Russian born pianist Nadia Koliha holds a diploma in piano performance from the St. Petersburg State Conservatory (Russia) and Doctor of Musical Arts degree in piano performance from the University of Southern California. In Russia she studied with the renowned Grigory Sokolov and Isaac Katz, and at USC with Daniel Pollack, Stewart Gordon and Cherry Rhodes (organ). Ms. Koliha’s piano teachers’ lineage can be traced directly from Isaac Katz, to Alexander Goldenweiser to Alexander Ziloti and finally to Franz Liszt and Ludwig Van Beethoven.

Nadia has received various prizes and awards in national and international piano competitions. She was a recipient of a Special Recognition Award in the First National Rachmaninov Piano Competition in 1983. In 1985 she placed second in the All-Russia Piano Competition, and in 1990 she was a prize-winner at the Busoni International Piano Competition in Bolzano, Italy. After her performance in Italy, “L’Arena di Verona” commented that Nadia is “a pianist with an exceptional talent”.

Currently Nadia resides in the San Francisco Bay Area where she maintains a private teaching studio and performs as a soloist and a duo-pianist. She collaborated and appeared as a soloist in concerts with the orchestra of the San Francisco Opera and Ballet Company, Pro-Art Symphony Orchestra, Contra Costa Chamber Orchestra, and, most recently, with the Diablo Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Koliha’s solo performances include many benefit recitals for various music clubs and organizations, including the Berkeley Piano Club, Chora Nova and Bella Musica choirs, the San Ramon Valley United Methodist Church, and others. Over the past decade she has been actively collaborating with Dale Tsang as a duo pianist and has played numerous piano-duo performances in various venues.

Nadia serves as an organist and pianist at San Ramon Valley United Methodist Church. She is also a Board member of the Contra Costa Branch of the Music Teachers Association of California and is in charge of the branch’s Sonata Contest for students. In 2024 she was recognized as the Top Piano Teacher in the area by the Steinway Piano Gallery in Walnut Creek. Nadia is a performing member of the Berkeley Piano Club, The Women Musicians Club and Performing Arts Society as well as a frequent adjudicator for various local piano competitions and festivals.