Displaying an artistry that “provides a space to breathe and take in the world around us,” (Culture is Free) Liberian-Norwegian pianist Kamilla Arku draws on her diverse background as inspiration for her work as a performer, scholar and educator. She gave her London debut recital at the renowned 'Pianists of the World' series at St. Martin's-in-the-Fields in 2013, and has since performed as a soloist and chamber musician in the US, Europe and Africa. Recent highlights include performances for Chamber Music Society at Lincoln Center, the Piano in the Elms Festival, Lyric Opera of Chicago, MoMA PS1, the  Royal Opera House, the International  Florence Price Festival, and Works & Process at the Guggenheim. In the 2023-24 season  Kamilla  also joined Madonna’s “Celebration Tour” as a piano coach and teacher, and she also appears on Madonna’s latest album, Confessions II.  

 

Kamilla has appeared on BBC Radio 3 and BBC Radio London and performed chamber music artists such as Stephen Kovacevich, Karen Slack, April Koyejo Audiger and the Ivalis Quartet. Kamilla is passionate about introducing audiences to lesser-known repertoire, and regularly programmes music by women composers and composers of colour. She also performs her own works; has given world and European premieres of works by Brittany J. Green, Lainie Fefferman, Olivia Jones, and Shara Lunon; and has recorded with composers Tara Creme and Dameun Strange. Her interdisciplinary collaborations include projects  with visual artists Jordan Söderberg Mills and Amale Freiha Khlat, choreographer Claudia Schreier, and filmmaker Patrick Hamm. In 2027, she looks forward to a creative residency with the Britten Pears Foundation with her collaborator April Koyejo Audiger. 

 

In addition to performing, Kamilla is committed to volunteer efforts, and is the founder and Director of Music for Liberia, a nonprofit supporting young people in Liberia through music-based fundraising. For her nonprofit work, she was awarded a Jack Petchey Award for service to young people, and Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf commended her and Music for Liberia for their 'generosity and compassion to help us address a critical problem.' 

Kamilla is a graduate of Yale University and the Royal Northern College of Music, and an alumna of  the International Musicians’ Seminar at Prussia Cove, the Britten-Pears Young Artists Programme, the London Masterclasses and the International Contemporary Ensemble’s Ensemble Evolution. She is currently pursuing a PhD  in Musicology at New York University. Her most recent publication is for Women & Music: A Journal of Gender & Culture and she looks forward to a publication co-written by musicologist Suzanne Cusick in Cambridge University Press in 2027. 

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Last updated: March 2025

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