The Piano Pod - a global hub for innovation, education, and connection in classical piano music

In this episode of The Piano Pod , host Yukimi Song sits down with concert pianist and recording artist Ammiel Bushakevitz for a wide-ranging conversation on Franz Schubert, the German Lied tradition, and what makes 19th-century music speak powerfully to 21st-century audiences. Ammiel shares insights from his major long-term projects, including Schubert 200 — a multi-album Lied collaboration build...

🎬 OFFICIAL TRAILER Season 6, Episode 9 Schubert Now — Concert Pianist, Ammiel Bushakevitz on Storytelling, Connection, and the Road to the 2028 Bicentennial Why does Schubert still matter today? In our first episode of 2026, I sit down with concert pianist and recording artist Ammiel Bushakevitz for a wide-ranging conversation on Schubert, the German Lied tradition, and why intimacy — not scale —...

To close out 2025, The Piano Pod brings you a special year-end bonus episode featuring composer and storyteller Stefania De Kenessey . Earlier this season, we explored her MICROVIDS project; today, Stefania takes us behind the scenes of another major undertaking: her opera The Bonfire of the Vanities , based on Tom Wolfe’s iconic novel. In this conversation, Stefania reflects on the creative risks...

✨ Happy Holidays, friends! This extra segment comes from Season 6, Episode 2 with the award-winning Mada & Hugh Piano Duo. Our conversation ran longer than expected, and while this part didn’t make it into the final episode, I couldn’t keep it from you — it’s just too good. In this excerpt, Mada & Hugh open up about creativity in its purest form: How hobbies and play can recharge us Why m...

What does a piano recital have to do with war, faith, and forgiveness? In this episode of The Piano Pod , pianist and educator Anli Lin Tong shares the story behind Bells of Nagasaki: Music for Contemplation —a profoundly moving concert created for the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki. What began as a single song her father used to sing— The Bells of Nagasaki —became a powerful a...

The trailer for our upcoming episode is now live—and it offers a glimpse into one of the most reflective and quietly powerful conversations of this season. In Season 6, Episode 8 of The Piano Pod , I sit down with pianist and educator Anli Lin Tong for a deeply moving conversation about music as memory, faith, lineage, and moral witness. At the heart of this episode is Anli’s recent project, Bells...

In this episode, I sit down with pianist and educator Mirna Lekić for a conversation that spans continents, sound worlds, and the deeper layers of what music can mean in a human life. Born and raised in Sarajevo during the Bosnian War and now based in New York City, Mirna brings a rare perspective to the piano — one shaped by resilience, migration, devotion, and an unshakable belief in music as a...

Here is the TRAILER — Between Worlds: From Sarajevo to New York: A Conversation on Cultural Crossings, Sonic Identity, and the Art of Connection feat. Mirna Lekić This week on The Piano Pod , I sit down with pianist and champion of new music Mirna Lekić for a conversation that moves between cultures, sound worlds, and the deeper layers of artistic identity. From Sarajevo to New York, we explore cu...

Happy Thanksgiving! In this bonus episode, I’m sharing something deeply personal — a part of my identity I’ve rarely spoken about publicly. I am a third-generation Zainichi Korean, born and raised in Japan, and I’m finally stepping into that history through a new creative initiative called The Zainichi Music Project , now sponsored by the New York Foundation for the Arts . This episode marks the b...

In this episode of The Piano Pod, I sit down with Elena Riu — pianist, groundbreaking recording artist, educator, and yoga/mindfulness teacher — whose work has reshaped how we think about artistry, embodiment, and the future of piano performance. Elena has long been a force of quiet revolution. Long before conversations about inclusivity and expanded repertoire entered the mainstream, she was comm...

Get ready for our next episode of The Piano Pod: The Embodied Pianist with Elena Riu — pianist, groundbreaking recording artist, educator, and yoga/mindfulness teacher. In this powerful conversation, we explore embodied performance, somatics, breath, creativity, cultural identity, and even the menstrual cycle as a source of artistic insight. Elena’s work challenges long-held assumptions about what...

🎶✨ What if jazz could be taught as naturally as language—where freedom, creativity, and collaboration drive learning? Welcome to Season 6, Episode 5 of The Piano Pod , featuring Quentin Walston — pianist, composer, educator, and founder of This Is Jazz™ . In this conversation, we explore how Quentin bridges performance, pedagogy, and entrepreneurship through his acclaimed book How to Teach Jazz...

In this trailer, get a glimpse into my upcoming conversation with Quentin Walston — a pianist, composer, and educator known for his joyful fusion of jazz, improvisation, and storytelling. In this episode, we dive into creativity, connection, and the spirit of collaboration that defines his work and the evolving world of modern musicianship. ✨ Watch the YouTube Premiere: https://youtu.be/hYK86QGXx...

