Hong Kong-born Canadian pianist Dane Ko is a recitalist, chamber musician and educator active internationally. The 2025-26 season includes debuts at Montreal International Bach Festival, Chapelle Historique du Bon-Pasteur, Algoma Conservatory Concerts and the Gilmore International Piano Festival as a Gilmore Festival Fellow.

As soloist, Dane has performed in France, Austria, Italy, Hong Kong, Macau, Canada and the US. Dane is a prizewinner at Prix Ravel, The Shean Piano Competition, The Glenn Gould School Chamber Music Competition, and the CMC “Stepping Stone”. Dane has interviewed and performed on Florida’s Classical WSMR, Hong Kong’s RTHK Radio 4, and CBC Radio One. 

Dane is also a dedicated music educator and an award-winning research scholar, having lectured in institutions such as University of Toronto’s Graduate Piano Pedagogy Seminar, University of Hong Kong Advanced Performance Seminar among others. 

Dane trained at such academies as Chigiana, Mozarteum, Fontainebleau, Rebecca Penneys Piano Festival, ISA of mdw with Lilya Zilberstein, Robert Levin, Klaus Hellwig among many others. In Canada, his primary teachers include Marietta Orlov, Lydia Wong and Ilya Poletaev. Graduate of the University of Toronto and The Glenn Gould School of The Royal Conservatory, Dane is currently a Doctor of Music candidate and instructor of piano at McGill University Schulich School of Music.

Cheonmi Park, a South Korean-born pianist and educator based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. With a distinguished blend of performance and teaching experience, she is steadily building a reputation in the classical music community.

Cheonmi began her musical journey at the Seoul Arts Center Academy, where she received foundational training. She continued her studies at Yewon School and Seoul Arts High School, before enrolling at Seoul National University to deepen her academic and musical knowledge. After graduating Seoul National University, she moved to the United States to pursuing her graduate studies at University of Michigan.

At Michigan, Cheonmi completed her Master’s degree in Piano Performance and Cheonmi is pursuing doctorate study under the mentorship of Professor Arthur Greene. Her technical skills and interpretive depth were further enhanced through participation in masterclasses with renowned pianists such as Alexander Kobrin, Jon Nakamatsu, Spencer Myer and Jerome Rose.

Not only a solo pianist but also a chamber and collaborative musician, Cheonmi performed as a member of the Banchan Trio under the guidance of Professor Amy Cheng and had a masterclass with Horszowski Trio. She also has collaborated with musicians including instrumentalists and vocalists. In addition to her piano performance, she has developed a growing interest in the harpsichord, studying with Professor Joseph Gascho.

Cheonmi has also participated in several prestigious summer programs, including the Chautauqua Music School and the Gijón Piano Festival in 2024.

Throughout her career, Cheonmi has earned recognition in several prestigious competitions. She was a finalist in the 2023 SMTD Concerto Competition at the University of Michigan and has won top prizes at competitions such as the Texas A&M Commencement Music Competition in Seoul and the 55th Music Education News Competition. In addition, Cheonmi is honored to be a recipient of the Feltsman Piano Foundation Scholarship, which has provided valuable support in advancing her artistic and academic pursuits.

Cheonmi is equally dedicated to teaching and sharing her passion for music. As a Graduate Student Instructor at the University of Michigan, she works with mostly undergraduate students in group teaching classes or 1:1 lessons. Outside the classroom, she volunteered in "The Gift of Arts at Michigan Medicine" program at the University of Michigan Hospital and Sophie’s Place at Mott Children’s Hospital.

ALEX GLASS (b. 2000) is a New York City-based composer, pianist, improviser, and educator who creates thoughtful, emotionally powerful music while exploring and dissolving boundaries between musical practices. Alex likes to construct intricate and immersive sonic worlds out of small musical seeds grown in novel environments, exploring themes of memory, perception, anxiety, and wonder; his works have been performed by prestigious ensembles such as the Mannes Orchestra, SPLICE Ensemble, and the Valencia International Contemporary Ensemble. As an active pianist and interpreter of new music, Alex can frequently be seen premiering his own and colleagues’ works throughout the city. Equally well-versed in improvisation-based music, Alex recently released his debut album, Everything Falling Together, featuring all original compositions performed with a jazz combo. Alex is also a passionate educator, holding private piano and guitar studios in Tribeca, Manhattan and Bath Beach, Brooklyn.

