EDUCATION

Rutgers University - Mason Gross School of the Arts, New Brunswick, NJ                                                            2021

Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance and Education

 

Rutgers University - Mason Gross School of the Arts, New Brunswick, NJ                                                            2019

Master of Arts in Composition and Music Theory

 

New York University, New York, NY                                                                                                                                 2005

Master of Music in Piano Performance

 

The Juilliard School, New York, NY                                                                                                                                  2003

Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance

 

La Schola Cantorum, Paris, France                                                                                                                                   1998

Advanced Certificate in Composition

 

TEACHING POSITIONS

Lucy Moses School at the Kaufman Music Center, New York,                                                                     2022-Present        Professor of Piano and Chamber Ensembles

 

Long Island Conservatory, Albertson, NY                                                                                                       2002 – Present

Professor of Music

• Taught Piano to Bachelor, and Master students. 

• Taught Piano to Pre-College students, ages 5-18

• Organized studio concerts for LIC students in prominent venues in New York City.

 

Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA                                                                                    2014 – 2018

Professor at Mason Gross School of the Arts

• Taught Piano to Bachelor and Master level students; taught courses: Piano Literature, Piano Performance Class, Art of Music Accompanying, and Chamber Ensembles.

• Performed numerous recitals around the United States as part of the Helix Contemporary Ensemble.

• Organized concerts for Rutgers students in New York, Connecticut, and New Jersey.

• Performed various concerti as a soloist with Rutgers Symphony Orchestra.

• Prepared students successfully for competitions in which they were winners and laureates such as Chopin International, Naumburg, Concert Artists Guild, Steinway & Sons, and Paderewski competitions.

• Recruited domestic and international students from the United States, Europe, and Asia.

 

New York University, New York, NY                                                                                                                        2003 – 2005

Professor of Music at Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Development

Taught Piano to Bachelor, Master, and Doctoral students.

 

Mokwon University: Daejeon, South Korea – Spring semester, 2006

Guest Professor

• Taught piano and chamber ensembles to Bachelor and Master Students.  

 

SELECTED MASTERCLASSES & LECTURE-RECITALS

• Talent Music Masters, Brescia, Italy – Upcoming in August 2023

• Roman School of Music at Catholic University, Washington, D.C. - August 2022

• Chopin University in Warsaw, Poland - July 2022

• Royal Northern College of Music: Manchester, United Kingdom – 2021

• Lucy Moses School at Kaufman Music Center, New York, USA – February 2020

• Todi International Music Festival: Todi, Italy – 2019

• II Changsha International Music Competition and Festival: Changsha, China – 2018

• Valencia International Piano Festival: Valencia, Spain – 2018

• Piano Island Festival, Singapore - 2018

• Engelman Hall at Baruch College, New York - 2017

• Sarajishvili Tbilisi State Conservatory: Tbilisi, Georgia – 2016

• Buchmann Mehta School of Music, Tel-Aviv University, Israel - 2016

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Selected Competitions – Jury Member

• Ferruccio Rossomandi Piano Competition in Foggia, Italy – Upcoming in May 2023

• XIII Chopin International Piano Competition: Hartford, Connecticut – 2023 and 2020

• Lyon International Piano Competition, France - 2019

• XI MozArte Piano Competition: Aachen, Germany – 2019

• XX Scriabin International Competition: Grosetto, Italy – 2018

• VIII Isidor Bajic International Piano Competition: Novi Sad, Serbia – 2016

• XVI Compositores des España: Madrid, Spain, 2015

 

PIANIST

Selected Performances

• Solo Recital – Tricastin Music Festival, France – July 2022

• 3 Solo Recitals - Sala Baldini, Rome; Palazzo Rospigliosi, Zagarolo; Palazzo di Lazio, Italy – May 2022

• Orchestra Appearance with Shlomo Mintz - Auditorium Victor Villegas, Murcia, Spain – January 2022

• Solo Recital at Almeria Philharmonic, Almeria, Spain – October 2021

• Solo Recital at Apulia Piano Festival, Tricase, Italy – October 2021

• Heichal HaTarbut, Charles Bronfman Auditorium: Tel-Aviv, Israel – 2019

• Wigmore Hall: London, United Kingdom – 2018

• Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall: New York City – 2007, 2011, and 2017

• La Salle Pleyel: Paris, France – 2014

• Kennedy Center: Washington, D.C. – 2013

• Barge Music: New York – Complete Beethoven Piano Sonatas over 8 recitals – 2009

• IBK Concert Hall: Seoul, South Korea – 2006

 

