Click on the faculty members name to contact them via email
Irina Elkina, Keyboard Department Chair, piano instructor
Irina and her sister, Julia are internationally recognized performing artists know for their brilliant interpretations of four hand/two piano repertoire. Ms. Elkina holds a Bachelor of Music and a Master of Music degree (high distinction) from the Leningrad State Conservatory of Music and a D.M.A. from the University of Minnesota. She has taught at the Levine School of Music and the Washington Conservatory of Music and came to MacPhail with numerous awards and achievements. Ms. Elkina has performed in recital halls and music festivals all over the nation, including New York, the Bach Festival in Eugene Oregon, the Ordway Music Theatre in St. Paul (International Artist Series) and with the Chopin Society of Minnesota.
Jason Alfred, Pianist and MacPhail staff accompanist, Jason Alfred is highly sought after as a soloist, accompanist and chamber musician. He has been guest soloist performing concertos by Brahms, Chopin, Mozart and Rachmaninoff, and won first prize at the Biennial Lee Piano Competition. As a collaborator, he participated in the Cleveland Art Song Festival, and was a fellow at the Music Academy of the West. Mr. Alfred has also performed on concert series throughout the United States and Japan including the chamber music series of the Minnesota Orchestra. Mr. Alfred is currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Minnesota studying with Margo Garrett and Karl Paulnack. He received a bachelor of music degree from Ithaca College where he studied with Phiroze Mehta and a master of music degree at the Cleveland Institute of Music with Paul Schenly where he was awarded the Dr. and Mrs. K. L. Wu Piano Prize. Jason Alfred is currently on the piano faculty of St. Olaf College. He has served as a pianist and coach at the Killington Chamber Music Festival, Cleveland Opera, Bravo! Chamber Music Festival, Aspen Music Festival and the Heifetz International Music Institute in New Hampshire.
Diana Bearmon has taught piano at MacPhail since 1981. She began working in Community Partnership Programs in 1995, working with programs at Whittier Community School for the Arts and Blake School. Bearmon finds her teaching of individual and group piano lessons for Whittier and MacPhail students a challenge and a satisfaction. She brings extensive teaching experience in group piano pedagogy, at the University of Colorado Children’s Piano Laboratory and at the University of Minnesota. She attended the National Conference on Piano Pedagogy and served on a national committee from 1986 through 1992, and has participated in many professional development sessions at MacPhail, including Brain Gym and Teaching Teenagers. Bearmon has performed in solo and chamber recitals at venues throughout the state. She was awarded a Bachelor of Music in Music Education from Ohio University and Master of Music in performance, literature and pedagogy from the University of Colorado.
Pinar Basgoze dedicated teacher, active solo and chamber music performer, Emine Pınar BAŞGŐZE was born and raised in Turkey. She started her piano studies when she was 10 upon being accepted by Hacettepe University State Conservatory. She had her B.A degree in 1994 and her M.A degree in 1997 in piano performance under the tutelage of professor Banu Perk. Hacettepe University State Conservatory published her thesis “The Tempered System and Polyphonic Music” in 1997.
Upon meeting Turkish pianist Hűseyin Sermet in May 1997, she was invited to his Master Class organized in Corsica, France within the framework of Musicales d’Ajaccio Festival. Following that summer, she won the third prize in The British Council “The Young Musician of the Year” Piano Competition in 1998 and earned a scholarship to study with Professor Maria Curcio Diamand in London, England in 1999.
She came to the United States to continue her studies with Dr. Paul Shaw and has been pursuing her DMA degree in Piano Performance with Dr. Paul Shaw and concurrently pursuing her MM degree in Piano Pedagogy with Dr. Rebecca Shockley at the University of Minnesota.
Pınar Başgőze was a piano teaching assistant and string instruments coach throughout the years of 1994 to 1998 at Hacettepe University State Conservatory. Her critiques and essays on classical music were published in the column named “Sensations” in the newspaper Black and White in Ankara, Turkey. She appeared on classical music programs at Turkish Radio and Television (TRT) for live interviews and performances. She worked as an individual and a class piano instructor at the University of Minnesota School of Music from 2002 to 2005. Ms. Başgőze was invited to perform solo piano compositions of Turkish composer and pianist Fazıl Say for “the Balkanicus”; third Balkan Solo and Chamber Contemporary Music Festival held at University of St. Thomas in Spring 2005. She was a faculty member at East Metro Music Academy where she served as an individual and a group piano instructor and the piano department chair from March 2006 to October 2007.
