.
Polgár has won top prizes in competitions, including the 2012 Los Angeles International Liszt Competition (LAILC). In 2017, she was elected co-director of LAILC alongside Dr. Katherine Hickey, a role through which she fosters young musicians in the early stages of their professional careers. To support her work in mentoring emerging talents and promoting the musical heritage of Franz Liszt, the Hungarian Academy of Arts awarded her a three-year grant to design a series of twenty-nine concerts in Hungary and the United States between September 2020 and August 2023.
A graduate of the Franz Liszt University and the Sibelius Academy, Polgár earned her Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of North Texas (UNT). Her former mentors include Jenő Jandó, Hamsa Al-Wadi Juris, Lívia Rév, Orsolya Szabó, and Adam Wodnicki.
A committed educator and adjudicator, she has given masterclasses and appeared at festivals and competitions such as LAILC, the Bogotá International Piano Festival in Colombia, East China Normal University, the Pacific Stars International Piano Competition, and the Southeastern Piano Festival, among many others. She is currently Assistant Professor of Piano and Keyboard Area Coordinator at East Tennessee State University. In addition to her teaching appointment, she serves as President of the Appalachian Music Teachers Association and as Executive Secretary on the Executive Board of the American Liszt Society. In this capacity, she hosted the American Liszt Society Festival at East Tennessee State University in fall 2025.
www.evapolgar.com

**Jeffrey LaDeur, piano**
Jeffrey LaDeur is known for his rare blend of insight, spontaneity, and approachable, communicative stage presence. Clic Musique Magazine (France) lauded “…an irreproachable legato, a beautiful palette of nuances, and an always well-balanced sound.” Having inherited a rich tradition of pianism and interpretation from Annie Sherter, student of Vlado Perlemuter and Alfred Cortot, LaDeur has established himself as a compelling exponent of classic and new repertoire. In March of 2018, LaDeur made his solo recital debut at Carnegie Hall on the centennial of Claude Debussy’s death. He appears regularly with orchestra and maintains a repertoire of over 40 concerti. LaDeur is the founder and artistic director of the San Francisco International Piano Festival and president of the American Liszt Society, San Francisco Bay Area Chapter.
LaDeur’s most recent solo recording features music of Liszt and was released by Music & Arts in April of 2022. Critic Henry Fogel wrote, “The beauty of his coloration, the rightness of his phrasing, and his sensitive dynamic shaping, all draw the listener into Liszt’s world.” A chamber musician of distinction, Jeffrey’s collaboration with mezzo soprano Kindra Scharich has produced To My Distant Beloved, an album exploring the connections between Beethoven and Schumann through cycles in song and solo piano works. LaDeur has collaborated with distinguished artists such as Robert Mann, Bonnie Hampton, Ian Swensen, Axel Strauss, Geoff Nuttall, and the Alexander String Quartet.
An active educator, Jeffrey offers masterclasses frequently as guest artist in universities throughout the United States and coaches gifted pre-college piano and string ensembles at Young Chamber Musicians in Burlingame, California. LaDeur holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music and San Francisco Conservatory of Music in piano performance and chamber music, respectively. Jeffrey counts among his teachers Mark Edwards, Douglas Humpherys, Yoshikazu Nagai, and Robert McDonald.
JeffreyLaDeur.com SFPIANO.ORG Find out more.*

