Piano Institute

Limited spots remaining -- accepting applications until all spots are filled. Apply now to be considered for Summer 2023!

The Program

The Piano program at Brevard offers students the chance to work with world-renowned faculty. Each year the program enrolls more than seventy students. Pianists may attend for the full six-week term or for either the first or the second half session. Most students select the full term.

The piano program provides:

  • private study with distinguished teachers
  • ample practice time
  • weekly studio and master classes with faculty and guest artists
  • special topic classes in entrepreneurship, piano literature, performance practice, and The Etude Lab weekly classes focusing on piano etudes and techniques
  • open rehearsals with world-renowned concert soloists
  • access to orchestra rehearsals, specifically to repertoire that features orchestral piano parts
  • opportunity to attend nearly 80 orchestra, chamber, solo, and opera performances

Full Session and Session 2 students will also participate in the BMC Chorus. In 2023, the BMC Chorus will join Artistic Director Keith Lockhart and the Brevard Music Center Orchestra in the season finale performance of Verdi's Requiem on August 6.

Piano students also present a public recital each week. In addition, limited spots are available for The BMC Etude Project. This project connects pianists with the members of the Composition Institute to premiere new etudes for piano written specifically for this project. 2023 will be the 6th edition of the project.

Students work on campus in 90 studios and practice rooms. Piano students may reserve daily practice time and may practice in any vacant room. Steinway is the official piano of the Brevard Music Center.

2023 Faculty

Michael Chertock - Session II
Jihea Hong-Park - Session I
Norman Krieger - Session I
Donna Lee - Session I
Gabriela Martinez - Session II
Liza Stepanova - Session II
Yu-Lien The - Session I
Douglas Weeks - Session I + II
Terrence Wilson - Session II

With guest artist Jeremy Denk in a teaching and performance residency. Internationally acclaimed pianist Jeremy Denk makes his long-awaited Brevard debut with two concertos on two nights, performing Brahms’s 2nd Piano Concerto and Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4. Mr. Denk is an inaugural honoree of The Thomas C. Bolton Distinguished Artist Chair, a newly-established program supported by The Payne Fund. 

Dates and Deadlines

Program Dates:

  • Full Session: June 23 - August 6, 2023 (six weeks)
  • Half Session 1: June 23 - July 15, 2023 (three weeks)
  • Half Session 2: July 15 - August 6, 2023 (three weeks)

Deadline: Limited spots remaining -- accepting applications until all spots are filled. Apply now to be considered for Summer 2023!
Ages: 14-29 (High School and College Divisions)
Tuition: $8800 Full Session, $4850 Half Session; includes all instruction, housing, and meals
Scholarships: BMC offers both merit scholarship and financial aid support as part of the application process
Application fee: $65

Competitions

Full-session piano students may enter the BMC Solo Piano Competition, which is sponsored by the Zimmerli Foundation. The competition takes place in two rounds on campus. Winners perform a short solo recital in Parker Concert Hall and receive cash prizes between $500-3000.

Full-session students may also enter the Jan and Beattie Wood Concerto Competition. Winners perform with the BMC Orchestra in the "Soloists of Tomorrow" concert and receive a full scholarship to attend Brevard the following year. 2023 repertoire will be announced in Fall 2022.

Audition Requirements

Admission to the Brevard Music Center is determined by audition. Pianists may upload audio recordings or link(s) to YouTube video auditions directly into the application. 

Perform two contrasting solo works or movements from different style periods. 

Submissions do not have to be one continuous take; once you add one selection, the option to add another will appear. 

Tuition and Payment Schedule

Tuition includes all instruction, housing, meals, and the opportunity to attend on-campus concerts and other events. Each participant is responsible for travel to and from Brevard.

A non-refundable enrollment fee of $950 is due within 2 weeks of acceptance and applies toward the cost of tuition. The remaining tuition balance is due by May 15.

Program Dates
  • Full Session, June 23 - August 6, 2023 (six weeks) - arrival June 23, departure August 7
  • Half Session 1, June 23 - July 15, 2023 (three weeks) - arrival June 23, departure July 15 morning
  • Half Session 2, July 15 - August 6, 2023 (three weeks) - arrival July 15 afternoon, departure August 7

Full Session and Session 2 students also will participate in the BMC Chorus. In 2023, the BMC Chorus will join Artistic Director Keith Lockhart and the Brevard Music Center Orchestra in the season finale performance of Verdi's Requiem on August 6.

Refunds

All payments, except the $65 application fee and $950 enrollment fee, will be fully refunded if the Center receives notice of cancellation due to serious illness before May 15. Written verification from an M.D. is required before a refund can be made. No reduction in fees can be made for late arrival or early departure. No refunds will be made after May 15.

Scholarships

Brevard Music Center offers scholarship support according to a student's audition and demonstrated financial need, and program need. In recent years, Brevard has provided scholarship support to more than 70% of its students. Scholarship support includes merit, need-based, and the BMC Opportunity Scholarship open to students of Black and Latinx descent.

Please visit the Scholarship section of our FAQ page for more information.

Resident Assistants

Brevard Music Center students in the College division may apply to serve as Resident Assistants (RA). RAs have the same ensemble and performance opportunities as other students. RAs pay only a non-refundable enrollment fee of $950 which covers tuition, room, and board, and must be 21 or older by the start date of their program.

A limited number of RA positions are available in the Piano Institute. Brevard's RAs supervise student living quarters and provide guidance to younger students. Two RAs live in each high school residence; one RA lives in each college residence. 

Selected individuals will participate in a telephone interview, and, if chosen, submit to a formal background check and participate fully in the RA orientation sessions prior to student arrival. Note: All Resident Assistants, including piano RAs, must arrive on Monday, June 12 and depart on Tuesday, August 8, 2023.

Apply Now