Alex earned his Bachelor’s degree in composition from Boyer College at Temple University, and his Master’s degree in composition at the Mannes School of Music, where he studied with Timo Andres. [You can learn more about Alex on his website, alexglassmusic.com.]

Justin Gray is a GRAMMY® and JUNO® Award-winning artist, composer, producer, and engineer based in Toronto. His album IMMERSED won the 2026 GRAMMY® Award for Best Immersive Audio Album, making him the first Canadian to receive the honour. 
 

As a producer and engineer, Gray has collaborated with artists and labels worldwide. His credits include Olivia Rodrigo, Snoop Dogg, The Tragically Hip, Brandy, Nelly Furtado, Mother Mother, Blue Rodeo, Arkells, Jann Arden, Karan Aujla, Mae Martin, Marcin, Lola Brooke, and Josh Ross. 

Gray is on the faculty at Humber Polytechnic, where he teaches audio production. He works as a mixing and mastering engineer from his studio, Justin Gray Sound. 
As an artist and producer, Gray champions cross-cultural collaboration and new approaches to musical creation, presentation, and listening. His work explores how composition, performance, and recording technology can combine to create immersive musical experiences. 

His album IMMERSED is a cinematic visual album composed, recorded, and produced specifically for immersive audio. Featuring 38 musicians from around the world, the project places the listener at the center of a global orchestra, with music unfolding across a three-dimensional soundscape.

Hungarian pianist, Ádám Balogh is a recipient of the Junior Príma Award, the Cziffra Talent Award, the Kocsis Zoltán Award and the Junior Tüke Award. He was born in 1997 in Pécs. In 2010, he made his debut as a soloist with the Budapest Festival Orchestra, conducted by Iván Fischer. Since then, he has been a regular guest of major domestic orchestras. He has performed in concert halls across Europe, America, and Asia. 

From the age of 12, he studied in the Exceptional Talents Class at the Liszt Academy, where his teachers were Attila Némethy and Gábor Eckhardt. He completed his master’s degree in Hanover in the class of Arie Vardi and later in Budapest under the guidance of Dénes Várjon and Gábor Farkas. 

He has successfully returned from numerous important international competitions. He is the second prize winner of the Bartók World Competition and the fifth prize winner at the Sydney International Piano Competition. He received a special prize at the Honens Piano Competition. He has been a scholarship holder and awardee of the Tel Hai, New York IKIF, PianoTexas, Philadelphia Young Pianists’ Academy, and Chautauqua festivals. 

He received the Fischer Annie Scholarship in 2019, 2020, and 2022. Since 2020, he has been supported by the Lieven Foundation. He is currently a student at the Doctoral School of the Liszt Academy and a teacher of the Chamber Music Department.
 

Hello! My name is Dawn Deschamps, I’m an Elder from the Fishing Lake Métis Settlement, where I lived for many years with my husband and sons. Although an Elder, I consider myself a longtime learner and believe that everyone has good within them and a lesson to teach. I hope that by offering my guidance at Banff Centre, I can bring out the best in others and show them that they are capable of anything they set their mind to in their journey.

Joanna Gladue, Kihêw Iskwew (Eagle Woman), is a proud Cree woman from the Treaty 8 Bigstone Cree Nation whose healing work is deeply rooted in culture, creativity, counselling and community. With over a decade of experience as a trauma therapist, she weaves art therapy, somatic movement, and Indigenous knowledge systems through a two‑eyed seeing lens, witnessing powerful transformations as clients reconnect with cultural identity, expression, and ancestral strength. 

Joanna’s own healing has been shaped by powwow dancing, beading, drumming, singing, and teachings learned through ceremonies, round dances, powwows, and cultural gatherings. A dancer and former dance instructor, she honours movement and artistic creation as vital pathways to wellness and cultural continuity. Currently in her first year of her PhD in Psychotherapy and Counselling, Joanna continues to advocate for culturally grounded, land and art-based healing practices. She is grateful to be sharing her passion for the arts and culture with the Banff Centre for the Arts.