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Grammy-nominated pianist and conductor Kara Huber to join Interlochen Arts Academy faculty

The Interlochen Arts Academy alumna has performed across North America, Europe, and Australia.

Kara Huber

Kara Huber, an award-winning pianist and conductor, has been appointed Instructor of Piano at Interlochen Arts Academy. Huber will begin her new role on August 22. 

Hailed as “absolutely dazzling…in a word, flawless” (New York Concert Review) in her Carnegie Hall debut, Huber has performed across North America, Europe, and Australia, including lauded solo appearances at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Piano Virtuoso Series at the Canadian Opera Company, the Rising Stars Piano Series in Southampton, New York, and Steinway Series at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. She has received numerous prizes and awards for her performances, including the Audience Favorite Award in the Cincinnati World Piano Competition. 

A 2006 graduate of Interlochen Arts Academy, where she studied piano with Michael Coonrod, Huber received additional training at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music with Awadagin Pratt and the Glenn Gould School of the Royal Conservatory of Music with John Perry and Leon Fleisher. She recently completed a DMA in piano and conducting at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and served on the faculty of the University of Louisville School of Music.

“Interlochen Arts Academy played a formative role in the trajectory of my life and is one of my favorite places in the world,” Huber said. “I’m excited to share my experiences with the next generation and to continue the legacy of my former teacher at Interlochen, Dr. Michael Coonrod.”

“With her robust experience as a performer and educator and her passion for Interlochen, Dr. Huber will be a wonderful mentor to our young artists and addition to our music department,” said Interlochen Director of Music Enrique Márquez. “We’re thrilled to welcome her back to campus.” 

Huber joins Interlochen at a time of exciting momentum in the Music Department. This July, for the fourth consecutive summer, musicians from the Detroit Symphony Orchestra will mentor Interlochen Arts Camp students. In 2021, acclaimed violinists Tina Chang Qu and Jorja Fleezanis and award-winning trumpeter Josh Lawrence joined the faculty. The renowned conductor Cristian Măcelaru became the inaugural Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the World Youth Symphony Orchestra in 2019, the Arts Camp’s flagship musical ensemble, following the opening of Interlochen’s $24 million state-of-the-art Music Center.