Derek Wang, piano

With the “pure poetry” of his playing (Seen and Heard International), Derek is drawing increasing acclaim from audiences and critics alike in wide-ranging appearances as soloist, collaborator, and communicator.

A musically eloquent proponent of the original works and virtuosic transcriptions of Franz Liszt, Derek was awarded second prize at the 12th Liszt Utrecht competition in the Netherlands in September 2022. His final round performance with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic conducted by Christian Reif was hailed as “spectacular” by de Volkskrant. The prize, which includes three years of concert engagements, follows on the heels of first prize at the inaugural New York International Liszt Competition in 2021, for which he was awarded an all-Liszt debut recital in Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. 

Last summer, Derek concluded a three-season-long fellowship position as pianist of the Aspen Contemporary Ensemble at the Aspen Music Festival, where he furthermore distinguished himself as “an A-list colleague in chamber music” (The Aspen Times) with the festival’s faculty members and guest artists. Derek’s return appearance at the Moab Music Festival this summer follows return engagements at the Rome Chamber Music Festival in Italy and at the Aspen Music Festival, where he partners violinist Robert McDuffie in recital.Derek holds Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from The Juilliard School, where he received a Kovner Fellowship and the Peter Mennin and Joseph W. Polisi Commencement Prizes. He continues studies at the Yale School of Music as an Artist Diploma candidate. His principal teachers have included Stephen Hough, Yoheved Kaplinsky, Matti Raekallio, and Boris Slutsky. www.derek-wang.com.