Dr. Connor O'Kane is a highly sought-after pianist, teacher, chamber musician, and conductor. Since his concerto debut with the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony in 2014, he has appeared as a recitalist in the United States, France, and across Canada. A laureate of major competitions, he was awarded the Canimex Second Prize and top award for piano at the Canadian Music Competition's prestigious Stepping Stone. He has performed in a variety of concert series including Ottawa's Chamberfest, Chateau Windrush, and the KW Chamber Music Society, and has appeared as a guest artist in faculty concerts at Western University, Brock University, and The University of Waterloo.
A passionate collaborative musician with an affinity for opera, Connor has worked on over 20 opera productions in a variety of roles. In 2024 he conducted opera performances at Western University (Britten's Albert Herring), Toronto City Opera (Bizet's Carmen), and at the Glenn Gould School of the Royal Conservatory of Music, where he served as music director and conductor of Ravel's L'enfant et les sortilèges and Debussy's Prodigal Son. In 2025 he has further opera-related engagements with the Glenn Gould School and the Banff Centre.
Connor holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in piano performance from Western University, where he studied with Stéphan Sylvestre. His doctoral research focused on the piano transcriptions of Sergei Prokofiev, particularly with relation to the ballets Romeo and Juliet and Cinderella. He has been awarded the SSHRC doctoral fellowship, the Canada Graduate Scholarship (CGS-M), and the Canada Council Explore and Create grant. Connor also studied with David Jalbert, Heather Taves, and Joan Walker, with additional training at the Conservatoire de Lyon in the studio of Manuel Schweizer. He is a passionate and dedicated piano teacher, and an enthusiastic adjudicator at music festivals.
Conrad Grebel University College - Chapel
140 Westmount Rd. N.
Waterloo, ON N2L 3G6
Time | Name | Titles | Home Festival |
---|---|---|---|
Time:9:00 AM | Name:Emily Yu | Titles: October (Autumn Song), op. 37b, no. 10 by Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky Intermezzo No. 1 by Manuel Ponce | Home Festival:Guelph |
Time:9:15 AM | Name:Harper Zhou | Titles: Sonata in E Major, K 380 by Domenico Scarlatti Nocturne in E flat Major, op. 9, no. 2 by Frédéric Chopin | Home Festival:Niagara |
Time:9:30 AM | Name:Elaine Luo | Titles: Tarantelle, op. 77, no. 6, by Moritz Moszkowski A Moonlit Night on the Spring River, by arr. Edward Han Jiang | Home Festival:Kingston |
Time:9:40 AM | Name:Annabelle Bian | Titles: Prelude and Fugue in C Minor, BWV 847 by Johann Sebastian Bach Butterfly, op. 43, no. 1 by Edvard Grieg | Home Festival:Pickering GTA |
Time:9:55 AM | Name:Yisu Chen | Titles: A Moonlit Night on the Spring River by arr. Edward Han Jiang Fugue in C Major, BWV 952 by Johann Sebastian Bach | Home Festival:London |
Time:10:05 AM | Name:Clarissa Chiu | Titles: Fugue in C Major, BWV 952 by Johann Sebastian Bach Valse romantique by Claude Debussy | Home Festival:CCC |
Time:10:15 AM | Name:Simon Lee | Titles: Sonata in F Major, Hob. XVI:23, 1st mvt. by Franz Joseph Haydn The Cat and Mouse Tango by Gary K. Thomas | Home Festival:Peel |
Time:10:30 AM | Name:Gregory Mazin | Titles: Sinfonia No. 2 in C Minor, BWV 788 by Johann Sebastian Bach Nocturne in E flat Major, op. 9, no. 2 by Frédéric Chopin | Home Festival:Toronto |
Time:10:45 AM | Name:Amy Meng | Titles: Sonata in F Major, Hob XVI:23, 1st mvt. by Franz Joseph Haydn Laurentide Waltz (no.2), Canadiana Suite by Oscar Peterson | Home Festival:Hamilton |
Time:11:00 AM | Name:Neve Finn | Titles: Sonata in C Major K 330, 1st mvt. by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Nocturne in C sharp Minor, op. posth., B 49 by Frédéric Chopin | Home Festival:Kitchener-Waterloo |
Time:11:15 AM | Name:Maddison Wilkey | Titles: Six Variations on Nel cor più non mi sento, WoO 70 by Ludwig van Beethoven Song Without Words, op. 85, no. 4 by Felix Mendelssohn | Home Festival:Barrie |
Time:11:30 AM | Name:Anna Hien Pham | Titles: Sonata in F Major, Opus Hob. XVI:23, 1st mvt. by Franz Joseph Haydn Nocturne in C sharp Minor, op. posth., B 49 by Frédéric Chopin | Home Festival:Ottawa Kiwanis |
Time | Name | Titles | Home Festival |
---|---|---|---|
Time:1:00 PM | Name:Caleb Gallagher | Titles: Sonata in F Minor, WoO 47, no.2, 1st mvt. by Ludwig van Beethoven Prelude in D flat Major, op.28, no. 15 by Frédéric Chopin | Home Festival:St. Thomas |
Time:1:15 PM | Name:Jonathan Lo | Titles: Sonata in B Flat Major, K 570, 1st mvt. by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Nocturne No. 20 in C Sharp Minor, op. posth., B 49 by Frédéric Chopin | Home Festival:Yip's |
Time:1:30 PM | Name:Clara Facchinelli | Titles: Sinfonia No. 11 in G Minor, BWV797, . by Johann Sebastian Bach The Enchanted Bells, Music for Piano by Alexina Louie | Home Festival:Unionville |
Time:1:40 PM | Name:Heather Cai | Titles: Six Variations on Nel cor più non mi sento, WoO 70 by Ludwig van Beethoven Song Without Words, op. 19, no. 1 by Felix Mendelssohn | Home Festival:Ottawa Piano |
Time:1:55 PM | Name:Withdrawn | Titles: | Home Festival: |
Workshop will be held from approximately 2:15 pm to 3:45 pm.
Announcement of winners will happen at the end of the workshop.
The top two competitors from this class will proceed to the playoffs.
The playoffs will be held at Conrad Grebel University College - Chapel
140 Westmount Rd. N., Waterloo, ON N2L 3G6