About
Maya Kilburn is a proud recipient of a Kovner Fellowship at The Juilliard School, where she studies with Donald Weilerstein and Catherine Cho. Previous studies include several years with Mimi Zweig at the Indiana University Jacobs School String Academy, and earlier studies with Chin Mi Kim and Anna Vayman.
Now 22 years old, Maya grew up in Muncie, Indiana. She has won numerous competitions at the regional and national levels, and as a member of the principal pool at The Juilliard School, has served frequently as concertmaster including a recent performance in Stern Auditorium at Carnegie Hall. Maya has performed more than a dozen times as concerto soloist with such orchestras as the Indianapolis Symphony, Southeast Missouri Symphony, Louisville Symphony, Fort Wayne Philharmonic, Carmel Symphony, New World Youth Symphony, Orchestra Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica, Muncie Symphony, CREM Orchestra, and the PRISMA Festival Orchestra. Other highlights include a recent solo appearance at the Kennedy Center, two 3-week concert tours throughout Argentina and Chile, 3rd place in the Eisemann International String Competition, and opportunities to perform with such artists as David Chan, Atar Arad, Joseph Swenson, and Luke Hsu. She has been awarded fellowships at numerous festivals and has been coached by violinists such as Pamela Frank, Vadim Gluzman, Robert Lipsett, Noah Bendix-Balgley, Jinjoo Cho, Henryk Kowalski, Mauricio Fuks, Kyung Sun Lee, Richard Lin, Stella Chen, and Sarah Kapustin. Maya has performed in many recitals with her parents in the US, Japan, and Central America, and has been featured on both radio and television broadcasts. In 2017, 2018, and 2019, she was a featured guest at the Universidad National de Costa Rica and the La Castella Arts School in San Jose, Costa Rica, where she performed recitals, concerti with orchestra, and worked with violin students.
Maya plays on a 1710 Alessandro Mezzadri violin made in Ferrara, Italy, currently on a 10-year loan. When not playing the violin, she enjoys cooking, hanging out with friends, and spending time with her dogs Cocoa and Sophia. Upcoming engagements include concerto appearances and solo recitals throughout Mexico, China, Japan, and the U.S.
Canadian pianist Ray Kilburn has maintained a successful career that has spanned North and Central America, Europe, and Asia. Critics have been unanimous in praise of his outstanding technical abilities and artistic temperament. In one critic’s words, “if Kilburn is not the reincarnation of the great romantic pianists, he comes close”. Arthur Kaptainis of the Montreal Gazette wrote, "Kilburn came across as a pianist of serious musical aims and thorough technical command. Technical hurdles were cleared with aplomb and his warm, firm tone never faltered." John Lambert of Spectator Magazine wrote, "Kilburn.... is a powerhouse player infused with musicianship and taste. Pianism of this caliber is rare, indeed."
Along with a busy schedule of solo and chamber music performances, Kilburn has three solo recordings, and a fourth disc in collaboration with his father, cellist Michael Kilburn. More than a dozen tours of Japan have included solo and chamber recitals, as well as guest teaching engagements in and around city centers such as Sapporo, Kushiro, Tokyo, Ota, Hamamatsu, Osaka, Kobe, Nara, and Wakayama. Other professional highlights include tours of Canton, China, with a visiting professorship at the Xinghai Conservatory in Guangzhou; Guest teaching at East China Normal University in Shanghai and Wenzhou University; an 8-concert tour of Costa Rica as part of the Festival Credomatic; and annually performing solo recitals and a wide variety of guest teaching engagements of both national and international profile. A sampling of Kilburn’s concerto appearances include Brahms Piano Concerto No 1 with the Chippewa Valley Symphony of Wisconsin, the Beethoven Triple Concerto with the Durham Symphony, Bartok Third Piano Concerto with the Calgary Philharmonic, and three performances of a choreographed version of Prokofiev Third Piano Concerto in Montreal’s Place Des Arts with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens. Collaborations include an appearance on the Indiana Arts Awards gala with international artists soprano Angela Brown and violinist Augustin Hadelich.
Dr. Kilburn completed a Licentiate diploma and Bachelor’s degree in piano performance at McGill University, and the Master’s and Doctor of Music Degrees in piano performance at Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. His primary teachers include the eminent Canadian pianist Tom Plaunt, and the late world-renowned pianist Gyorgy Sebok. Presently, he is much sought after as a performer, master teacher, competition judge, and clinician. Kilburn has judged competitions on a regular basis both nationally and internationally, including the Moniusko Slav International Piano Competition in Minsk, Belarus. Having held a number of tenured university positions, he presently holds a faculty position at Ball State University where he teaches piano performance to a full studio of majors from undergraduate through Doctoral level. His students have distinguished themselves through winning prizes in national and international competitions and obtaining faculty positions at colleges and universities around the world. His wife soprano Yoko Shimazaki-Kilburn is also on faculty at Ball State University, and their 22-year-old daughter Maya Kilburn is gaining recognition as a violinist and social media influencer.
Program
Program to be announced.
Free Admission
This event is free and open to the public.
Parking
Parking is available in the McKinley Parking Garage (entrance on Ashland Avenue) located immediately south of Sursa Hall. On weekdays, metered parking ($1/hr) is available on the first floor of the garage until 7 p.m. at which time parking is free. This garage is free on weekends.