Director, Lucy Moses School
Music Director, Special Music School
Artistic Director, Kaufman Music Center International Youth Piano Competition
Praised by The New York Times for his “kaleidoscopic” playing, pianist Igal Kesselman is recognized as one of today’s most forward-thinking performers and music educators. Following his American debut with the Washington Chamber Symphony at the Kennedy Center, he has performed widely across the United States in venues including Alice Tully Hall, Symphony Space, and Kaufman Music Center's Merkin Hall in New York City; the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.; and the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach.
Dr. Kesselman was a top prizewinner of the Città di Marsala International Piano Competition in Italy and has appeared as a soloist with numerous orchestras, among them the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra and the Israeli Camerata. Recent highlights include teaching and performing engagements in Shanghai, masterclasses at the Liszt Academy in Budapest, and serving as an adjudicator for the Olga Kern International Piano Competition in New Mexico.
Additional notable performances include Mozart’s Double Concerto with pianist Orli Shaham and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra USA; solo recitals for the subscription series of Tel Aviv University and Arizona State University; and collaborations with Rob Kapilow in the What Makes It Great? series at Merkin Hall. He has also given masterclasses at Oberlin Conservatory, the Colburn School, the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music at Tel Aviv University, the Boston University Tanglewood Institute, the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance, and Arizona State University.
Over the two decades of artistic and educational leadership at Kaufman Music Center, Dr. Kesselman has overseen significant growth across its education programs, including Lucy Moses School and Special Music School. These initiatives include the founding of Special Music School High School and the development of its college-level curriculum, a near doubling of enrollment at Lucy Moses School, and the creation of impactful partnerships and scholarshiped outreach programs.
A dedicated champion of young artists, Dr. Kesselman has founded numerous initiatives to expand performance opportunities for emerging musicians. These include the Kaufman Music Center International Youth Piano Competition, SummerFest, the Art of Collaboration Workshop, and masterclasses with leading performers and pedagogues. He also curates the popular Tuesday Matinees series at Merkin Hall.
Dr. Kesselman earned his Bachelor of Music degree cum laude from the S. Rubin Academy of Music in Tel Aviv and his Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees from the Peabody Conservatory of Music in Baltimore. His principal teachers include Yoheved Kaplinsky, Emanuel Krasovsky, and Irina Zaritskaya. He is a frequent juror for major international competitions and auditions, including the New Orleans International Piano Competition, Concert Artists Guild, Astral Artists, and the Virginia Waring International Piano Competition. He serves on the piano faculty of Lucy Moses School and Special Music School, New York City’s public school for musically gifted students.
Dr. Igal Kesselman is a Steinway Artist.
