Singapore International Piano Festival 2026Victoria Concert Hall / The Arts HouseJuly 2 to 5

Piano recitals are a dime a dozen these days, showcasing a bewildering choice of international and local artists. The Singapore International Piano Festival (SIPF), now in its 32nd edition, remains the nation’s marquee event, distinguished by unity yet diversity, and strong artist- and repertoire-based curation.

With fifth artistic director Albert Tiu (head of piano studies at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music) at the helm, the festival has made changes. There were six recitals for the first time, with the uncommon theme of concert pianist as composer, transcriber and improviser.

American pianist Conrad Tao last appeared here as a teenage prodigy at the 2009 Singapore Sun Festival. His recital Emigres And Friends on July 2 comprised 15 short works reflecting his homeland as a melting pot of cultures, with jazz, popular music and atonality finding healthy parity.

George Gershwin songs (The Man I Love, Clap Yo’ Hands, I Got Rhythm) were performed alongside Arnold Schoenberg’s dodecaphonic miniatures and variations from Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Paganini Rhapsody, viewed through the lenses of Tao and late American jazz pianist Art Tatum. With Maurice Ravel’s Sonatine sandwiching Billy Strayhorn’s Chelsea Bridge, something special and liberating was taking place.

Firing on all cylinders in Gershwin’s Rhapsody In Blue, using his forearms to crash through its cadenza, one could be forgiven for imagining a full jazz band backing Tao to the hilt.

British pianist Hyung-ki Joo was the keyboard half of the musical comedy duo Igudesman & Joo. Dreams And Nightmares on July 3 saw an exploration of childhood, with pieces Lina’s Waltz and Lullaby For Leo written for his children. Their simplicity and innocence were complemented by...