**Elizabeth Dorman, piano**
Praised by Joshua Kosman of the San Francisco Chronicle for her “elegance and verve,” pianist Elizabeth Dorman enjoys performing music both new and old as a soloist and chamber musician.
A finalist of the 2018 Leipzig International Bach Competition, Elizabeth has been widely recognized as a leading performer for her inquisitive interpretations of Bach’s music on the modern piano. Elizabeth has appeared as soloist with orchestras including the Louisville Orchestra, the Leipzig Mendelssohn Chamber Orchestra, the Santa Rosa Symphony, the California Symphony, the Vallejo Symphony, the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra, the Folsom Lake Symphony, the Stanford Summer Symphony, Symphony Parnassus, as a soloist for interdisciplinary projects at New World Symphony, and as a keyboardist at the San Francisco Symphony. She can be heard on Delos records as a concerto soloist with Santa Rosa Symphony’s new album celebrating the music of Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, and has also recorded for Navona.
She has been presented as a soloist and chamber musician at venues including the Kennedy Center, Davies Symphony Hall, Herbst Theater, Merkin Hall, Carnegie’s Weill Hall, Leipzig’s Hochschule für Musik, and her live solo performances have been nationally broadcast on NPR and public radio. Elizabeth is Artistic Director of the San Francisco Chamber Players and also serves as Assistant Artistic Director for Archipelago Collective, a chamber music festival in the San Juan Islands. She has appeared at other festivals including Tanglewood, Britt, Sarasota, Aspen, Toronto Summer Music, Icicle Creek, and the Banff Centre.
Working with the Bridge Arts Ensemble, Stony Brook University, and as a board member of the Ross McKee Foundation, Elizabeth has produced concerts, lectures, and workshops for music students and was honored with the Father Merlet Award from Pro Musicis for her work training high school music students in community engagement.
Elizabeth and was awarded a Doctor of Musical Arts from Stony Brook University in 2019 where she studied with Gilbert Kalish and lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. She was born and raised in the SF's Castro, and attended the San Francisco School of the Arts, the SF Youth Orchestra, and the SF Conservatory on Piano and Bass.

**Stephen Prutsman, piano**
Stephen Prutsman has been described as one of the most innovative musicians of his time. Moving easily from classical to jazz to world music styles as a pianist and composer, Prutsman continues to explore and seek common ground and relationships in the music of all cultures and languages.
In the early 2000s Stephen was Artistic Partner with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, where he wrote several new works for the orchestra, led performances of other composers as a conductor and pianist, and developed the orchestra's contemporary and world music series. Later he was the Artistic Director of the Cartagena International Festival of Music, South America’s largest festival of its kind, programming and curating concerts with themes ranging from Mozart celebrations, to eclectic evenings of folk and popular music of the Americas, to hybrid programs fusing art and dance music of multiple musical dimensions.
In the early 90’s he was a medal winner at the Tchaikovsky and Queen Elisabeth Piano Competitions, and received the Avery Fisher Career Grant. Since then Stephen has performed the classical concerto repertoire as soloist with many of the world’s leading orchestras and his classical discography includes acclaimed recordings of the Barber and McDowell concerti with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, recordings of Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier, and a solo jazz album entitled "Passengers".
Born in Los Angeles, Stephen first began playing the piano by ear at age 3 before moving on to more formal music studies. In his teens and early 20s he was the keyboard player for several art rock groups including Cerberus and Vysion (and was a winner of television’s “The Gong Show”!) During those years, he worked regularly as a solo jazz pianist playing in many southern California clubs and lounges and was the music arranger for a nationally syndicated televangelist program.
As a composer, Stephen’s long collaboration with Grammy Award winning Kronos Quartet has resulted in over 40 arrangements and compositions for them. Other leading artists and ensembles who have performed Stephen’s compositions and arrangements include Leon Fleisher, Dawn Upshaw, the St. Lawrence String Quartet, Yo-Yo Ma, Spoleto USA, and the Silk Road Project. In 2010, his song cycle “Piano Lessons” was premiered by Ms. Upshaw and Emanuel Ax at Carnegie Hall (New York), the Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), Disney Hall (Los Angeles) and the Barbican Centre (London). As a pianist or arranger outside of the classical music world he has collaborated with such diverse personalities as Tom Waits, Rokia Traore, Jon Anderson of “YES”, Sigur Rós and Asha Bhosle. He has scored for a variety of ensembles 15 silent films from the 1920s which are regularly presented at various venues throughout the world.
He is a board member of several organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area promoting the well-being of people living with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and regularly produces and curates "Azure Concerts" musical performances tailored for individuals on the autism spectrum and their families. He was recently named Creative Director for Phenotypic Recordings, a new company specializing in recordings of contemporary music, and in January of 2023 Prutsman began a 2-year appointment as Visiting Artist at Stanford University.
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**Simon Barrad, baritone**
The versatility of Grammy-nominated baritone, Simon Barrad, has been heard in genre-bending concerts across the United States and Europe. His talent for unique and innovative programming and arranging – melding new and old, jazz and drama, classical technique and heartfelt folk idioms – has led to recent features at the Metropolitan Opera, Wigmore Hall in London, the Columbus Symphony, the Ravinia Festival, Stanford Live, the Marlboro Music Festival, and Cincinnati Opera. The 2015/16 Fulbright scholar to Finland has also headlined several concerts in Europe including performances at Helsinki’s Musiikkitalo, Finland’s National Opera House, and the Berlin Philharmonie. Through his performing and as a former mentor for ArtSmart, which provides free music and singing lessons to teenagers in underserved communities, Simon strives to build a more equitable world of empathy and understanding through music.

