Originally from Transylvania, Dr. Katalin Lukács is a prizewinning pianist based in New Orleans, known both for her performances of the classical repertoire and her specialization in contemporary music. She has appeared as a soloist with orchestras in Europe and the United States, and is recognized for her commitment to innovative programming.
Dr. Lukács began her musical training with some of Romania’s most esteemed pianists and pedagogues, including Szőnyi Zoltán, Dr. Nina Panieva Sebesi, and Dr. Daniel Goiți. As a young performer, she won top prizes in major national competitions, including the Young Talents Competition in Brașov, the National Music Olympiads, and the Carl Filtsch Competition in Sibiu. In 2000, she earned her Diploma in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from the “Gh. Dima” Music Academy in Cluj, Romania.
Between 1998 and 2004, Dr. Lukács attended the Brevard Music Center’s Summer Institute on full scholarship, where she competed annually in the festival’s concerto and piano competitions, earning multiple prizes and continued scholarships. In 2001, she performed as soloist with the BMC Festival Orchestra under the baton of David Effron. She also became a founding member and pianist of the festival’s resident new music ensemble, itch.
In 2001, Dr. Lukács was awarded a full scholarship to the Master of Music program at the University of Alabama, studying with pianist Dr. Bruce Murray, with whom she had worked at Brevard. She won the university’s Concerto Competition, performing Mozart’s Concerto in D minor under Dr. Carlton McCreery, and collaborated with the opera workshop, wind ensemble, and various chamber groups. Notably, she performed Verne Reynolds’ Concerto for Piano and Wind Ensemble with conductor Dr. Gerald Welker.
Her growing interest in contemporary repertoire - fueled by the mentorship of Dr. Murray and collaborations with composers - led her to the University of California, San Diego, where she was accepted into the internationally renowned graduate program in contemporary music on full scholarship. At UCSD, she studied with acclaimed new-music pianist Aleck Karis and pedagogue William Daghlian, earning her Doctor of Musical Arts in Contemporary Music Performance in 2013.
During her doctoral studies, Dr. Lukács performed extensively as a soloist and chamber musician at leading contemporary music festivals, including the Darmstadt New Music Courses (Germany), Ostrava New Music Days (Czech Republic), SEAMUS National Conference (Eugene, Oregon), and the TWEAK Festival (Limerick, Ireland). She collaborated with prominent ensembles such as redfishbluefish, Ensemble Zs, SONOR, and Ostravská Banda, and appeared on the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Green Umbrella Series and UCSD’s Camera Lucida chamber music series. She has premiered numerous compositions and is featured on recordings of works by Stockhausen, Scelsi, and Stuart Saunders Smith, released on Mode and New World Records.
Since 2011, Dr. Lukács lives in New Orleans and works at Tulane University. She is a Professor of Practice, teaching introductory music theory and music appreciation. Since 2021 she is also the director of the Music at Midday concert series that she has expanded from its classical focus to feature contemporary and electronic music, jazz, musical theatre, Latin, Klezmer, Arabic, Indian, African, Afro-Cuban, Ukrainian, Brazilian, and Irish music - reflecting both Tulane’s musical diversity and New Orleans’ rich cultural heritage.
Alongside her academic role, Dr. Lukács maintains an active performing career, collaborating with faculty colleagues, chamber ensembles, and members of the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra. In 2023, she performed Liszt’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Tulane University Orchestra, conducted by Dr. Maxim Samarov. She frequently premieres and records works by Tulane student composers.
Dr. Lukács is also a committed advocate for contemporary music. In 2014, she co-founded the Astralis Duo with soprano Stephanie Aston, focusing on new music and works by women composers. Their Rising Water project, launched in 2017, commissions Gulf South poets and composers to create songs addressing climate change. The project premiered in 2021 and continues to grow. Additionally, she was a founding member of Versipel New Music, a New Orleans-based collective dedicated to performing contemporary works.
In 2023, Dr. Lukács joined the board of The Junior Philharmonic Society of New Orleans, which supports young performers and fosters music appreciation among young audiences.