The Italian- American Elenora Pertz is a multi-faceted pianist whose playing has been described as “magnificent, with endless subtlety”.
Elenora has performed extensively in venues such as Wigmore Hall, Berlin Philharmonie, Heidelberger Frühling, Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, Tonhalle Düsseldorf, Tanglewood Festival, Queen Elisabeth Chapel, Musée d’Orsay and Oxford Song Festival. Devoted to the art song repertoire, her regular and upcoming recital partners include Valerie Eickhoff, Marlis Petersen, Julian Prégardien, Christoph Prégardien, Jeeyoung Lim and Äneas Humm.
In Spring 2026 she released her debut album TERRA which connects the piano to the Earth element. Elenora has recorded for Solo Musica, Hänssler Classic, Ars Musica and B Records, and has performed live for France Musique and SWR. In her art and projects she strives for both expertise and authenticity, highlighting the universality of classical music for those intimidated by its perceived exclusivity.
As an opera pianist she has worked at the Salzburger Festspiel, Festspiel Baden-Baden, and all of the Berlin opera houses assisting conductors such as Esa-Pekka Salonen, Sir Simon Rattle and Joana Mallwitz. She has a long-standing collaboration with KS Brigitte Fassbaender, teaching alongside her Lied masterclasses at the Eppaner Liedsommer and Schleswig-Holstein Festival.
Since the Wintersemester of 2023-24, Elenora leads the art song class (Liedgestaltung) at the Hochschule für Künste in Bremen, and regularly gives art song masterclasses in both Europe and the US. She holds degrees from Vanderbilt University, Musik und Kunst Privatuniversität Wien and Hochschule für Musik “Hanns Eisler” Berlin. She is an alumnus of the Orsay-Royaumont Lied and Mélodie Academie, a Leeds Lieder, Britten Pears and Lied Basel young artist, as well as a Yehudi Menuhin Live Music Now fellowship scholar. In her bachelor studies at Vanderbilt University, she was awarded the Chancellor’s Medal, the highest recognition from the school.
In 2021 Elenora founded the non-profit Lied the Way e.V. whose goal is to network and empower women in the art song community, and to raise awareness of the glass ceiling for female art song pianists in the industry. www.liedtheway.com
Central themes to Elenora’s work are celebrating women and the natural world, and highlighting the cyclical correlations between the two.
A polyglot, Elenora speaks four languages fluently and currently is based between Berlin and Marseille.
