SVETLANA SMOLINA
Pianist · GRAMMY® Voting Member · Educator
"A world-class artist whose playing bridges continents, traditions, and audiences."
From the New York Philharmonic at Avery Fisher Hall to the Mariinsky Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, from the Salzburg Festival to the Hollywood Bowl — pianist Svetlana Smolina has built an international career defined by artistic depth, versatility, and a rare gift for communication.
Svetlana Smolina has performed with leading orchestras and given recitals throughout the world, appearing with the New York Philharmonic at Avery Fisher Hall, the Mariinsky Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, the St. Petersburg Philharmonic, the Orchestre National de France, and the Rotterdam Philharmonic.
She has been presented at many of the world's most distinguished concert halls and festivals, including the Salzburg Festival at the Mozarteum, the Hollywood Bowl, Ravinia Rising Stars, the White Nights Festival in Saint Petersburg, Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, the Mikkeli Festival, the Ruhr Klavier Festival, the Moscow Easter Festival, the Stresa Festival, the Hanoi Opera House, the Royal Opera House Covent Garden in London, the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, and Rome's Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia.
In 2026, Smolina was invited to join the Recording Academy as a GRAMMY® Voting Member, recognizing her distinguished artistic achievements and continued contributions to the international music community. Following her acclaimed South American recital tour, she was featured on the cover of Argentina's premier classical music magazine, Música Clásica, appearing alongside internationally celebrated artists including Yuja Wang, Daniel Barenboim, Gustavo Dudamel, and Zubin Mehta.
She has been presented at many of the world's most distinguished concert halls and festivals, including the Salzburg Festival at the Mozarteum, the Hollywood Bowl, Ravinia Rising Stars, the White Nights Festival in Saint Petersburg, Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, the Mikkeli Festival, the Ruhr Klavier Festival, the Moscow Easter Festival, the Stresa Festival, the Hanoi Opera House, the Royal Opera House Covent Garden in London, the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, and Rome's Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia.
In 2026, Smolina was invited to join the Recording Academy as a GRAMMY® Voting Member, recognizing her distinguished artistic achievements and continued contributions to the international music community. Following her acclaimed South American recital tour, she was featured on the cover of Argentina's premier classical music magazine, Música Clásica, appearing alongside internationally celebrated artists including Yuja Wang, Daniel Barenboim, Gustavo Dudamel, and Zubin Mehta.
DISCOGRAPHY
Svetlana Smolina performances have been broadcast by NPR, WQXR, BBC, PBS, RAI, Kultura TV, and other major international networks. Her recording of Stravinsky's Les Noces with Valery Gergiev received an International Classical Music Award (ICMA).
- Solo albumRomantic JourneyUniversal Music:In the context of social invitations, RSVP is a request for a response from the invited person or people. It is an initialism derived from the French phrase Répondez s'il vous plaît, literally "Reply if you please" or "Please reply".
- with orchestraRachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 3Universal Musicwith the Czech National Symphony Orchestra and Maestro Derek Gleeson; produced by Luca Rustici for L'n'R Productions
- album "Funky Sonatas"Rachmaninoff En RitmoWarned Music, Pier 5, Terry Heimat Studiosproduced by Alex Sino and Terry Heimat
- Solo albumChopin: The Complete 24 Preludes and Nocturnefor the Chopin Project
- Solo albumScriabinlive recording for Pentatone with Christopher O'Riley
- Solo albumBritten: Young ApolloBCM+D Recordsrecorded live at Walt Disney Concert Hall with Maestro Eduard Schmieder and the iPalpiti Orchestra
- Solo albumBritten: Young ApolloBCM+D Recordsrecorded live at Walt Disney Concert Hall with Maestro Eduard Schmieder and the iPalpiti Orchestra
INTERNATIONAL ENGAGEMENTS
Smolina's engagements have taken her across five continents: a tour of China with the Dublin Philharmonic under Derek Gleeson and Christo Pavlov; concerts with the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional Juvenil in Lima, Peru; appearances at Carnegie Hall in New York; performances with violinist Lee-Chin Siow in Singapore and with Charlie Siem at the Basel Casino; recitals at the CCK Symphony Hall in Buenos Aires as part of the Best Pianists of the 21st Century series; the Classical Tahoe Festival with Maestro Joel Revzen; the Ushuaia Festival in Argentina; and the Cremona International Summer Festival.
Smolina's engagements have taken her across five continents: a tour of China with the Dublin Philharmonic under Derek Gleeson and Christo Pavlov; concerts with the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional Juvenil in Lima, Peru; appearances at Carnegie Hall in New York; performances with violinist Lee-Chin Siow in Singapore and with Charlie Siem at the Basel Casino; recitals at the CCK Symphony Hall in Buenos Aires as part of the Best Pianists of the 21st Century series; the Classical Tahoe Festival with Maestro Joel Revzen; the Ushuaia Festival in Argentina; and the Cremona International Summer Festival.
