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A native of Atlanta, GA, pianist Caroline Owen frequently performs as a soloist and collaborator. She has played in venues across the U.S. and in Europe, most notably the Wiener Saal and Solitär at the Mozarteum (Salzburg).
After winning the 2018 Pro-Mozart Society of Atlanta Competition, Owen received a scholarship to study at the Mozarteum, where she worked with Dominique Merlet and Christopher Hinterhuber. She most recently returned to Salzburg in February 2020 to compete in the live rounds of the 14th International Mozart Competition. She was also a semifinalist at the International Keyboard Odyssiad and won the 2019 Florida MTNA Young Artist Competition. Owen performed at the 2018 American Liszt Society Conference, and she appeared as a soloist with the Furman University Symphony Orchestra performing Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 2 after winning the university’s biannual concerto competition in 2015.
Owen has participated in Atlantic Music Festival’s Summer Piano Institute (2018), the PianoTexas Young Artists Program (2019), and the Prague Piano Festival (2019), during which she gave a performance at the Russian Consulate in Prague. She has worked with distinguished artists and teachers such as Marvin Blickenstaff, Lucille Chung, Richard Goode, Douglas Humpherys, Martin Katz, Vincent Larderet, Julian Martin, Pascal Rogé, Sandra Shen, and Dina Yoffe in masterclass settings and had additional studies with Philippe Bianconi, Joel Hastings, Veda Kaplinsky, Louis Nagel, Elizabeth Pridonoff, Ann Schein, and Boris Slutsky, among others.
Passionate about chamber music, Owen formed the Athena Trio in 2018 alongside violist Claudia Malchow and clarinetist Kelly Riordan. The group’s recent highlights have included an American premiere of composer Jordan Kuspa’s Metronome and participation in the inaugural Chamber Music Athens festival, where they worked with pianist Peter Frankl, soprano Sarah Shafer, and members of the Jupiter String Quartet. With a background in dance, Owen has inspired interdisciplinary projects, most recently premiering a multimedia work for solo piano and dance, Life Suite (2019) by composer Badie Khaleghian. She also enjoys research opportunities and the promotion of both new and lesser-known compositions.
Owen is currently pursuing graduate studies under David Kalhous at Florida State University, where she is also an instructor of Group Piano. Her other primary teachers have included Liza Stepanova, Derek Parsons, and Jody Smith Parrish. When she is not practicing, Caroline enjoys gardening, hiking, traveling, and spending time with friends and family.