Ryan Gao, age eight, began his musical journey at five and currently studies piano with Ms. Lena Grozman. Driven by a joyful yet disciplined spirit, Ryan has developed a performance style defined by technical clarity and expressive nuance. His dedication was recently recognized with a Second Award at the 2025 San Francisco International Piano Competition and the Grand Prix at the 2026 Concert Festival International Competition, earning him a debut performance at Carnegie Hall this spring. A well-rounded scholar, Ryan finds balance beyond the keyboard through his love for math, reading, golf, swimming, and biking.
Watch Ryan Gao perform Four Variations on a Theme by Paganini by Wiktor Labunski on the piano for the 2026 Classical Music Competition as part of the Charleston International Music Competition.