Concerto Competition Jury

Published on Feb 25, 2026

VPS Concerto Competition Announces Distinguished Jury for 2026

Vancouver Piano Sessions is pleased to announce the jury for the 2026 VPS Concerto Competition — six pianists of international distinction who will guide the selection of the competition’s finalists and Gala Concert soloists this summer.

The competition, open to pianists of all ages and nationalities, will culminate in a Gala Concert on August 12, 2026, at Christ Church Cathedral, where six winners will perform as soloists with the Vancouver Metropolitan Orchestra under the direction of Maestro Kenneth Hsieh. Applications are accepted through April 15.

The jury has been assembled to reflect the breadth and depth of the international concert piano community. Drawn from leading conservatories and universities across North America, Asia, and beyond, each juror brings not only a distinguished performance career but also a commitment to the cultivation of the next generation of artists.

preliminary jury

Ning An

YST Conservatory of Music, Singapore

Chinese-American pianist Ning An has earned top prizes at some of the most prestigious competitions in the world, including the Queen Elizabeth, William Kapell, and Cleveland International Piano Competitions. A laureate of the International Chopin Piano Competition, Mr. An has performed at Carnegie's Weill Recital Hall, the Salle Verdi in Milan, and the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. He studied at the Cleveland Institute of Music with Sergei Babayan and continued under Russell Sherman at the New England Conservatory. An active chamber musician, he has appeared alongside the Takacs, Daedalus, and Ysaye Quartets, as well as such distinguished artists as James Ehnes and Paul Neubauer. He currently serves as Associate Professor of Piano at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music at the National University of Singapore.

Hans Boepple

Santa Clara University, Professor Emeritus

One of the most acclaimed pianists and pedagogues on the West Coast, Hans Boepple made his orchestral debut at age ten with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and has since performed as soloist with more than thirty orchestras, among them the Minnesota Orchestra, Denver Symphony, and Metropolitan Opera House Orchestra. An honored member of the Steinway International Artist Roster, Mr. Boepple has had his performances broadcast on National Public Radio and Voice of America, and is the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the California Association of Professional Music Teachers. He holds both his Bachelor and Master of Music in Piano Performance from Indiana University, where he studied with Sidney Foster, and has been a member of the Santa Clara University faculty since 1978. His students have earned in excess of 150 state, national, and international awards.

Robin McCabe

University of Washington

Celebrated internationally as a performer of rare communicative power, Robin McCabe has concertized across the United States, Europe, Canada, and throughout the Far East. The New York Times has written of her playing that what sets it apart is "a strong lyric instinct and confidence in its ability to reach and touch the listener," while the Tokyo Press has called her a "pianistic powerhouse." A graduate of the Juilliard School, where she earned her master's and doctoral degrees under Rudolf Firkusny, Dr. McCabe joined the Juilliard faculty in 1978 before returning to her alma mater, the University of Washington, in 1987. She served as Director of the UW School of Music from 1994 to 2009, and was selected by The Juilliard School in its centenary publication as one of 100 distinguished alumni from more than 20,000 living graduates.

final jury

Sara Daneshpour

Southern Methodist University

Described by the Washington Post as creating "transfixing poetry," Sara Daneshpour is one of the most compelling concert pianists of her generation. The third-prize winner of the 2017 Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Competition, she is also a prizewinner of the Seoul International Music Competition and a Laureate of the American Pianists Association. Her recital career has taken her to the Southbank Centre in London, the Musée d'Orsay in Paris, Carnegie Hall, and the Kennedy Center, while her concerto appearances have included performances with the Baltimore Symphony, Mariinsky Orchestra, and Indianapolis Symphony. Ms. Daneshpour trained under Leon Fleisher at the Curtis Institute, Yoheved Kaplinsky and Oleg Volkov at the Juilliard School, and Sergei Babayan at the Cleveland Institute of Music. She currently serves on the piano faculty of Southern Methodist University's Meadows School of the Arts.

Spencer Myer

Indiana University Bloomington

Praised by the Boston Globe for "superb playing" and "poised, alert musicianship," Spencer Myer has established himself as one of the most sought-after pianists on the international concert stage. His career was launched by three major prizes: First Prize at the 2004 UNISA International Piano Competition in South Africa, the Gold Medal at the 2008 New Orleans International Piano Competition, and the 2006 Christel DeHaan Classical Fellowship from the American Pianists Association. He has performed as soloist with The Cleveland Orchestra, the Indianapolis Symphony, and orchestras across the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa, and his recitals have been presented at Wigmore Hall in London, Weill Recital Hall, and Philadelphia's Kimmel Center. A graduate of Oberlin, Juilliard, and Stony Brook University, Mr. Myer has been Associate Professor of Piano at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music since 2022, where he received the Trustees Teaching Award in 2024.

Carol Wong

Private Studio, New York City, NY

A native of Vancouver, British Columbia, Carol Wong made her concerto debut at age eleven with the Vancouver Philharmonic and has since built an extensive international career spanning North America, Europe, and beyond. Her recital appearances include performances at Carnegie's Zankel and Weill Halls, Alice Tully Hall, the Kennedy Center, and the Gardner Museum in Boston, and her performances have been broadcast on WQXR in New York and on NPR's Performance Today. She was personally invited by Marilyn Horne to participate in a concert tour celebrating the mezzo-soprano's 75th birthday, and has previously served on the faculty of Rutgers University and as a senior examiner at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. Ms. Wong earned her Master of Music from Indiana University under the tutelage of Menahem Pressler.

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