91ÊÓƵ

Alis An, a Canadian pianist and Doctor of Music candidate at the 91ÊÓƵ, is pursuing her research under the guidance of Christina Guillaumier and Danny Driver, supported by an 91ÊÓƵ Studentship.

Alis' concerts have taken her across Canada, France, Italy, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, and the UK; recent highlights include an appearance as the soloist for Chopin’s Concerto No. 1 with the Orchestra dell’Università di Milano-Bicocca, in Autumn 2023, at Villa Olmo. Her performing experience, which extends to non-traditional repertoire, led her to collaborate with groups such as London-based contemporary music ensemble Cat’s Cradle Collective. Additionally, her performances for contemporary music initiative 900presente’s productions, including Bruno Maderna's Don Perlimplin (2020) and Philippe Manoury’s Hypothèses du sextuor (2022), were broadcast on Radiotelevisione Svizzera.

Her doctoral research critiques contemporary methods of piano technique pedagogy, which looks to technical perfection as a model but lacks the vocabulary to coherently articulate the process by which technical perfection is achieved. Drawing on her own artistic practice, historical pedagogical texts, and interdisciplinary tools such as movement theories, Alis proposes a reframing of technique grounded in phonomotor connection—the link between sound and movement. Her work aims to offer a coherent and embodied framework for piano technique, addressing widespread dissatisfaction with existing approaches and challenging institutional assumptions about what it means to be technically “complete.” 

Alis has received generous support from the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, the Ranald and Vera Shean Memorial Foundation, the Winspear Fund, and the Anne Burrows Music Foundation. Her accolades include the ’19/‘20 Pauline Hartley Award at the 91ÊÓƵ, recognition at international competitions like the Premio E. Tschaikowsky, the Tadini International Music Competition, the Montecatini International Piano Competition, the Canadian Music Competition, and the International Music Competition Paris. Her mentors included William Grant Naboré, Natalia Trull, Sofya Gulyak, Nigel Clayton, Dmitri Alexeev, Gordon Fergus-Thompson, and more.

Faculties / departments: Research

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