Chamber Musician

• Mazarrón International Music Festival, Spain, performing Schubert’s “Trout” Quintet – July 2022

• Latvian Academy of Music – Trio with Raphael Wallfisch, cello and Anastasia Kozlova, violin: Riga, Latvia – 2019

• The National Opera America Center with St. Petersburg String Quartet: New York – 2018

• Estonia Concert Hall with Alyssa Margulis, violin; Sergei Stadler, violin: Tallinn, Estonia – 2018

• Symphony Space with Three Baritones (Benjamin Sloman, Alejandro Olmedo, David Gvinianidze): New York – 2016

• DiMenna Center with Olga Makarina, soprano, and Borislav Strulev, cello: New York – 2016

 

Concerto Soloist

• Reus Symphony Orchestra, J.S. Bach’s D-minor Concerto, Reus Music Festival, Spain – Upcoming – November 24, 2023

• Krat Music Festival Orchestra, C. Saint-Saens: Carnival of Animals, Estonia Concert Hall, Tallinn, Estonia – August 22, 2022

• Rutgers Symphony: Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, Rutgers University – 2021

• Vienna Philharmonic: Mozart’ Piano Concerto No. 17, Palais Auersperg, Vienna – 2014

• Amadeus Symphony: Rachmaninoff’ Concerto No. 3, Centermex Hall, Monterrey, Mexico – 2006

• Manhattan Symphony: Khachaturian’s Concerto in D-flat, Manhattan School of Music, New York – 1998

 

ORGANIZER/PRESENTER

Classical Hugs International Music Festival: Estonia, Latvia, Finland, and Lithuania                           2014 – Present

Founder & Artistic Director

• Conceived and founded a 4-week classical music summer festival, presenting 45 events across four countries in 10 cities and 28 venues, focused on presenting piano recitals, chamber, orchestral concerts, and opera, while providing educational experiences for students aged 10 through 35.

• Recruited students from United States, Canada, Europe, Asia and Pacific Island Nations, resulting in nearly more than 100 students from more than 40 countries for the 2019 festival.

• Guest artists included Daniel Pollack, Ivry Gitlis, Olga Kern, Shlomo Mintz, Pierre Amoyal, Raphael Wallfisch, Albert Markov, Denia Gavazzeni, Olga Makarina. Dmitri Bashkirov, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Saint Petersburg Chamber Orchestra, The Northwestern Orchestra of Russia, Orquestra Nova des Guitarras (Portugal).

• Oversaw all administrative functions including payroll, negotiating, and executing contracts, marketing, awarding scholarships, fundraising, and grant application.

 

George Gershwin International Piano Competition, New York, NY                                                          2013 – Present

Founder & Artistic Director

• Initiated and created, in conjunction with the Gershwin family, an international piano competition for pianists, violinists, and vocalists ages 8 through 36.

• Served as an ambassador for the organization to raise international awareness of the competition.

• Developed and managed the process for receiving and reviewing applications.

• Managed all aspects of the competition including budgeting, collaborating with the Board of Directors, marketing, selecting venues, negotiating contracts, fundraising, and recruiting volunteers.

 

Changsha International Piano Competition – China – 2018

Artistic Advisor

• Managed all aspects of the competition Advised the competition officials on forming panel of international Jury and worked out logistics with internationally acclaimed musicians on inviting them to the competition.

• Organized international pre-selection auditions on behalf of Changsha Piano Competition at The National Opera America Center in New York.

 

SELECTED CONFERENCES/PRESENTATIONS

• Industry Roundtable: "Piano Competitions in the Digital Age" with Zsolt Bognár (Living the Classical Life) and Sean Hickey (Naxos). Co-Presenter with Get Classical. The National Opera Center, New York, USA – January 2020.

• Piano Transcriptions and Their Role in the Contemporary Age – lecture-recital at Stuyvesant High School. Presented by Get Classical - Guest Performer and lecturer – January 2020.

• Now and Then, at Tenri Cultural Institute, NY – lecture-recital, featuring contemporary solo and chamber works - Presenter, speaker, performer - May, 2019.

• Gershwin Competition – Winners’ Series at Carnegie Hall – multiple soloists and chamber ensembles – Weill Recital Hall – Presenter, speaker, performer - January 2019.

• International Piano Conference – Changsha, China – Guest Speaker - October 2018.

• How to Be Enterprising in Music of the 21st century: Piano Conference – Valencia International Piano Festival – Valencia, Spain – Guest Speaker – July 2018.

