Katarzyna Popowa-Zydroń – a Polish pianist of Bulgarian origins. She graduated from the piano class of Zbigniew Śliwiński at the State College of Music in Gdańsk. During the seventies, she enjoyed success in national and international competitions (incl. a distinction in the 9th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw). An experienced piano teacher, she is currently a professor and head of the piano department at the Feliks Nowowiejski Academy of Music in Bydgoszcz. Her students have won numerous prizes in national and international competitions. She has given masterclasses in Poland, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, China and elsewhere. She has been a juror of competitions at home and abroad. She has performed in many countries. She is also fond of chamber repertoire, performing with Urszula Kryger, Piotr Kusiewicz and the Camerata Quartet, among others. Her performances and recordings have been well received by critics and audiences alike. She has recorded for Accord Musidisc, Art Records, CD Accord and also the Fryderyk Chopin Institute (Chopin’s Preludes). For her achievements in the field of music, she has received many state decorations, including the Gold Medal of the ‘Gloria Artis’ order of merit and the Officer’s Cross of the Order of the Rebirth of Poland. In 2015, she will chair the jury of the 17th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition.