The Piano Pod Live in Concert: A Bold New Chapter in Classical Music marked the first-ever live event for the award-winning podcast and YouTube show The Piano Pod, conceived and hosted by Executive Producer Yukimi Song. Presented in collaboration with Mannes Prep, a pre-college music program offering comprehensive and nurturing pre-professional training at The New School, this milestone concert br...

🎶✨ How can nineteen tiny piano miniatures blossom into one of the most expansive, collaborative, and award-winning projects of our time? Welcome to Season 6 Episode 3: The World of MICROVIDS — Composer & Advocate for Women in Music, Stefania de Kenessey. In this episode of The Piano Pod, I sit down with Stefania de Kenessey, a composer whose works have been heard at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Ce...

🎶✨ How can nineteen miniature piano pieces transform into a boundless world of music, poetry, collaboration, and film? Season 6 of The Piano Pod continues with an extraordinary episode featuring composer Stefania de Kenessey and her latest project, Microvids . What began as small, intimate sketches during the pandemic has blossomed into her most expansive and personal work — brought to life thro...

🔥 “Music isn’t just about playing the notes — it’s about living beyond the keys.” 🔥Welcome to the premiere of Encore Conversations — The Piano Pod’s new series, where past guests return for short, powerful conversations about their latest projects and evolving journeys. To kick it off, I’m joined by Jeeyoon Kim — pianist, educator, podcaster, and now a two-time author. You may remember her from...

In this special premiere of Encore Conversations , The Piano Pod’s brand-new alumni series, I sit down with award-winning pianist, author, and educator Jeeyoon Kim . You may remember her from Season 3, where she inspired us with her originality, authenticity, and mission to make concerts deeply personal. Now she returns with her most intimate project yet — her second book Beyond the Keys and compa...

🎹🔥 What makes a four-hand piano duo so powerful, intimate, and endlessly creative? Welcome to Season 6 Episode 2: Four Hands, Boundless Creativity — Mada & Hugh, the Award-Winning Duo on Love, Life & Artistic Freedom In this captivating episode of The Piano Pod , I sit down with the award-winning Mada & Hugh Piano Duo — Romanian-born pianist Mădălina-Claudia Dănilă and Korean-America...

🎹🔥 What makes a four-hand piano duo so powerful, intimate, and endlessly creative? Season 6 of The Piano Pod continues with an electrifying episode featuring the award-winning Mada & Hugh Piano Duo — Romanian-born pianist Mădălina Dănilă and Korean-American pianist Hugh Sung. Known for their imaginative arrangements, captivating performances, and cross-cultural collaboration, Mada & Hugh...

🎹✨ Can music heal, comfort, and truly transform lives? In this special Season 6 premiere of The Piano Pod, I sit down with Billboard-charting pianist and composer Chad Lawson — also the first musician ever appointed as a U.N. Ambassador for the World Federation for Mental Health. His composition “The Light Within” became the official theme song for World Mental Health Day, and his music has touc...

🎹✨ Can music heal, comfort, and truly transform lives? In this special Season 6 premiere of The Piano Pod, I sit down with Billboard-charting pianist and composer Chad Lawson — also the first musician ever appointed as a U.N. Ambassador for the World Federation for Mental Health. His composition “The Light Within” became the official theme song for World Mental Health Day, and his music has touc...

✨ Season 6 of The Piano Pod is here! ✨ This year, it’s all about Creativity and Connection — the messy, vulnerable, transformative stories behind the music. 🎹 We kick things off with an inspiring lineup: 🎶 Chad Lawson on September 9, 8:00 pm ET. Mădălina Dănilă & Hugh Sung — the award-winning Mada & Hugh Piano Duo , whose artistry and unique bond radiate joy, innovation, and cultural c...

Thinking about starting a podcast—but feeling overwhelmed by where to begin? I created a mini-course for artists, educators, and independent creatives who want to build a podcast that feels authentic, intentional, and achievable. And this bonus episode is a FREE intro lesson. Inside, I’ll walk you through what to expect in my full course, share a bit of my story, and show you that you don’t need f...

This episode is brought to you by Juneteenth LP — celebrating Black artistry and legacy in classical music. 🎉 Get Your Ticket: https://publictheater.org/performances-jp/2025/j/juneteenth-lp/ 🎹 What does it mean to live and create with authenticity? In this powerful season finale, we sit down with Dr. Maria Thompson Corley — pianist, composer, novelist, poet, educator, and advocate — for a conver...