Photo credit: Pieter du Plessis

Ozan Biner-McGrath was born in Dunedin, where he is currently a Year 12 student at Logan Park High School. He began piano lessons with his father, Tom McGrath, who remains his teacher. Ozan also studied for several years with John Colwill and has participated in masterclasses with Jian Liu, Antonio Pompa-Baldi, Paul Rickard-Ford, and Terence Dennis.

In May this year, Ozan won the Dunedin Concerto Competition, performing the first movement of Mozart’s D minor Concerto with the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra under James Judd in the Dunedin Town Hall. He was also selected as a soloist for the Nelson Symphony Orchestra’s Solo Spotlight concert. In 2023, he won the IRMTNZ Otago Branch Secondary School Scholarship and performed Haydn’s D major Piano Concerto with the Dunedin Collegiate Orchestra. As a finalist in the 2023 Lewis Eady National Junior Piano Competition, his programme was broadcast by RNZ Concert. In 2024, he was one of 15 pianists under the age of 27 selected for the semi-finals of the Lewis Eady National Piano Competition in Auckland. He also won the Senior Scholarship Recital at the 2023 Dunedin Performing Arts Competitions, where he enjoys accompanying younger instrumentalists.

Ozan enjoys teaching piano and playing chamber music, and has been a member of winning groups in the last four NZCT Otago District contests. He also plays percussion and piano in the Dunedin Youth Orchestra and enjoys both playing and watching cricket.