Kadri-Ann Sumera (b. 1977) is one of the most outstanding and sought-after Estonian pianists of her generation. She is engaged as soloist as well as chamber musician and accompanist and her repertoire covers a wide range from baroque to contemporary music. She has premiered pieces written for her (for example Piano Concerto of Märt-Matis Lill and “A rebours” by Nicolas Gilbert) and performed on several Estonian premieres of the key works of the 20th century such as Karlheinz Stockhausen’s “Mantra” for two pianos and electronics (with Sabine Simon and Hendrik Manook), Olivier Messiaen’s “Harawi” for soprano and piano (with Kai Kallastu) and John Cage’s “Dances for two prepared pianos” (with Hanna Heinmaa). Sumera has been involved in multimedia performances. Estonian piano music holds an important place in her repertoire, especially the works of her father Lepo Sumera, one of Estonia’s main composer of all times. Kadri-Ann Sumera studied at Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre and Music Academy of Cologne under Merike Bürger, Ülle Sisa, Maigi Pakri, Peep Lassmann and Arbo Valdma. Sumera has attended the International Ensemble Modern Academy in Frankfurt and is the founder of Tartu New Music Ensemble.
She has been the chairman of the Association of Estonian Professional Musicians and an editor at Klassikaraadio of Estonian Public Broadcasting. As a soloist, Kadri-Ann Sumera has performed with orchestras such as Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, Dresden Sinfonietta, Pärnu City Orchestra, etc. She also has an impressive portfolio of recordings. Besides her work as a teacher at Tallinn Georg Ots Music School, Sumera has taught at Heino Eller Music School in Tartu and worked at the Akademie für Tonkunst (University of Cooperative Education) in Darmstadt, Germany. She is an active kayaker and her journeys have taken to the most exotic places, be it Malawi or Greenland.