Oxana Yablonskaya

Oxana Yablonskaya is an American-Israeli pianist who has an active international performing career since the early 1960s. Born in Moscow, Yablonskaya was a pupil of Anaida Sumbatyan at the Moscow Central School for the Gifted where she studied from the ages of six through sixteen. She then pursued further studies at the Moscow Conservatory with legendary Alexander Goldenweiser and became a first student of Dmitry Bashkirov, whom Goldenweiser just invited to teach as his Assistant. She was a student of Tatiana Nikolayeva in her Doctorate program. After graduating from

conservatory in 1965, she joined the piano faculty as Nikolayeva’s Assistant at the Moscow Conservsatory. She went on to win top prizes at the Marguerite Long-Jacques Thibaud Competition in 1963(Second Grand Prix), Rio de Janeiro Piano Competition in 1965(First Prize) and the Vienna Beethoven Competition in 1969(second prize).

Yablonskaya was invited to perform as soloist with orchestras in concert halls in the West during the 1960s and 1970s, but was never allowed to accept invitations by antisemitic russian government. She performed throughout the USSR and made numerous recordings on the Melodya label. She received prestigious title of a “Soloist of the Moscow Philharmonic" alongside such artists as David Oistrakh, Emil Gilels, Mstislav Rostropovich and was highly active as a soloist with the Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra.

Frustrated by the limitations of her artistic freedom, she emigrated to the United States in 1977, but only after two years of waiting as “refusnik”, stripped of her job at the Moscow Conservatory and concert career. 75 prominent musicians, actors, composers, senators, including Eli Wiesel, Leonard Bernstein, Kathryn Hepburn, Shelly Winters, Henry Miller, Isaak Bashevis-Singer (Nobel Prize Winner) and even President Carter appealed to the Soviet government to let her leave.

Described by The New York Times as an "internationally known virtuoso" and "one of the country's most distinguished musical residents", Yablonskaya has toured in concerts and recitals throughout the world and has made numerous recordings. She taught as a member of the piano faculty at the Juilliard School for more than 25 years, until 2009.

Yablonskaya is the Winner of Grand Prix du Discque from the Liszt Society in Budapest for her recording of music by Schubert-Liszt and Liszt. Oxana Yablonskaya is an Honorary Academician of the International Academy of the Arts at the United Nations, International Academy of the Arts in San Francisco and Independent Academy of Liberal Arts at the Russian Academy of Sciences. She is recipient of the Einstein Medal for Outstanding Achievements in the Arts.

Besides active concert and teaching career, Ma. Yablonskaya made editions for International Music Co. in New York. 

In 2016 Prof. Yablonskaya came to Israel, where she now lives and teaches at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance and continues to dazzle audiences throughout Israel and abroad.

Oxana Yablonskaya is Yamaha Artist and former Artistic Director of Yamaha Master Classes in New York.