Hanna Schwalbe
PIANIST
BIOGRAPHY
"Those who closed their eyes and 'just' listened had the impression of mature piano playing by an artist who was confident in her craft. She combined a sense of style with natural technique and interpretively exploited the pieces of her concert evening, which were by Beethoven, Schumann and Liszt."
Mannheim Morning
Born in Hamburg in 2001, Hanna Schwalbe is considered one of the most promising young German pianists of her generation. With a distinctive presence and interpretations marked by high sensitivity, depth, and explosive energy, she has already fascinated audiences in renowned venues such as the Laeiszhalle Hamburg and the Concertgebouw Amsterdam.
Her first public performance took place at the age of six at the Laeiszhalle, launching a career that has since taken her to the Berlin Philharmonie, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Bolzano Auditorium, Palau de la Música in Barcelona, and Teatro Civico in Vercelli, among others. In 2025, she will make her debut at the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, and in September she will compete in the ARD International Music Competition
In February 2024, Hanna won the Yamaha Scholarship Competition of the YMEF in Stuttgart. The previous summer, she reached the solo finals of the 64th Ferruccio Busoni International Piano Competition in Bolzano, as one of only thirteen pianists.
Earlier accolades include multiple prizes at the International Steinway Competition, the Bechstein Competition, and Jugend musiziert, where she received a special award from the Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben. Her performance in the winners’ concert was broadcast by WDR and later released on a CD featuring selected laureates.
Hanna Schwalbe, 2025 by Sören L. Schirmer
“There is something indescribable in her music-making with impressive sensitivities, great abilities on analysation, technical precision and poetic mindsets which I would like to only wish the most ideal platform to develop this gift of talent for a brilliant future.”
Haiou Zhang
At age fourteen, alongside her secondary education, Hanna began pre-college studies at the Institute Musically Gifted Students (IFF) at the University of Music, Drama and Media in Hanover, under the guidance of Prof. Dr. Elena Levit. From 2018, she continued her training with Prof. Bernd Goetzke and Prof. Christopher Oakden.
As of 2025, she is working with Igor Levit and Claudio Martínez Mehner, and will begin studies with Sir András Schiff at the Barenboim–Said Akademie in 2026. She has also gained artistic inspiration through masterclasses with Imogen Cooper, Cyprien Katsaris, Janina Fialkowska, Martin Helmchen, and Arie Vardi.
Hanna is a scholarship recipient of the Liechtenstein Music Academy, the Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben, the Clavarte Foundation, and the Hans and Eugenia Jütting Foundation in Stendal.