Beyza Yazgan
Pianist / composer
BIO
Beyza Yazgan is a Turkish pianist and composer. She started her doctoral studies at Warsaw Chopin Academy of Music and completed her degree at Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University State Conservatory with Hulya Tarcan in Istanbul. Following her doctoral degree, she earned a “Professional Studies" diploma from Mannes School of Music (NYC) in Yuri Kim's studio with a full scholarship by Koç Holding (Aygaz and Tofaş / 2018)
Beyza won the first prize at the International Edirne Young Musicians Competition (2002), Success in Education Award-hosted by Koç Holding (2013), Josef Fidelman Contemporary Music Performance Award (2018), First prize at the 8th Metropolitan International Piano Competition (NYC / 2019) and First prize on solo piano and best chamber music performance award at the International Music Academy Competition in Italy (Castelnuovo di Garfagnana / 2019).
She has performed numerous times as a soloist and has toured her native Turkey giving recitals. She has also organized and performed benefit recitals at the British and Italian Embassies in Istanbul to fundraise and bring awareness for childhood cancers and for Syrian refugees. More recently, she performed in Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, Abrons Art Center for New York Electroacoustic Music Festival, Teatro Alfieri in Italy, and Park Armory/NYC.
Beyza has taken part in masterclasses by world renowned artists Gary Graffman, Oxana Yablonskaya, Richard Goode, Vladimir Feltsman, Boris Berman, Jeffrey Swann, Rolf Plagge, and Solomon Mikowsky, and has participated in International Music Festivals such as Madrid Torrelodones Music Festival, Forum Musikae, New York International Keyboard Festival (2017), Castelnuovo di Garfagnana International Academy of Music (2019) and Art of Piano (Cincinnati / 2019). Her self produced debut album 'To Anatolia: Selections from the Turkish Five' has been released by Bridge Records in 2021. Besides playing the piano, Beyza also draws illustrations. Her latest animation 'Su Yamacta' has been chosen as an official selection at Short To The Point and Canlandiranlar Film Festival. Her debut album of original compositions, 'Human Cocoon,' was released in 2024 on the Imaginary Animals label. It debuted No:5 on Billboard Classical Charts and picked as 'Contemporary Album of the Month' in The Guardian. She currently lives in New York City, teaches private piano lessons, performs classical and modern repertoire, and is passionate about continually expanding her personal expression to new artist fields as she further explores her musical life as a musician, composer.