Press

“...Henry Kramer [was] triumphant in a thrilling performance of [Prokofiev’s] Sixth Sonata.”

— The New York Times

“This is a pianist of enormous talent. Venue be damned, the music made it an event.”

— The Philadelphia Inquirer

“After a dark and quietly expressive performance of Bach’s G-sharp Prelude and Fugue (WTC I), pianist Henry Kramer pulled off a thrilling and nearly flawless performance of Brahms’ Variations on a Theme by Paganini. Playing with astonishingly confident technique, steady rhythm and masterful pacing, he dazzled the ear for 25 straight minutes. There’s not much more to say about it than, ‘Wow!’”

— Cleveland Classical Review

“...the third movement of Ravel’s Presto was superb under Kramer’s hands, executed with light dexterity and tonal sensitivity. ”

— International Piano Magazine

“He produced a most exceptionally rich sound, big-boned in certain respects yet intimate when it mattered. He traversed [Beethoven’s A Major Sonata (Op. 101)]’s wide-ranging emotions with great sensitivity, wistful for the opening theme and somber in the third movement, and when the gloves came off for the second movement’s march and the valedictory finale, he swept everything before him.”

— Pianomania

“... as technically flawless and precise as a faceted diamond...”

— Portland Press Herald

“Henry Kramer in Prokofiev’s Sixth Sonata was especially successful in investing this fingerbuster with expressive character.”

— Musical America

Henry Kramer, pianist

Praised by The Cleveland Classical Review for his “astonishingly confident technique” and The New York Times for “thrilling [and] triumphant” performances, pianist Henry Kramer is developing a reputation as a musician of rare sensitivity who combines stylish programming with insightful and exuberant interpretations. Kramer garnered international recognition with a Second Prize win in the Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels and the Honens International Piano Competition, followed by a 2019 Avery Fisher Career Grant by Lincoln Center.

Kramer began playing piano at the relatively late age of 11 in his hometown of Cape Elizabeth, Maine. One day, he found himself entranced by the sound of film melodies as a friend played them on the piano, inspiring him to teach himself on his family’s old upright. His parents enrolled him in lessons shortly thereafter, and within weeks, he was playing Chopin and Mozart.

A versatile performer, Kramer has been featured as soloist with orchestras around the world, including the Bilkent Symphony Orchestra, Belgian National Orchestra, Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra, Hartford Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony and the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestras, among many others, collaborating with conductors such as Marin Alsop, Gerard Schwarz, Stéphane Denève, Jan Pascal Tortelier and Hans Graf. Recent orchestral engagements include performances with the Baton Rouge Symphony, Hartford Symphony, Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, Sequoia Symphony, Columbus (GA) Symphony, and Windham Festival Chamber Orchestra.

Recent appearances include recitals presented by Carnegie Hall, Bargemusic, Newport Classical, the Phillips Collection, Ravinia, Northwestern University’s Winter Chamber Music Festival, Hilton Head's Bravo!Piano Festival, The Seattle Series, Western Washington University, Vancouver Chamber Music Society, Toronto's Koerner Hall, and Cecilia Concerts in Halifax. Following debuts last season at Parlance Chamber Concerts, Portland Ovations, Montreal's Salle Bourgie, and a solo recital presented by the American Piano Association in New York City, Kramer's 2026-27 recital highlights include performances at Cal Performances, 92NY, UNCSA, the London School of Economics, Cobbe Collection at Hatchlands Park in England, as well as renewed collaborations with theBorromeo String Quartet at Maverick Concerts and Gretna Music. Kramer has performed “stunning” solo recital debuts, including at Alice Tully Hall as the recipient of the Juilliard School’s William Petschek Award, as well as at Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw. At his Philadelphia debut, Peter Dobrin of The Philadelphia Inquirer remarked, “the 31-year-old pianist personalized interpretations to such a degree that works emerged anew. He is a big personality.”

His love for the chamber music repertoire began early in his studies while a young teenager. A sought-after collaborator, Kramer's 2026 summer festival appearances included La Jolla Music Society's Summerfest, and the Adamant, Kingston, Norfolk, and Portland Chamber Music Festivals. Other recent summer festivals include the Anchorage, Bay Chamber, Lakes Area, Rockport, and Vivo music festivals. Kramer has also appeared with the Mainly Mozart Festival, the Mostly Mozart Festival, and Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. His recording with violinist Jiyoon Lee on the Champs Hill label received four stars from BBC Music Magazine. Kramer also has noteworthy collaborations with violist Matthew Lipman on Cedille Records and with violinist Stella Chen on Apple Music. Kramer has also performed alongside Emmanuel Pahud, the Calidore and Pacifica Quartets, Miriam Fried, as well as members of the Berlin Philharmonic and Orchestra of St. Luke’s.

Teaching ranks among his greatest joys. In the fall of 2022, Kramer joined the music faculty of Université de Montréal. Previously, he served as the L. Rexford Whiddon Distinguished Chair in Piano at the Schwob School of Music at Columbus State University in Columbus, Georgia. Throughout his multifaceted career, he also held positions at Smith College and the University of Missouri Kansas City Conservatory of Dance and Music. He is also on the Artist Faculty at Le Domaine Forget de Charlevoix.

Kramer graduated from the Juilliard School, where he worked with Julian Martin and Robert McDonald. He received his Doctorate of Musical Arts from the Yale School of Music under the guidance of Boris Berman. His teachers trace a pedagogical lineage extending back to Beethoven, Chopin and Busoni. Kramer is a Steinway Artist.