Simon Finlow started learning piano at age 4. After studying with Imogen Cooper from 1972 to 1973, he attended Oxford University as an undergraduate and subsequently earned a PhD in music from King’s College, Cambridge. In 1985, Simon immigrated to the US, where he obtained a Master’s degree in computer science and worked as an IT professional for the next 25 years. In 2014, he began to practice piano seriously again after a 30-year hiatus, while studying with his teacher, Michael Adcock, at the Washington Conservatory of Music. Since then, he has performed in solo and chamber recitals throughout the Washington area and competed successfully in several competitions, including the 7th and 8th Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competitions (2016 and 2022). He has also performed in masterclasses with distinguished artists including the late Ann Schein, Santiago Rodriguez, and Olga Kern. In 2024, Simon chaired the FMMC Foundation’s prestigious Washington International Competition for Piano (WIC, not to be confused with the equally prestigious WIPAC!).

“Music is the only thing in our lives that always speaks absolute truth to us. As Jimi Hendrix once said, ‘Music does not lie.’”