Anna Kijanowska, a performer, teacher and recording artist whose career has taken her from Carnegie Hall to conservatories and festivals around the globe, has been awarded the Platinum Prize in the Professional: Age 22+ category and Pianist of the Year at the European Piano Awards 2025, part of the European Classical Music Awards 2025 Fourth Quarter season. The honor recognizes Kijanowska’s recent recordings of Polish repertory for her album “21st Mazurkas” and her growing reputation for thoughtful programming.
Kijanowska’s achievement highlights the international reach of an artist who first advanced her studies at Boise State, supported by the Madeleine Hsu Forte Piano Scholarship and by studying with Professor Emerita of Piano, Dr. Madeleine Forte. She earned a Master’s in Music Education from Boise State in 1997, a foundation that helped launch further graduate study in New York and a career that mixes performance, recording and teaching.
In a recent interview with WOMCO (World Online Music Competitions Organization), Kijanowska described the musical values behind the award, combining historical research, stylistic sensitivity, and a readiness to take interpretive risks in service of the music.
My musical journey has been profoundly rewarding…I grew up in a small town in Poland and first came to the United States as a scholarship student at Boise State.
When I arrived in the United States at the age of twenty-three, I spoke no English and possessed only limited financial resources provided by my parents. Through perseverance, sustained effort, and the support of exceptional mentors, I was able to build an international career.
Kijanowska also notes in the interview how scholarship and artistic curiosity informed her recent album and a developing interdisciplinary initiative addressing ecological themes through music.
Boise State celebrates Kijanowska as a model alumn, a musician who turned scholarship and mentorship into an international career in performance and education. Her success underscores how targeted support and dedicated faculty guidance can ripple outward, producing leaders in the global community.
For more info on Kijanowska and her ongoing creative work, visit her website here.