INTERNATIONAL ENGAGEMENTS
Additional international appearances include the New Year's Eve Gala with the Shanghai Philharmonic and the Harbin Symphony Orchestra under Maestro Muhai Tang; the Taihu Art Festival and the 22nd China Shanghai International Arts Festival at Wuxi Grand Theatre; duo recitals with Vadim Repin at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing, Shanghai Concert Hall, and the Belt & Road International Music Festival in Shenzhen; debut recital tours in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro; performances in Osaka with Kazuhiro Takagi; the Megaron Concert Hall in Thessaloniki and the Megaron Chamber Hall in Athens for the Piano Plus Festival; the Burgos International Music Festival; the Triumph Music Festival at the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia; concerts with the Orchestra of the Southern Finger Lakes; recitals at the White House in Leipzig, Germany; and a concert recording for Steinway & Sons on the Lang Lang Black Diamond Limited Edition piano.
A frequent guest artist of the iPalpiti Festival of International Laureates, Smolina made her solo debut with Maestro Eduard Schmieder and the iPalpiti Orchestra at Walt Disney Concert Hall, where their live recording of Britten's Young Apollo received widespread critical acclaim.
Additional international appearances include the New Year's Eve Gala with the Shanghai Philharmonic and the Harbin Symphony Orchestra under Maestro Muhai Tang; the Taihu Art Festival and the 22nd China Shanghai International Arts Festival at Wuxi Grand Theatre; duo recitals with Vadim Repin at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing, Shanghai Concert Hall, and the Belt & Road International Music Festival in Shenzhen; debut recital tours in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro; performances in Osaka with Kazuhiro Takagi; the Megaron Concert Hall in Thessaloniki and the Megaron Chamber Hall in Athens for the Piano Plus Festival; the Burgos International Music Festival; the Triumph Music Festival at the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia; concerts with the Orchestra of the Southern Finger Lakes; recitals at the White House in Leipzig, Germany; and a concert recording for Steinway & Sons on the Lang Lang Black Diamond Limited Edition piano.
A frequent guest artist of the iPalpiti Festival of International Laureates, Smolina made her solo debut with Maestro Eduard Schmieder and the iPalpiti Orchestra at Walt Disney Concert Hall, where their live recording of Britten's Young Apollo received widespread critical acclaim.
CHAMBER MUSIC
A sought-after chamber musician, Smolina has collaborated with distinguished artists including Vadim Repin, Ida Haendel, Narek Hakhnazaryan, Kian Soltani, Geyhee Kim, Alexander Knyazev, Enrico Dindo, Lee-Chin Siow, Pavel Šporcl, Charlie Siem, Roberto Cani, Jannis Georgiadis, Dr. L. Subramaniam, and many others.
Together with Vadim Repin, she has presented duo recitals at Bogotá's Teatro Colón for the Cartagena Festival, Teatro Lirico di Cagliari, the XXV Lakshminarayana Global Music Festival in Bangalore and Mumbai, Koerner Hall in Toronto, Salle Garnier in Monte Carlo for the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, as well as the Trans-Siberian Art Festival in Novosibirsk, Washington, D.C., London, and New York.
A sought-after chamber musician, Smolina has collaborated with distinguished artists including Vadim Repin, Ida Haendel, Narek Hakhnazaryan, Kian Soltani, Geyhee Kim, Alexander Knyazev, Enrico Dindo, Lee-Chin Siow, Pavel Šporcl, Charlie Siem, Roberto Cani, Jannis Georgiadis, Dr. L. Subramaniam, and many others.
Together with Vadim Repin, she has presented duo recitals at Bogotá's Teatro Colón for the Cartagena Festival, Teatro Lirico di Cagliari, the XXV Lakshminarayana Global Music Festival in Bangalore and Mumbai, Koerner Hall in Toronto, Salle Garnier in Monte Carlo for the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, as well as the Trans-Siberian Art Festival in Novosibirsk, Washington, D.C., London, and New York.
SEASON 2026
- JanuartyRavel's Piano Concerto in GSantiago, ChileIn 2026, Smolina performed Ravel's Piano Concerto in G throughout Florida, including performances at The Parker in Fort Lauderdale, the New World Center in Miami, and the Tennessee Williams Theatre in Key West — followed by a recital tour of Argentina and performances.
- JuneFestival Nights in ViennaVratsa, Bulgariasubsequently toured Europe with appearances at Festival Nights in Vienna alongside Yury Revich at Palais Schönborn-Batthyány for UNICEF Österreich, at Steinway & Sons Vienna, and with the Vratsa Symphony Orchestra.
- SeptemberPiano ConcertoQuito, Ecuador— debut with the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional del Ecuador.
- DecemberRachmaninov - Piano concert 2Zhangjiajie, CinaWith Zhangjiajie Philharmonic Orchestra condected by Taras Kustenko
AWARDS & TEACHING
A Grand Prix winner of Italy's Città di Senigallia International Piano Competition, the Murray Dranoff Two Piano Competition, and numerous other international competitions.
Since 2011, Svetlana Smolina has served as Director of the Piano Program at the Philadelphia International Music Festival, and she is a member of the piano faculty at Irvine Valley College in California. She previously served on the piano faculty of the Kaufman Music Center in New York City and was appointed Artist-in-Residence at West Chester University and Temple University in Philadelphia.
A Grand Prix winner of Italy's Città di Senigallia International Piano Competition, the Murray Dranoff Two Piano Competition, and numerous other international competitions.
Since 2011, Svetlana Smolina has served as Director of the Piano Program at the Philadelphia International Music Festival, and she is a member of the piano faculty at Irvine Valley College in California. She previously served on the piano faculty of the Kaufman Music Center in New York City and was appointed Artist-in-Residence at West Chester University and Temple University in Philadelphia.
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