• Night Music – Lecture-Recital, performing music by New York Composers: Chick Korea, John Corigliano, Philip Lasser - Barge Music, NY, December 2011.

 

AWARDS and COMPETITIONS

• Recognition for Excellence in Arts – New York City Mayor, October 2022

• Certificate of Merit – New York State Assembly – New York, 2020

• City Council Citation – New York, 2020

• Certificate of Excellence – Guest Artist – Golden Key Music Festival, New York, 2017

• Recognition of Excellence in Teaching – Ars Nova Music Academy, Colleferro, Italy, 2017

• Award of Excellence in Service – Narva City, Estonia, 2014

• Award for the Best Interpretation of music by Franz Liszt, Mexico, 2006

• Award for the Best Interpretation of Spanish music – for Leyenda by I. Albeniz - Andorra, 2005

• II Prize – Escaldes-Engordany International Piano Competition – Andorra, 2005

• I Prize – Citta di Gorizia International Piano Competition – Gorizia, Italy, 2004

• Finalist – Zeiler International Piano Competition, Germany 2004

• Recipient - “Outstanding People of the 20th century”, Cambridge, U.K. – editions 2000 and 2001

• I Prize Winner – Puigcerda International Piano Competition, Spain, 1999

• I Prize Winner – Associated Music Teachers League Competition, Steinway Hall, New York, 1998

• I Prize Winner – Manhattan Concerto Competition, New York, 1998

• I Prize Winner – Sarah Lawrence College Concerto Competition, New York, 1997

 

RECORDINGS

• New York, New York – Music by New York composers: works by John Corigliano, Chick Korea, Ned Rorem, Philip Lasser, Yan Leus, and Larissa Kritskaya (CD), 2019.

• Solo Recital at Yamaha Piano Salon: works by J.S. Bach, L. von Beethoven, Granados, and Prokofiev (CD). © Yamaha Records, New York, 2014. 

• Transcriptions of the Past and Future - works by J.S. Bach, Liszt, Brahms, Busoni, and Horowitz (CD). © Neue Sterne Records, Hannover, Germany, 2012.

 

PUBLICATIONS

• “Interpretive Aspects of Transcription for Solo Piano by Liszt, Busoni, Godowsky, and Rachmaninov Based on Works of J.S. Bach: A Comparative Analysis.” D.M.A. Dissertation, Rutgers University, 2020.

• “Hammerklavier – Redone”, Rutgers University, 2018. https://www.academia.edu/36301182/Hammerklavier_Redone

•  “Honoring Paderewski: The Golden Lion of the Piano”, The Juilliard Journal, Vol. XVII, No. 3, November 2001

 

TV/RADIO APPEARANCES

• CBS Channel News - 2023

• Channel 12 News (New York, NY) - 2017

• Interviewed by Robert Scherman (WQXR, NY) - 2017

• Interviewed by David Osenberg (WWFM, NJ) - 2016

• Interviewed by Robert Amato (Long Island University Public Broadcast Radio) – 2008, 2019, and 2022

• Russian Television Network (New York, NY) – multiple interviews

• TV Tokyo (Japan) - 2017

• TV1 - Vesti Program (Russia) - 2015

• TV1, TV3, Postimees (Estonia) – multiple interviews

• Latvijas Radio 4 – Doma Laukums (Latvia) - 2019

 

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS & DEVELOPMENT

• Chamber Music America – National Member – Attended annual conferences in 2019 & 2020.

• Opera America – Active Membership since 2017

• Musical America – Artistic affiliation - 2015-Present

• Alink-Argerich Foundation – 2016-Present

• Meet The Composer – 2007-Present

 

COMPOSER – SELECTED WORKS

• Then and Now Series, Tenri Cultural Institute: Areadna’s Thread: Theme with Variations for Solo Piano – 2019

• Vaba Lava Concert Hall, Tallinn, Estonia: Danse Macabre Transcription for Piano Trio – 2019

• II Changsha International Piano Competition, China: Chinese Folk Song Transcription for Solo Piano – 2018.

• Rutgers Symphony, New Brunswick, NJ: 7 Waves of Inertia for Orchestra – 2018

• Le Poisson Rouge, New York, NY: Three poems by Emily Dickinson for Soprano and Mixed Ensemble – 2016

• Helix Ensemble and Rutgers Dance Department, New Brunswick, NJ: Flower Dream – 2016

• Center of Musical Excellence, Carnegie Hall, New York: Variation on a Theme by A. Diabelli for Solo Piano – 2015