Simon is also an avid lover and performer of jazz, new music, and ensemble singing. He is a four-time Downbeat magazine national award winner for vocal jazz, and he has performed at the Monterey Jazz Festival, ADCA conventions across the country, and the Grammys as a member of the Grammy vocal jazz ensemble. Simon regularly performs with Austin-based ensemble, Conspirare, and was the baritone soloist for their national tour of *Considering Matthew Shepard*. In the realm of new music, he has consistently championed new works, giving premiere performances of works by John Harbison, David Lang, Craig Hella Johnson, Mason Bates, and others, as well as performing at the John Duffy Composer Institute under the direction of Libby Larsen. As a Jewish musician, he served as the Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur soloist for over a decade at the historic Plum Street Temple in Cincinnati, and is currently the soloist at San Francisco’s Congregation Sherith Israel. He recently founded the musical group JIVE: Jewish Innovative Voices & Experiences with countertenor Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen and pianist Ronny Michael Greenberg.
Mr. Barrad holds a Master of Music degree from the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music where he studied with Kenneth Shaw. He has collaborated with artists including Mitsuko Uchida, Jonathan Biss, Awadagin Pratt, and Ignat Solzhenitsyn. Mr. Barrad also holds a BM in Voice and a French Language minor from the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at California State University, Long Beach, where he graduated Summa Cum Laude and was inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa honor society. He has completed word for word translations and IPA transcriptions of Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta, Rimsky-Korsakov’s Mozart and Salieri, Borodin’s Prince Igor and a side by side comparison of the libretti of Shostakovich’s Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District and Katerina Izmailova.

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**Esther Rayo, soprano**
Lyric Soprano ESTHER RENEE RAYO is most recognized for her passionate expression of Classical Spanish Repertoire, though her artistry spans Opera, Baroque, Oratorio, Sacred Music, and Art Song. A dedicated and versatile performer, she has received numerous awards and scholarships, including honors from the Jarvis Conservatory, NATS Vocal Competitions (Redwood Empire, San Francisco Bay Area), East Bay Opera League, DePaul University Kleinman Competition, San Miguel Institute of Bel Canto, and Musica nelle Marche in Italy.

Ms. Rayo earned her Bachelor of Arts in Vocal Performance from Sonoma State University, studying under David Burnakus and Ruth Ann Swenson, and her Master of Music in Vocal Performance from DePaul University, where she debuted the title role in Suor Angelica to critical acclaim. She made her European debut at Teatro della Fortuna in Fano, Italy, singing lead roles in Puccini’s Tosca and La Bohème.

She has been featured in performances with Circa1600, Sonoma Bach, and as a soloist with the Stanford Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Rayo made her Herbst Theatre debut representing Lieder Alive! at InterMusic SF’s Music Day and is celebrated for her collaborations with LaMusArt, supporting underserved Latino youth in East Los Angeles.
Ms. Rayo is eagerly anticipating the release of her new album, Estrellita—a collection of Classical Spanish songs with pianist Peter Grunberg. Upcoming engagements include a return to SF Music Day at Herbst Theatre this October, and her recital Sacred Joy at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Belvedere Tiburon this December.

