Pianofest in the Hamptons: Opening Night Concert @ SCC, June 29th | Four More Pianist Intros ….

On Monday, June 29, eleven pianists will gather at the Southampton Cultural Center for the first concert of our summer season. Here are the last four pianists from the class — and one more name from the alumni roll whose recent recording you should know about.

The 2026 Season at a Glance

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SOUTHAMPTON

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Five concerts at the Southampton Cultural Center, beginning this Monday. Don’t miss the unmistakable buzz of our season opening concert.

Single tickets:
At the door: $35 (cash, credit, or check)
Online: $35 plus a $5 convenience fee. 

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EAST HAMPTON

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The Last Four Pianists from the 2026 Class

Pianofest Debut Celine Chen University of Southern California

Celine, 22, studies piano with Bernadene Blaha and flute with Catherine Karoly at USC. She has received national awards from MTNA and YoungArts in addition to numerous prizes in California and New York. She serves as Director of Global Operations of the Back to Bach Project, offering programs in 70 regions worldwide, and conducts research at USC’s Brain and Creativity Institute. Following award-winning appearances including at the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, her piano trio had debuts in Prague, Vienna, and Budapest.

Pianofest Debut Elsie Lu The Juilliard School

Elsie is finishing her Bachelor of Music at Juilliard with Soyeon Kate Lee, having previously studied with Sasha Starcevich and Rada Bukhman. She has appeared with the Bellevue Symphony, the Orchestra of MusicFest Perugia, the Bruensis Virtuosi, and Philharmonia Northwest. She enjoys collaborating with dancers and is an advocate for contemporary music and underrepresented groups. In 2025, she worked directly with the composer Meredith Monk on a project culminating in a performance at Carnegie’s Zankel Hall.

Pianofest Debut Gloriana Wolf The Glenn Gould School

Gloriana grew up in Minneapolis and has trained with Joseph Zins, Anton Nel at the University of Texas, Sharon Mann at the San Francisco Conservatory, and now James Anagnoson and Li Wang in the Artist Diploma program at the Royal Conservatory of Music’s Glenn Gould School in Toronto. She formed Duo Callisto with pianist Chelsea Ahn, winning Second Prize at the Glenn Gould School Chamber Competition, and the duo will compete in the MTNA Piano Duo Finals in Chicago. She has performed Chopin’s F Minor Concerto with the New Orleans Civic Symphony. Away from the piano, her many interests include salsa dancing, Nordic skiing, and Romance languages.

Pianofest Debut Samantha Wuo Eastman School of Music

Samantha, 19, studies at Eastman with Marina Lomazov and founded the award-winning Juventus Piano Trio. She has been inducted into the Music Teachers’ Association of California Young Artist Guild, won first prizes at the CAPMT Honors, Radda Rise, KAMSA, and Pacific Musical Society competitions, and was a winner of MTNA, United States International New Star, and Golden State Youth Orchestra Piano Concerto competitions, among many other national and international competitions. In her free time, Samantha likes speed-solving Rubik’s cubes, making origami, and eating cookies.