New York–based pianist and composer Yuval Chen recently completed the Artist Diploma program at The Juilliard School, concluding eight years of study at the institution under the mentorship of Yoheved Kaplinsky.
As a soloist, career highlights include appearances with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and his 2024–25 Albany Symphony debut performing Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1. The Times Union noted his command of the work’s virtuoso challenges and wrote that his playing “brought out fresh colors and insights.”
His performances have taken him across the United States, Europe, and Asia, including appearances at Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall and the Aspen Music Festival and School.
In 2026, he received Juilliard’s Benzaquen Career Advancement Grant and the Salon de Virtuosi Career Grant.
Alongside his work as a pianist, Yuval is an active composer who regularly incorporates original music into his solo programs. He has also collaborated with international luxury brands, including Hermès, for which he composed and premiered an original work.
Yuval was a finalist at the 2025 Hong Kong International Piano Competition and a semifinalist at the 2022 Dublin International Piano Competition. He received First Prize and the Audience Award at the 2018 America-Israel Cultural Foundation Aviv Competitions and has been supported by the foundation for many years.
Yuval began studying piano at the age of seven and later studied for many years with Inna Rubin at the Ra’anana Music Center in Israel. From 2014 to 2018, he studied with Asaf Zohar at the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music at Tel Aviv University before continuing at Juilliard, where he earned his Bachelor of Music, Master of Music, and Artist Diploma.
Scholarships &
Achievements
Recipient of the 2026 Benzaquen Career Advancement Grant.
Recipient of the 2026 Salon de Virtuosi Career Grant.
Finalist at the 2025 Hong Kong International Piano Competition.
1st prize and The Audience Award in the Aviv competitions, AICF 2018.
Semi-finalist status at the 2022 International Dublin Piano Competition.
Yuval was granted a scholarship from the America- Israel Cultural Foundation for a number of years and a merit scholarship from 2014 until today.
Yuval has performed as a soloist with the Israeli philharmonic Orchestra, the Albany Symphony Orchestra, Israel Symphony Orchestra Rishon LeZion, Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra IBA, Ra'anana Symphonette, Ashdod Symphony Orchestra, The Beer Sheva Sinfonietta and at the esteemed Aspen Music Festival in Harris Hall.
At The Julliard School, Yuval is a recipient of the Susan W. Rose Piano Fellowship, the Joseph Kalichstein Memorial Scholarship, the Howard And Ethel Ross Scholarship, and the Fanya Moll Scholarship.
