The Fryderyk Chopin Institute of Ohio’s mission is to promote the performance and scholarship of Fryderyk Chopin and spread his cultural legacy. Additionally, the Institute showcases the music of composers that celebrate Chopin’s ideals. In so doing, the institute educates and inspires a new generation of listeners and artists.
Dr. Konrad Binienda, President/Founder
Dr Konrad Binienda is a concert pianist and composer acclaimed for his poetic sense of romantic music, great charisma, and moving performances. Evocative of his cultural heritage, Dr. Binienda specializes in the music of Fryderyk Chopin. His orchestration of Chopin’s Allegro de Concert Op. 46 has been recognized by music critics all over the world as the best Chopin-style orchestration. In 2018, Binienda appeared as a soloist with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of London presenting Chopin’s Allegro de Concert op. 46 with his own orchestration. In 2019, Dux Recording Produces released a CD from this concert with Allegro de Concert Op. 46 by Chopin with orchestration and piano solo by Konrad Binienda. That year he also released the album Peaks of Piano with music by Fryderyk Chopin. In 2022, Binienda premiered his own Piano Concerto in E Minor with the Irving Symphony Orchestra and released the album Works by Chopin and Binienda. In 2023, he released his latest album "Songs of Divine Mercy" comprising original spiritual songs for soprano and piano. Binienda also composes music for the orchestra, choir and for the movies. A graduate of the prestigious Harvard/NEC parallel studies program, he received his Doctor of Musical Arts Degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music. A laureate of numerous piano competitions, including International Frederic Chopin Piano Competition in Texas, he made his debut at Carnegie Hall in New York in 2018. He gives piano recitals and appears as a soloist with orchestras all over the world. His achievements also include compositions, publications, lectures, and master classes. He has also served as a juror at the International Piano Competition in Turzno, Poland.
Dr. Jiana Peng, Artistic Director/Co-founder
Internationally acclaimed for her captivating performances across the stages of the United States, Europe, and China, Jiana has established herself as a pianist of versatility. Jiana’s musical exploration extends beyond the traditional repertoire, embracing eclectic and non-standard works that consistently push the boundaries of her artistic expression. Her doctoral research delves into Polish folk traditions, specifically those shaping the 20th-century piano repertoire by neglected composers such as Karol Szymanowski, Grażyna Bacewicz, and Roman Maciejewski. Most recently, she gave a world premiere of Szymanowski’s ballet-pantomime Harnasie newly transcribed for solo piano by Konrad Binienda at the Frost Chopin Festival in Miami, Florida. Jiana is the winner of the 2020 International Chopin Piano Competition (Corpus Christi) and the Second Prize winner of the 2022 Kosciuszko Foundation Chopin Piano Competition (Washington, D.C). She also won the Finalist Award in the New York International Piano Competition, Tuesday Musical Scholarship, Nice Coté d’Azur International Piano Competition, the Cleveland Pops Orchestra Music Scholarship Competition, and the Cleveland Institute of Music Concerto Competition. In 2021, Jiana was a contestant in the prestigious International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, Poland. Jiana made her orchestral debut with the Cleveland Pops Orchestra in Severance Hall at the age of 16. She has since collaborated with the National Philharmonic, Oberlin Conservatory Orchestra, Cleveland Institute of Music Orchestra, Frost Symphony Orchestra, and the Philharmonic Orchestra of University of Alicante (Spain) under the batons of Gerard Schwarz, Piotr Gajewski, Raphael Jimenez, Carl Topilow, Kimbo Ishii-Eto, and Uri Segal. Jiana was invited to perform in festivals including PianoTexas International Festival, Frost Chopin Festival, and Dubrovnik Summer Music Festival. Her recent performing highlights include her artistic collaboration with the world-renowned Portuguese pianist Maria João Pires. They launched and performed together the first edition of the itinerary festival “Days of Wisdom” in Cervià de Ter, Spain. This artistic partnership extended to performances at Belgais Center for Arts in Portugal. In 2023, she was one of the six select pianists invited to the Partitura Residency at the Gilmore International Piano Festival, where she worked and performed again with Pires. Jiana holds Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music where she studied with Antonio Pompa-Baldi and Haesun Paik. She is also a graduate from the Artist Diploma and Oberlin-Como Fellowship program at the Oberlin Conservatory mentored by Stanislav Ioudenitch. Jiana recently earned her Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music under the tutelage of Kevin Kenner, silver medalist of the XII International Chopin Piano Competition.