Yakov Izrailevich Zak (Russian:Яков Израилевич Зак),Jiakov Israilevič Sak; 20 November [O.S. 7 November] 1913 – 28 June 1976) was a Soviet pianist and pedagogue.People's Artist of the USSR (1966).

Born inOdesa, Zak studied piano at theOdesa Conservatory with Maria Starkhova, took classes on specialharmony withMykola Vilinsky, and later studied withHeinrich Neuhaus in Moscow, graduating in 1935.^[1] Having made his debut in 1935, he rose to prominence^[2] when he won First Prize and the Mazurka Prize at theIII International Chopin Piano Competition in 1937. From 1935 Zak taught at theMoscow Conservatory, becoming a professor in 1947 and being granted a chair in 1965. His pupils includeEliso Virsaladze, Alexandr Sklioutovski,Irina Zaritskaya,Nikolai Petrov,Evgeny Mogilevsky,Svetlana Navasardyan, Lyubov Timofeyeva,Valery Afanassiev,Ludmila Knezkova-Hussey,Vladimir Bakk, andYouri Egorov.

1. Yakov Zak, biographyArchived 4 March 2016 at theWayback Machine
2. Yakov Zak, Stat'i, Materially, Vospominaniia (Papers, Documents, Memoirs), Moscow, "Sovetskii Kompozitor", 1980[1]
3. Yakov Zak plays Chopin – Sonata no.3 in B minor, op.58 onYouTube

• 1913 births
• 1976 deaths
• Soviet classical composers
• Musicians from Odesa
• Communist Party of the Soviet Union members
• Moscow Conservatory alumni
• Academic staff of Moscow Conservatory
• People's Artists of the RSFSR
• People's Artists of the USSR
• Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour
• International Chopin Piano Competition winners
• Jewish classical composers
• Jewish classical pianists
• Ukrainian classical pianists
• Odesa Jews
• Russian classical pianists
• Russian male classical composers
• Russian music educators
• Soviet classical pianists
• Soviet male classical composers
• Soviet music educators
• Burials at Kuntsevo Cemetery

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