Kevin Kenner
Recognized as one of the top Chopin interpreters of our time, Kevin Kenner was the top
prize winner in the 1990 Chopin Competition in Warsaw, as well as top prizes in the
Tchaikovsky Competition and the Terrance Judd Competition, among others.
Born in California, Kenner was introduced early to the classical music traditions of
Poland and studied as a teenager with Poland’s eminent professor Ludwik Stefański in
Cracow. When he returned to the U.S. he continued his studies with Leon Fleisher at the
Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore and worked with Leonard Bernstein at the Tanglewood
Music Center. Following a concert tour with conductor Stanisław Skrowaczewski, who
frequently performed and recorded with Artur Rubinstein, described his collaborations
with Kenner to be the most sensitive and beautiful he remembered.
He has performed and recorded with violinist Kyung-Wha Chung and concertized
with the Tokyo, Escher, Belcea, Mosaiques, Apollon Musagete, Endellion and Vogler
Quartets. In addition, he has frequently been invited to appear at the Verbier Festival and
Warsaw’s “Chopin and His Europe” Festival.
A distinguished recording artist, Kenner’s interpretations of works by Paderewski
and Chopin were each picked as recordings of the month by Grammophone magazine.
Other recordings were heralded by Diapason, Fanfare and Polish National Radio.
After teaching for more than a decade as professor at London’s Royal College of
Music, Kenner accepted a post at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music, where he
continues to prepare many young talented pianists for international performance careers.
He has served as juror at the Busoni Competition in Bolzano and at the Chopin
International Competition in Warsaw among many others.