On Introductions this week, we feature cellist Ma'ayan Kertcher, who was part of the Music Institute of Chicago Academy for three years. She plays the music of Reena Esmail and Johannes Brahms, joined by Shirley Trissell on piano.
Ma'ayan Kertcher, 18, is a recent graduate of Oak Park and River Forest High School. She studies cello with Dr. Tanya L. Carey and was a scholarship Fellow at the Music Institute of Chicago Academy for three years. She was also a member of Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras and Merit School of Music, serving as principal cellist for orchestras from both programs.
Ma'ayan has won awards in the Society of American Musicians Competition and Rembrandt Chamber Music Competition and was a recipient of the 2023 National School Orchestra Award at her high school. In addition, she has played for many esteemed musicians including Yo-Yo Ma, Richard Aaron, Amit Peled, Nicholas Canellakis, Marin Alsop, Natasha Brofsky, and members of the Cavani and Harlem Quartets.
She has participated in many summer festivals and intensives including the Keshet Eilon Summer Mastercourse in Israel, the Saint Paul Chamber Music Institute, and the Madeline Island Chamber Music Program. She previously appeared on Introductions in August 2021 as a member of the Salice Piano Quartet.
This fall, she will attend Oberlin College and Conservatory to study cello performance with Darrett Adkins.