Manami Suzuki

Lending her singular virtuosity and verve to the concert harp, Bridget Kibbey, a native of Findlay, Ohio, is known for her great musical instincts that transcend the harp. She interprets the masters—Bach,Debussy, Ravel, Bartok—bringing “a fresh face to the familiar music”(Seattle City Arts Magazine), while being a bold advocate of genre-crossing storytelling and newly-commissioned works. Her virtuosic and soulful ability to communicate draws in the audience. She has appeared as soloist with numerous orchestras and has been featured as soloist in top halls internationally.

Kibbey is the recipient of a prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant, a Salon de Virtuosi SONY Recording Grant, premiere prix at the Journées de les Harpes Competition in Arles, France, and won a place in the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Bowers Program. Her solo performances have been broadcast widely, and she has recorded to great critical acclaim.

Her debut album was named one of the Top Ten Releases by Time Out New York; her next solo release with Pentatone Records, slated for 2026, is a set

of surprising keyboard transcriptions. She has commissioned concerti from Vivian Fung and Brazilian composer Joao Luiz, exploring the sounds of Carnaval on the harp; and she brings two newly-commissioned concerti to the stage in 2027.

Known for her curatorial strengths, Kibbey builds touring projects merging her own solo transcriptions alongside powerful collaborations; she has performed in duo with Kathleen Battle and Dawn Upshaw, Avi Avital, Alexi Kenney, Samuel Torres, and Mahsa Vahdat, among others.

She appears frequently as soloist and chamber musician at festivals and series across the USA. From 2022–2024, Kibbey was the Artistic Director of MOSA Concerts, elevating a local concert series to a notable world-class, cross-genre performing arts series.

Historic win of prestigious competition

At just 22 years old, Manami Suzuki made history in 2024 as the first Japanese pianist to win the prestigious Hamamatsu International Piano Competition in Japan. In addition to taking home the First Prize, Suzuki also earned the Chamber Music Award and the Audience Prize, marking an extraordinary achievement.

In August 2023, she received the Grand Prix and Audience Award at the 47th PTNA (Piano Teachers’ National Association of Japan) Piano Competition, as well as the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Award and the Steinway Award.

In October of the same year, Suzuki won First Prize in the piano division of the 92nd Japan Music Concours, the Iwatani Prize (Audience Award), Nomura Prize, Iguchi Prize, Kawai Prize, Miyake Prize, Argerich Arts Foundation Prize, and INPEX Prize.

Following these awards, she gave recitals in various locations in Japan, receiving favorable reviews.

Additionally, Suzuki has performed with the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra and Japan Philharmonic Orchestra. She participated in the Hamamatsu International Piano Academy and Kirishima International Music Festival.

Born in Osaka, Japan in 2002, Suzuki began playing the piano at the age of four. Currently, she is pursuing a master’s degree at Tokyo College of Music and is studying under Katsunori Ishii.