Fernando, fourteen years old, is a third-year high school student at Gymnasium Haganum in The Hague. At a very young age, he discovered a lot of joy with the piano. At the age of five, he started piano lessons with Christa Korsten, followed by nearly five years of private study with Hülya Keser. Since 2023, Fernando has been a student at the Sweelinck Academy (Young Talent Program) of the Conservatory of Amsterdam, where he studies with Robert Kulek.
Fernando’s talent was recognized early on. At the age of eight, he won First Prize and the Podium Beast Challenge Prize at Muziekwedstrijd 2020. He later received First Prize and the Encouragement Prize at the Maassluis Young Talent Competition 2022, reached the semifinals of Holland’s Got Talent in 2023, and was selected for the Netherlands Bach Society’s All of Bach talent program in 2024, the same year he was named a Young Hero on Podium Klassiek (NPO 2). In 2025, he was a finalist in the Royal Concertgebouw Competition, made his solo recital debut at the Grachtenfestival Amsterdam 2025, and performed at the different musical festivals.
Fernando is inspired by many great pianists and he believes that every note carries echoes of voices from centuries past. This particularly drives his deep passion for studying piano music pieces that were composed long ago — works that he feels both a privilege and a source of profound joy to explore the piano’s vast richness and tonal colors. Immersed in the world of classical music, Fernando finds endless inspiration in uncovering the stories, emotions, and artistry embedded within each piece as well as the endless possibility held within the piano’s black and white keys.
Fernando is veertien jaar en klas 3 leerling aan het Gymnasium Haganum in Den Haag. Al op zeer jonge leeftijd ontdekte hij veel plezier met de piano. Op vijfjarige leeftijd begon hij met pianolessen bij Christa Korsten. Daarna volgt hij bijna vijf jaar privé pianolessen bij Hülya Keser. Sinds 2023 studeert Fernando aan de Sweelinck Academie (Jong Talent) van het Conservatorium van Amsterdam bij Robert Kulek.
Fernando’s talent werd al vroeg herkend. Op achtjarige leeftijd won hij de Eerste Prijs en de Podium Beast Challenge Prijs tijdens de Muziekwedstrijd 2020. Later behaalde hij de Eerste Prijs en de Stimuleringsprijs bij de Maassluis Jong Talent Concours 2022, bereikte hij in 2023 de halve finale van Holland’s Got Talent en werd hij in 2024 geselecteerd voor het talentprogramma All of Bach van de Nederlandse Bachvereniging. In datzelfde jaar werd hij uitgeroepen tot Young Hero in het NPO 2-programma Podium Klassiek. In 2025 behoorde hij tot de finalisten van het Koninklijk Concertgebouw Concours, maakte hij zijn solorecitaldebuut op het Grachtenfestival Amsterdam en trad hij op tijdens verschillende muziekfestivals.
Fernando laat zich inspireren door vele geweldige pianisten en gelooft dat elke noot de echo draagt van stemmen uit eeuwen vervlogen. Dit voedt in het bijzonder zijn diepe passie voor het bestuderen van pianomuziek die lang geleden werd gecomponeerd — werken waarin hij het als een voorrecht én een bron van diepe vreugde ervaart om de enorme rijkdom en klankkleuren van de piano te verkennen. Volledig ondergedompeld in de wereld van de klassieke muziek vindt Fernando eindeloze inspiratie in het onthullen van de verhalen, emoties en kunstzinnigheid die in elk stuk verborgen liggen, evenals in de grenzeloze mogelijkheden die schuilgaan in de zwarte en witte toetsen van de piano.
The Journey with the Piano - the piano is more than an instrument, it is one of Fernando's ways to explore both the world around him and himself. Within its eighty-eight keys, Fernando finds both joy and challenge — the thrill of creating beautiful music and the quiet satisfaction that comes from mastering each new piece.
Learning piano is a feeling and an ongoing journey that live deeply within Fernando. There is something sparkling special in sitting at his piano - discovering new melodies as they unfold beneath his fingers. Every piece Fernando studies tells a story of his growth and dedication. That sense of discovery drives Fernando forward — inspiring him to keep learning as a young piano talent striving to grow and reach new heights.
Fernando has already built an impressive and steadily growing repertoire, performing works by composers such as Mozart, Chopin, Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Bach, Debussy, and many others. His musical curiosity motivates him to explore an exceptionally broad range of styles - from the refined elegance and structural clarity of the Classical era to the emotional intensity, poetic lyricism, and technical brilliance of the Romantic repertoire.
Each composer opens a new world of expression. As Fernando studies, interprets, and performs these works, he is constantly expanding his understanding of musical language — each new composition he learns presents both a challenge and an opportunity to grow, to listen more closely, and to convey the beauty of the classical music to his audience. Through this ongoing journey, Fernando is developing not only as a pianist, but as a storyteller and interpreter of the beautiful classical music.
