Area of study: piano

Piano at YSM

While the Yale School of Music piano program primarily focuses on solo performance, it also places an emphasis on chamber music, accompanying, and teaching. The well-rounded curriculum prepares graduates to make their way in today’s highly competitive music world. 

A unique feature of Yale’s piano department is the close collaboration between piano faculty members­. Students have regular opportunities to play in master classes and receive supplemental lessons and chamber music coachings from faculty other than their major studio teachers. Additionally, many internationally acclaimed guest artists visit the School as part of the Horowitz Piano Series, giving recitals, lectures, and master classes.

The Yale School of Music is an all-Steinway school, with regularly maintained pianos in all recital halls, studios, and practice rooms.

faculty spotlight

Boris Berman
Sylvia and Leonard Marx Professor in the Practice of Piano

Boris Berman

Faculty pianist Boris Berman is a performer well known to audiences in fifty countries on six continents.

Degrees + Programs

Master of Music

The two-year master of music (M.M.) degree program is open to students who hold a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent in any major.

Master of Musical Arts

The performance-oriented master of musical arts (M.M.A.) program is designed for students who want to further their education beyond an M.M. degree.

Doctor of Musical Arts

The intensive doctor of musical arts (D.M.A) program is comprised of a two-year residency followed by a three-year period in which candidates launch their professional careers.

Artist Diploma

The highly selective artist diploma (A.D.) program is designed for young artists who demonstrate potential for a major concert career.

Certificate in Performance

The three-year certificate in performance program is designed for performers who do not hold a bachelor’s degree but want to study at the highest level.

B.A./M.M.

The bachelor of arts/master of music (B.A./M.M) program is designed for young instrumentalists also interested in pursuing a liberal arts education.

Master classes

YSM piano students regularly have valuable opportunities to perform in piano master classes given by our internationally renowned faculty and by such visiting artists as Emanuel Ax, Idil Biret, Alfred Brendel, Bruno Canino, Christopher Elton, Leon Fleisher, Richard Goode, Marc-André Hamelin, Angela Hewitt, Anton Kuerti, Ronan O’Hora, Jon Kimura Parker, Roberto Prosseda, Matti Raekallio, Pascal Rogé, Mikhail Rudy, Peter Serkin, Niklas Sivelov, Ignat Solzhenitsyn, and Mikhail Voskresensky among many others.

Typically, master classes take place Thursdays at 10:30 a.m. in Morse Recital Hall in Sprague Memorial Hall and are free and open to the YSM community, unless otherwise noted. 

All masterclasses can be viewed at https://music.yale.edu/live during the class unless otherwise noted.

Spring 2024

  • 1/25 Prof Wei-Yi Yang

  • 2/1 Guest: Hélène Grimaud 

  • 2/15 Prof Boris Berman

  • 3/7 Prof Boris Slutsky

  • 3/28 Guest: Amy Lin, Conservatory of Strasbourg

  • 4/11 Prof Melvin Chen

  • 4/25 Special lecture: Eitan Globerson, Jerusalem Academy of Music

Piano Faculty
Photo of Boris Berman.

Boris Berman

Sylvia and Leonard Marx Professor in the Practice of Piano, Yale School of Music
Artistic Director, Horowitz Piano Series, Yale School of Music
Coordinator of Piano Studies, Yale School of Music
Festival Artist, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival
Photo of Dean Robert Blocker.

Robert Blocker

William Edward Gilbert Professor of Piano, Yale School of Music
Melvin Chen

Melvin Chen

Professor in the Practice of Piano, Yale School of Music
Director, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival
Elizabeth Parisot

Elizabeth Parisot

Associate Professor Adjunct of Piano, Yale School of Music
Boris Slutsky

Boris Slutsky

Professor in the Practice of Piano, Yale School of Music
Festival Artist, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival
Wei-Yi Yang

Wei-Yi Yang

Professor in the Practice of Piano, Yale School of Music
Festival Artist, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival
Perform at Yale
At the Yale School of Music, there are numerous opportunities to perform in the School’s historic concert halls and throughout New Haven.
I have experienced unmatched happiness and productivity during my two years at the Yale School of Music.
Hilda Huang, piano, ’19MM ’20MMA