**Aveta Trio**
Sarah Yuan, piano
Eunseo Oh, violin
Elliott Kim, cello
The Aveta Trio is the 2021 Gold Medal winner of the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition (Junior Division). Formed in 2020 through Young Chamber Musicians, the Trio is coached by Susan Bates and Jeffrey LaDeur. They have performed at the San Francisco International Piano Festival (2021 & 2022), the Rossmoor Chamber Music Society – Next Generation series, the New Millennium Series at Sacramento State University, and SF Music Day at the War Memorial Veterans Building in San Francisco. They also appeared on NPR’s From The Top in October 2022.
Sarah studies computer science, Chinese language, and piano performance at Princeton University, where she is under the tutelage of Francine Kay. Elliott, also at Princeton, studies computer science and finance while continuing cello studies with Julia Lichten at the Manhattan School of Music. Eunseo is pursuing degrees in physics and mathematics at Columbia University.

**Tristen Chen, piano**
Sixteen-year-old pianist Tristen Chen began his musical journey at the age of five. He currently attends the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Pre-College, where he majors in piano under the tutelage of Sandra Wright Shen.
Tristen has garnered numerous accolades in piano competitions. Most recently, he was awarded the silver medal at the 2024 San Francisco International Piano Competition (Junior Artist) and was named the Northern California 1st Alternate in the 2024 MTAC Concerto Competition. In 2023 and 2022, he received 1st prizes at the US Open Music Competition in both solo and duo categories.
In 2024, Tristen was featured on NPR’s “From The Top,” performing Liszt's La Leggerezza. He also won 1st prize in the MasterWorks Festival Concerto Competition in 2024, leading to a performance of Saint-Saëns Piano Concerto No. 2 with the Masterworks Orchestra. Tristen has been invited to perform at various prestigious events and venues, including San Jose NoonArts & Lectures in 2024 and 2025, as a guest artist for a Cadence Collective Foundation fundraising concert in 2025, at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in 2018, and at the opening ceremonies of the Sonoma International Film Festival in 2019 and 2018. His musical development has been further enriched through chamber music studies at the California Music Preparatory Academy (2023-2024) and participation in the John Perry Academy of Music Summer Festival (2017, 2018) and the MasterWorks Festival (2021-2024). Tristen has had the opportunity to participate in masterclasses led by renowned artists such as Jon Nakamatsu, John Perry, Ning An, Slava Gryaznov, Wael Farouk, Melinda Lee Masur, Xun Pan, Siheng Song, Lishan Hung, and Heidi Williams.

Ariel Chien, piano

Eighteen-year-old Ariel Chien began her piano studies at the age of 8 with Megan Chen and continued with Daniel Cheng. Since 2021, she has studied with Sandra Wright Shen. She recently graduated from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Pre-College and will attend Stanford University in the Fall.

Ariel is a 3-time Scholarship Recipient of the Chopin Foundation of the United States and a winner of the 2024 National YoungArts in Classical Music/Piano. She is the prizewinner of numerous piano competitions, including Laureate of the 2023 Ross McKee Foundation Piano Competition, third prize of the 2023 Arthur Fraser International Piano Competition, second prize of 2022 Marilyn Mindell Piano Concerto Competition, first prize of 2022 piano showcase of United States Open Music Competition, and honorable mention and best Bay Area contestant of 2021 San Jose International Piano Competition. She was the top prize winner of the 2018-2020 and 2023 United States International Music Competition (USIMC). She was selected as the First Alternate Contestant for the 2025 National Chopin Piano Competition.

Ariel has performed in numerous events. In 2023, she performed three solo recitals with all Chopin programs, including a performance and lecture at NoonArts and Lectures and solo recitals at SFCM and Luzhou KHS Concert Hall in Taiwan. As the winner of the Golden State Youth Orchestra Piano Concerto Competition, she performed Chopin Concerto No. 1 with the Camilla Kolchinsky Orchestra in the 2022-23 season. She was invited and performed at the San Francisco Symphony Silicon Valley League opening concert in 2022.

