BIOGRAPHY

FRANCINE KAY - PIANO

Distinguished by “ardent lyricism” (Gramophone) and “rare sonic magic” (Le Devoir), Canadian born pianist Francine Kay is noted for the beauty, intensity, and depth of her interpretations.

Francine Kay made her solo debut at the Carnegie Recital Hall under the auspices of the New York Pro Piano Competition as their 1st prize Winner and Recitalist of the Year. Over the course of her career, she has appeared at the Lincoln Center’s Rose Studio, Salle Gaveau (Paris), the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C., on the Dame Myra Hess Concerts Series in Chicago and most recently on the “Exceptional Pianists” Series at Salle Bourgie in Montréal. She is also a regular guest with Bargemusic (New York City), as well as at international festivals in Poland, Czechia, France, and the United States. As an orchestral soloist, Ms. Kay has performed with orchestras throughout Canada and the United States.

Francine Kay’s recordings have received international acclaim. her JUNO-nominated Debussy recording was chosen as Disc of the Month by the German publication, Fono Forum. Her 2023 release Things Lived and Dreamt (Analekta) was selected “Best of 2023”  for CBC Radio’s “In Concert” program, as well as for the award-winning program “Between the Keys”, on WWFM-The Classical Network and it was featured as “Pick of the Week” on Ireland’s RTÉ national broadcast network. Francine’s performances can be heard frequently on the CBC, Radio Canada, NPR, BBC, and EBU, Radio France, SiriusXM’s “Symphony Hall”, and Chicago’s WMFT.

Francine began her musical studies in Canada, first in Montréal at the École de Musique Vincent-d’Indy, then receiving the Artist Diploma at the Glenn Gould School in Toronto, as well as participating in several programs at the Banff Centre for Arts & Creativity.   She holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the Juilliard School, and a Doctor of Musical Arts from SUNY Stony Brook, counting Marek Jablonski, Gilbert Kalish and Leon Fleisher amongst her principal mentors.

Dr. Kay is on faculty at Princeton University where in addition to teaching piano performance and chamber music, she is regularly featured in recital and as soloist with the Princeton University Orchestra and the Princeton Sinfonia.