Jorge Ivars

“A pianist with an unusual, hypnotic sound and rare tenderness” (EL Levante, EMV), Jorge Ivars was born in 1992 in Valencia, Spain, and began expressing his interest in music at the age of 10 by playing the piano by ear. He did not begin serious piano training until age 17, but this did not stop him from winning 10 first prizes in national and international piano competitions. Ivars holds a bachelor’s degree in music and a master’s in piano performance from Valencian International University, both earned with honors. In 2016, he moved to the United States to study at Penn State University, where he earned the Professional Performance Diploma (2016) and a DMA degree with honors (2020). During his stay at Penn State, he worked as a piano teaching assistant and as a rehearsal pianist for both opera and musical theater on-campus productions. Ivars has concertized extensively in his native Spain, Europe and the United States, and has received instruction from world-class pianists such as Julian Martin (Julliard School of Music), José Méndez (Northwestern Bienen School of Music), Yon Hi-Moon (Peabody Institute of Music), Pavel Nersessian (Moscow Conservatory), Andreas Frölich (Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln), Antonio Pompa-Baldi (Cleveland Institute of Music), Alexander Korsantia (New England Conservatory), and Eugen Indjic (Schola Cantorum of Paris).