Donna Kwong

Donna Kwong grew up in Vancouver, Canada, where she began her piano studies at the age of seven. Only two years later she received national recognition, winning top prizes at the Canadian Music Competitions, Dorothy A. Andersen International Piano Competition, B.C. Festival of the Arts, CIBC National Competition, and Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition at Juilliard. In addition, she won the gold medal for the Royal Conservatory of Music's Associateship in Piano. 

Ms. Kwong made her concerto debut with the Seattle Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of thirteen, and has since been featured as soloist with various orchestras, including L'Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, London Philharmonic, Virginia Symphony, and Utah Symphony. Reviewers call her a “masterful pianist” (Denver Post) who “always plays with precision, intelligence and sensitivity” (Lawrence Journal-World). She has been praised for her recordings on Arabesque, Ongaku, Tria, and Maestro Classics Records labels.

As a founding member and the pianist of the critically acclaimed Claremont Trio for 12 years, she performed extensively on the stages of many venues all over the world, including Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, American Academy in Rome, and the festivals of Mostly Mozart, Lucerne, Ravinia, Caramoor, and Saratoga.

As an educator, Ms. Kwong has given master classes all over the United States, including the Eastman School of Music, Peabody Conservatory, Conservatory at SUNY-Purchase, Longy School of Music, Duke University, and at the Suzuki National Conference. She started educating and sharing her love of music with others as a teenager and continues to do so in private and outreach settings with students of all ages.

Ms. Kwong received her undergraduate and graduate degrees in the Accelerated Bachelors/Masters program at The Juilliard School, where she was also a Piano Minor Teaching Fellow. She has studied with Yoheved Kaplinsky, Robert McDonald, Lorraine Ambrose and Jane Coop. Donna Kwong is a Steinway Artist.