The courage to be yourself: Two pianists on coming out as transgender in classical music world

University of Toronto student Dane Ko spends a lot of time thinking about his hands—he has to, he's a pianist. 

Just before his second year at U of T, Dane came out as a transgender man. Last January, he started taking testosterone to transition from female to male.

The hormones have changed Dane's body, making him look more like the gender he has always felt. On stage, it changed the way people see him, taking away some anxieties and introducing new ones. 

But his transition also affected his relationship to music and the piano: the one thing that had never judged him.

But Dane isn't the first person to come out as transgender in the classical music world. Back in 1998, Sara Davis Buechner started over in what many would call the prime of her career.

Under her old name, David, she was an internationally known concert pianist based in New York. When she came out as Sara, her network, performance opportunities and teaching job offers dried up. Things got so bad that at some point, Sara was on the verge of homelessness.

Things eventually picked up for Sara when she moved to Canada. Today, she teaches at the University of British Columbia School of Music; and at the end of July, Sara will be teaching Dane at the Orford Music Festival in Quebec.

We connected Dane and Sara for a conversation about music, starting over, and the courage it takes to be yourself.

Special thanks to Dean Ples for his extra care setting up the recording.