{"id":129869,"date":"2026-04-23T12:56:44","date_gmt":"2026-04-23T16:56:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/?post_type=bu-article&p=129869"},"modified":"2026-04-23T12:57:23","modified_gmt":"2026-04-23T16:57:23","slug":"kahn-award-winner-finalists-impact","status":"publish","type":"bu-article","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/news\/articles\/2026\/kahn-award-winner-finalists-impact\/","title":{"rendered":"CFA\u2019s 2026 Kahn Award Winner and Finalists Plan to Use Their Prize Money to Make an Impact"},"content":{"rendered":"\t
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Pianist Carlo Balmoria (CFA\u201926) will use his $20,000\u00a0Esther B. and Albert S. Kahn Career Entry Award\u00a0to open a teaching studio in the rural Ohio town where his mother grew up. Photo by Cydney Scott
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCFA\u2019s 2026 Kahn Award Winner and Finalists Plan to Use Their Prize Money to Make an Impact\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Top prize of $20,000 goes to pianist Carlo Balmoria (CFA\u201926)<\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n
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April 23, 2026<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
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This article was originally published in BU Today<\/a><\/em> on April 21, 2026. By Joel Brown<\/p>\n\n\n\n

EXCERPT<\/h4>

Pianist Carlo Balmoria (CFA\u201926) will use the $20,000 he received last week as the winner of this year\u2019s Esther B. and Albert S. Kahn Career Entry Award to change the lives of young musicians in rural Willard, Ohio, population 6,100.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The Kahn Award is given annually to a College of Fine Arts student completing their graduate or undergraduate studies to help them launch their career and make an impact on society. Five other finalists each received $5,000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Balmoria grew up in Virginia and didn\u2019t start playing piano until he was 13. He graduates from BU with a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance<\/a> and will use the award to open a teaching studio in Willard and start a series of lectures and recitals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy mother grew up there, and it\u2019s a place where I think there\u2019s a lot of possibility for a more vibrant art scene in a very rural part of the country, which you don\u2019t often see,\u201d Balmoria says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI experienced firsthand what it\u2019s like to grow up in a rural area with little access to music education and the arts, and how that can really impact someone,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019m grateful that I\u2019ve had so much support from my loved ones, and that I\u2019ve been able to come to the place where I am today. Going forward, I just want to be able to give back.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I experienced firsthand what it\u2019s like to grow up in a rural area with little access to music education and the arts, and how that can really impact someone. I\u2019m grateful that I\u2019ve had so much support from my loved ones, and that I\u2019ve been able to come to the place where I am today. Going forward, I just want to be able to give back.<\/div>