Magdalena Stern-Baczewska

Magdalena Stern-Baczewska [pronounced ba-CHEV-ska] is a concert pianist, harpsichordist, recording artist, producer, speaker, and educator. She holds the position of Senior Lecturer in Music and Director of the Music Performance Program at Columbia University. She has performed with prestigious orchestras worldwide, including the San Francisco Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, and China National Symphony. Collaborating with Oscar and Grammy Award-winning artists like Joshua Bell and Charles Fox; she has also toured extensively with composer Tan Dun, performing at the Tanglewood Music Festival, Guangzhou Opera House, Beijing National Center for Performing Arts, Davies Symphony Hall, and Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center. As a recitalist, Baczewska focuses on historical performance practice, and has earned acclaim for her double-bill performances of Bach’s Goldberg Variations, on the harpsichord and the piano.

Her discography encompasses various genres, from Baroque and Romantic solo music to collaborations with techno and hip-hop artists. She has produced the bestselling series of albums, "Music for Dreams," in collaboration with the Bluesleep medical team, researching and treating sleep disorders.

Baczewska has given talks and master classes around the world: Beijing Central Conservatory, New York University, International Keyboard Institute, Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, Manhattan School of Music. As a Yamaha Artist, she is among the pioneers of long-distance teaching using the cutting edge Yamaha Disklavier technology. At Columbia, Baczewska embraces the dual role of an educator and administrator: as the head of the Music Performance Program, aside from teaching, she mentors and provides performance opportunities to nearly 500 student musicians, including members of the elite Columbia-Juilliard Exchange.

As an avid advocate of equal access to musical enrichment, Baczewska is committed to outreach, bringing music to non-specialist audiences. She has produced “Bach@Home,” a series of public-facing lecture performances, featuring music of both established and underrepresented composers. She also lectures for Tonebase, a digital platform democratizing access to high-level music education, and regularly appears as guest lecturer in various concert series. She also serves as Grandmentor in Musical Mentors Collaborative - a nonprofit that provides free music instruction to students who would not otherwise have access to private lessons, addressing structural inequities in music education.

Born in Poland, she is a recipient of the Outstanding Achievement Award from the Polish Minister of Culture and National Heritage for promoting Polish culture.