Curtis Appoints Acclaimed Pianist Yuja Wang To Newly Created Role

The Curtis Institute of Music announced the appointment of internationally acclaimed pianist and distinguished alumna Yuja Wang ('08) as Artist Collaborator, Piano. This appointment, effective in the 2026–27 school year, comes on the heels of Curtis' centennial and signals a bold commitment to the school's next century of visionary education for exceptionally gifted young musicians. 

In this role, Yuja will lead and participate in groundbreaking artistic collaborations while offering mentorship and coaching for Curtis students. She will play an active role in the education of Curtis' pianists, and she will also collaborate with students across the school so that they benefit from her unique vision, artistry, and experience.  

“Yuja's return to Curtis is a wonderful development for the young musicians of our time,” says Nick DiBerardino (Composition '18, Community Artist Fellow '19), provost and dean of the conservatory. “As an acclaimed artist, Yuja has engaged audiences on the world's greatest stages. As an alum, she understands Curtis' commitment to nurturing creativity and empowering the distinctive artistic voice of each student. We're delighted to welcome Yuja back home to collaborate with and inspire the next generation of outstanding ambassadors of our art form.”  

Yuja's appointment was also fostered by longtime Curtis faculty member Ford Mylius Lallerstedt, who has remained one of Yuja's mentors since her time at Curtis. “The appointment of Yuja to the Curtis faculty is a singular moment for us all,” says Dr. Lallerstedt. “She represents a new and fresh direction in musical education for our students that speaks of musical art as a creative and present responsibility. It is fitting and right that we celebrate her homecoming as we advance and embrace the new Curtis curriculum.” 

“Curtis has played a meaningful role in my artistic journey, and it continues to be an important part of my life,” says Yuja. “I'm grateful for the opportunity to give back to a place that has given me so much, and I'm excited to both teach and learn alongside such talented and creative students.” 

About Yuja Wang 

Yuja Wang has performed with the world's most venerated conductors, musicians and ensembles, and is renowned not only for her virtuosity, but her spontaneous and lively performances, famously telling the New York Times “I firmly believe every program should have its own life, and be a representation of how I feel at the moment.” 

Yuja was born into a musical family and began studying the piano at the age of six. She received advanced training in Canada and at the Curtis Institute of Music under Gary Graffman. Her international breakthrough came in 2007, when she replaced Martha Argerich as soloist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Two years later, she signed an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon and has since established her place among the world's leading artists, with a succession of critically acclaimed performances and albums. Her recordings have garnered multiple awards, including five Grammy nominations and her first Grammy win for best Classical Instrumental Solo with her 2023 release of The American Project with fellow Curtis alum Teddy Abrams (Conducting '08). For this she also won an Opus Klassik award in the concerto category. 

As the New York Times observed, Yuja has “made a career out of dazzling displays of virtuosity,” perhaps most notably when she recently teamed up with Yannick Nézet-Séguin and The Philadelphia Orchestra to perform all four of Rachmaninoff's piano concerti—followed by his Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini—in a single concert. This was a feat never before attempted at Carnegie Hall, and one she pulled off with “both clarity and poetry…heft but not bombast, sentiment but not schmaltz” and then came back for more with encores. 

As a chamber musician, Yuja has developed long lasting partnerships with several leading artists including the cellist Gautier Capucon and the violinist Leonidas Kavokas. She is an Artistic Partner with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra with whom she has play directed many tours, most recently through Europe and South America. 

Philadelphia Awards - Live Stats

Best Musical - Top 3

1. CATS (Shawnee Playhouse)

17.3% of votes

2. INTO THE WOODS (The Milford Theater)

6.1% of votes

3. NEWSIES (Viviana Theatre)

3.9% of votes

Vote Now!