Berenika, Piano

Berenika’ s performances have taken her all over the world. She has appeared with the Pittsburgh Symphony and Asheville Symphony under Daniel Meyer, with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra under Jukka Pekka Saraste, the National Arts Centre Orchestra of Canada under Erich Kunzel, the Penderecki Festival Orchetra under Heinrich Schiff, the Boston Civic Symphony under Max Hobart, the Oxford Philomusica, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, the RIC Symphony Orchestra, the Bialystock Philharmonic, Sinfonia Varsovia, Camerata New York, the Poznan Philharmonic, the Canadian Chamber Orchestra, the Christ Church Orchestra, the Beethoven Academy Orchestra and the Aspen Sinfonia. She has toured South America as a soloist with the Youth Orchestra of the Americas performing in the major concert halls of Brazil, Panama, Peru, Uruguay, Costa Rica, and Argentina, including the Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires. She also performed at Rockhotel Pianofest in New York and in the Allen Room, Jazz at Lincoln Center and at Wigmore Hall, London.

 

Berenika is the recipient of the prestigious Leonard Bernstein Scholarship at Harvard, the Arthur W. Foote prize of the historic Harvard Musical Association, the John Knowles Paine Fellowship, and the Canada Council for the Arts Award.

 

Berenika made a critically-acclaimed live recording of the Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 3 with Sinfonietta Cracovia, distributed by Universal Music Group. She was also the international spokesperson in all media for Casio Inc., Japan’s Privia—a new line of digital pianos. Her performances have been broadcast on television and radio, including Bravo, the CBC, CityTV, YTV, MDR Germany, WCQS, and the BBC. She was a featured performer on New York radio station WQXR’s McGraw Hill Young Artist Showcase, hosted by Robert Sherman. She was also London station Classic FM's “Hot Property” on Late Night Lisa, featuring the best young performers in classical music today.

 

Berenika was the Leonard Bernstein Fellow at Tanglewood Music Center giving performances at Tanglewood on Parade, the Festival of Contemporary Music, the Steinway Recital series and in collaboration with the Mark Morris Dance Group at Jacob’s Pillow. She was a New Horizons Fellow at the Aspen Music Festival, and also attended the Verbier Festival in Switzerland and the International Summer Academy Mozarteum in Salzburg.

 

She had the honor of being presented to Queen Elizabeth II, performing in a gala concert at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Edinburgh, Scotland, and being introduced in the House of Commons. She performed at the Canadian Parliament in Ottawa and for the 40th anniversary of the Fulbright Commission.

 

Born in Warsaw, Berenika emigrated to Canada with her parents (Voyteck and Antonina Zakrzewski) and two older sisters when she was a year old. She started piano at age 3, by 5 she already won her first piano competition and at 9 she performed as soloist with the Sault Symphony Orchestra. At age 13, she came to New York to attend the Juilliard School and Professional Children's School. She was graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University in both Music and Government, from Christ Church, Oxford University and from the Royal Academy of Music in London.