Claire Zhang, age 14, studies piano with John and Annamarie McCarthy. She is in the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Pre-College Division. Claire has won prizes at the United States Open Music Competition, United States International Music Competition, Great Composers Competition, Charleston International Music Competition, American Protégé Competition, KAMSA Competition and was selected to perform in the 2022, 2023 and 2024 Junior Bach Festival. She has performed at venues including the concert and recital halls at the San Francisco Conservatory of music, as well as Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. Apart from piano, Claire also plays the violin and enjoys playing chamber music.
Grace Wang is a 13-year-old pianist who currently attends Valley Christian Junior High School as an 8th grader. She has been studying at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Pre-College Division under the tutelage of Rose Chen, following previous instructions from Dr. William Wellborn. Recently, she won 2nd prize in Encore Music Competition Intermediate division, and 1st Prize in Best Grieg Performance in the Great Composers Competition Series. She has also been recognized with awards from the US Open Music Competition and in the Junior Bach Music Festival. She has also received invitations to perform in music festivals hosted by Music Teachers’ Associations of California (MTAC). She has attended to C’est Bon Chamber Music Festival and Interlochen Art Camp in the Summer of 2023. Grace also enjoys performing in chamber groups to collaborate with instruments such as bassoon, violin, cello, and more. Along with her passion for her piano performance, Grace has also played cello for more than 4 years.
You can find the duet’s 20th Century Music Competition 2024 performance here.