ALINA BERCU
Romania | Age 27

Fifteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Preliminary Round Recital – Thursday, May 25, 2017 – 8:20 p.m.
Bass Performance Hall

Program:

BACH Partita No. 4 in D Major, BWV 828
HAMELIN Toccata on “L’homme armé”
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 7 in B-flat Major, op. 83

As a young teen, Alina Bercu was awarded a special prize by Romania’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs for promoting her nation through culture. She started piano lessons at age 7 in her native Campina, Romania, and her family soon moved to Brasov so she could study piano at Transylvania University. She went on to study in Germany with Grigory Gruzman (Weimar University) and Wolfgang Manz (Nuremberg University), among others. Ms. Bercu has performed at major concert venues including Carnegie Hall and in Zurich, Munich, Hamburg, Dusseldorf, Rome, and Bucharest. Her orchestra appearances include the Vienna Philharmonic, Orchestre de chambre de Lausanne, and Bremen Philharmonic Orchestra. Her Schubert-Brahms recording with violinist Ilian Garnet, winner of the Queen Elisabeth Competition, won the Golden Label prize in Belgium and the Cle d’Or in France. Ms. Bercu has won prizes at the Clara Haskil International Piano Competition, the European Piano Contest, and the World Piano Competition (Cincinnati), among others, as well as at chamber-music competitions as a member of Duo Enesco. In addition to music, Ms. Bercu is devoted to travel, running, and cooking.