Ariel participated in several renowned piano and chamber music summer festivals and programs, including the 5th and 6th Frost Chopin Festivals in Miami, the 2023 Southeastern Piano Festival, the 2022 and 2023 Young Performers Program at Music@Menlo, and the 2022 Piano Texas International Festival and Academy. Ariel has performed in masterclasses with acclaimed pianists, including Yuja Wang, Emanuel Ax, Jon Nakamatsu, Tamas Ungar, John Perry, Ann Schein, Ning An, and Sasha Starcevich. She received instruction from Dang Thai Son, Katarzyna Popawa-Zydroń, Kevin Kenner, Edward Auer, Ruth Slenczynska, Olga Radosavljevich, Antonio Pompa-Baldi, and Wu Han.

As a versatile pianist, Ariel is an active chamber musician and performed in the Contemporary Music Ensemble at SFCM. In addition to her music studies, Ariel enjoys playing badminton, table tennis, and hanging out with her friends.

**Sarah Yuan, piano**
Sarah Yuan, age 19, is a sophomore at Princeton University. She began piano studies at age seven and is now a student of Dr. Francine Kay at Princeton, having previously studied with Dr. Sharon Mann at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Sarah is the winner of the Princeton 2024-25 Concerto Competition, the 2022 and 2023 National YoungArts competitions, and the 2023 John Cron Career Development Award from the Ross McKee Foundation. Over the past several years, she has performed in masterclasses for artists such as John Perry, Ida Kavafian and Peter Wiley, James Giles, Támas Ungár, and the Gryphon Trio. Sarah is currently the pianist for the Aveta Trio, the Gold Medal winner 2021 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition (Junior Division). In high school, she was a five-year participant of the Young Chamber Musicians program based in Burlingame, California; at Princeton, she is the assistant music director for Opus Chamber Music. Sarah has performed for the San Francisco International Piano Festival for several consecutive seasons as well as the Noontime Concert series in San Francisco, and has also attended international summer music programs such as Aspen, Bowdoin, and PianoTexas.

**Yiting Han, piano**
Yiting was the Grand Prize winner of the 2017 Korea Times Competition, 1st place winner in the 2020 Young Artist Music Competition from Image International Music Festival, 1st place in 2019 California Association of Professional Music Teachers Romantic/Impressionistic Competition, and 1st place in 2018 New York Golden Classical Music Awards International Competition. In addition to her numerous awards at piano competitions, she has also performed with Image International Music Festival's (IIMF) String Quartet and the Antelope Valley Symphony Orchestra at Bach in the Subway. Yiting is currently pursuing BM in San Francisco Conservatory of Music under Yoshikazu Nagai's studio.

Claire Chang, piano

Claire Chang is a junior at Henry M. Gunn High School and started piano at 5. She is currently studying with Stanford Professor Elizabeth Schumann. Over the past five years, she has been a pre-college student at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM), where she studied with Professor Corey McVicar. Claire is passionate about chamber music and has been an active chamber musician. She will be joining Young Chamber Musicians this fall.

She has achieved numerous awards throughout her early career. In 2024, she earned first place in the Pacific Musical Society & Foundation Competition and was named a Laureate with a scholarship in the 2023 Ross McKee Foundation Piano Competition. In 2022, she was a finalist in the Ettlingen International Piano Competition in Germany. Claire has also won first place in several other competitions, including the ENKOR International Music Competition, the United States International Music Competition, and the United States Open Music Competition. Additionally, she has been a top prizewinner in the San Francisco International Piano Competition, the International Grande Music Competition, the LA International Liszt Competition, where she received the Best Performance Award, and the LA Young Musician International Competition. Claire has performed in masterclasses with renowned pianists such as Marc-André Hamelin, Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, Ursula Oppens, Garrick Ohlsson, Angela Cheng, Jon Nakamatsu, Joseph Patrick, Sharon Mann, and Hie-Yon Choi.

During the summer of 2024, she joined the Music@Menlo festival as a young performer and took part in a masterclass at the San Francisco International Piano Festival. In 2025, she participated in the Southeastern Piano Festival and the Vivace International Music Festival.

Meet the Artists

MEET THe Artists