Classical music lovers are in for a treat Sunday, April 12, at 2:30 p.m., as piano virtuoso Evelina Kleczek, just 17 years old, will perform a concert of music by Frederic Chopin, Poland’s most famous composer, at the Settlement Music School, 6128 Germantown Ave. in Germantown. The concert is sponsored by the Polish Heritage Society of Philadelphia.

Kleczek grew up in Vienna, Virginia, and graduated from high school in 2025. She began playing the piano at the age of 5. At first her mother taught her informally, but it soon became obvious that she had exceptional talent, and she has been studying with renowned teachers since then, practicing an average of 4.5 hours every day.

“I am very thankful,” she told the Local last week, “for the example and support of my two older brothers, Antoni and Tomasz, both of whom also play the piano and are studying piano in college, and also my teacher, Dr. Martin Labazevitch, who helped and encouraged me tremendously with my piano journey.”

Kleczek has won prizes at several piano competitions, including the grand prize and audience award at the 2025 MostArts Young Pianist Competition, third prize and audience award at the 2024 Thomas F. Hulbert International Piano Competition, the Rosalyn Tureck prizes in the contemporary and prelude and fugue categories at the 7th Tureck International Bach Competition in 2022, and first prize and Szymanowski award at the 2020 Kosciusko Foundation Chopin Piano Competition for Young Pianists in Washington, D.C.

In addition to her awards, she has had solo performances in the United States, Poland, Hungary, Spain and Puerto Rico.

Who is her favorite composer? “I cannot say that I have a favorite composer,” she replied. “Each composer is so different and unique that it is hard to compare them. Chopin is close to my heart, but also the music of Robert Schumann and Alexander Scriabin stands out to me. With these two composers in particular, I experience a special freedom of expression while playing.”

How long does it take Kleczek to learn a piece by heart like the ones she will be playing on April 12? “It depends on the scale of the piece,” she said, “but it takes me at least one to two months to learn a piece by heart. However, this does not only mean that I have the piece memorized but also that the musical side of the piece is sufficiently embedded in my mind that I can perform it in a concert.”

Kleczek is planning to study at a music university in Warsaw, where one of her brothers currently studies. “With my Polish heritage,” she explained, “I look forward to studying in Poland so that I can better understand the culture and improve my Polish language skills. I also think it is a wonderful way to connect with my relatives living in Poland.”

What is the best advice she has ever received? “Even if you get rejected many times, and even if people do not seem interested in the product of your hard work, you have to keep pushing through. There is always light at the end of the tunnel.

“The hardest thing I ever had to do was watch Antoni compete in the International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw last year. I felt so stressed and petrified as never before and hope to never feel that way again.”

When asked if she could meet and spend time with anyone on earth, living or dead, who would it be and why, she replied, “I would very much like to meet and spend time with Clara Schumann, wife of the great 19th-century composer Robert Schumann. Not only was she a composer and extremely influential, world-renowned pianist, but she was also a mother of eight children and a devoted wife to Robert Schumann through his serious health difficulties. She is an inspiration and role model to me, and I am fascinated by how she managed to take on all of it.”

Although Chopin (1810-1849) lived in Paris as an adult, he was born in Zelazowa Wola, Poland, and grew up in Warsaw. He left at the time of the outbreak of the Polish/Russian War of 1830-31. Chopin, born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin, achieved worldwide renown as a leading composer of the Romantic era and remains one of the most revered composers for the piano. His father, Nicolas Chopin, was a Frenchman who emigrated to Poland in 1787 at age 16.

The Settlement Music School in Germantown is one of six Settlement branches serving the Greater Philadelphia area. Many Settlement students have gone on to prestigious careers in music, dance, education and more, including Nobel laureates, MacArthur Fellows, Pulitzer Prize winners and Grammy Award winners. Settlement’s alumni include Christian McBride, Kevin Eubanks, Questlove, Chubby Checker and Kevin Bacon.

For more information, visit settlementmusic.org. Len Lear can be reached at lenlear@chestnuthilllocal.com.