Katie Condon – Katie has a BA in music/piano performance from the University of St Thomas and a MM (masters of music) in musicology from Northwestern University. She is currently in the Piano Pedagogy Graduate Program at the University of St. Thomas, St. Paul. She is an elementary music teacher at the Interdistrict Downtown School and narrator/educator for the WAMSO /Minnesota Orchestral Association Kinder Konzert series. She also works with children at the Summer Youth Theatre in Watertown.
B.A. Piano performance-University of St. Thomas
M.M musicology- Northwestern
Teaches studio lessons (piano), early childhood arts classes, and general music in schools for MacPhail
Narrate Minnesota Orchestra Volunteer Association's Kinder Konzert Series
Consultant on general music curriculum (Austrian Fulbright Commission-2001-2002), Kinder Konzert program
(2002-present), Childish Film Festival (2005)
Freelance composer of children's musicals (Summer Youth theatre in Watertown, MN)
Co-founder and former coach of Drumming Girls Scouts, an all-girl percussion ensemble (1998-2001)
Former accompanist at Zenon Dance Company and Northwestern University's early music ensemble
Freelance performing: silent film accompanist (piano) for Minnesota Film Arts (summer 2005), percussionist for
Grand Symphonic Winds (1999-2001)
Timothy De Prey is the Director of Individual Instruction and Music Therapy, a piano instructor and a board certified music therapist. Throughout his teaching career at MacPhail, his students have won many competitions including the Honor’s and the prestigious Concerto and Aria competitions. As a music therapist, Timothy has given many workshops both locally and nationally on “Teaching Tips for Students with Special Needs” and “How to Develop a Music Therapy Program in a Community Music School Setting.” In addition to his work at MacPhail, for the past 14 years, Timothy has been the principal accompanist for the well respected Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus. In the summer of 1998, he was chosen to be the accompanist for the Festival Chorus at the Gay Games in Amsterdam and in the summer of 2000 was chosen to be the accompanist for the Festival Men’s Chorus at Festival 2000 in San Jose, under the direction of Grammy winning director, Vance George. In 2001, Timothy portrayed the character “Manny”, the accompanist in Park Square Theatre’s production of “Master Class.” Timothy can be heard on all seven of TCGMC’s CD’s, on “Proud and Peaceful”- a CD of solo piano music from the pianists within GALA (Gay and Lesbian Choruses of America) and on his own CD, “in the evening air” - a collection of nocturnes, lullabies and night songs. Timothy has a Bachelor of Arts degree in music therapy from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and a Masters of Music degree in piano performance from the University of Minnesota.
Mindy Eschedor, is an active accompanist, music director, coach and recitalist in the Twin Cities. An Artist Member of Thursday Musical, Mindy is a frequent performer on Schubert Club and Thursday Musical recitals, collaborating with both student and professional musicians. She has served as Music Director and pianist at several area theater companies, including Nautilus Music-Theater, Jon Hassler Theater, Theater Latte Da, Duluth Festival Opera, North Star Opera, and Minneapolis Musical Theater. Mindy is a Music Director for Nautilus’ Wesley Balk Opera/Music Theater Institute - a summer training program for the singer-actor. She is a frequent performer on the Nautilus Rough Cuts series, which often features commissioned works from local composers and librettists. Mindy enjoys fostering the talents of young musicians and has served as coach-accompanist at several organizations and area high schools. She is currently the Staff Accompanist at Robbinsdale Armstrong High School and a coach/accompanist at Augsburg College, and has been a Staff Accompanist at MacPhail since 1999. Mindy earned a Master of Music degree in Accompanying and Coaching at the University of Minnesota. She also holds a Bachelor of Arts in Piano Performance and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Broadcast and Cinematic Arts from Central Michigan University.
Melissa Falb has been a member of the MacPhail piano faculty since 1998. In addition to teaching many private students and several classes, she is also the Director of Group Instruction. Melissa received her bachelor of arts from Goshen College (IN) and her master of music from Westminster Choir College of Rider University in piano performance and pedagogy. At Westminster and Goshen, she studied with nationally renowned piano pedagogues Marvin Blickenstaff, Frances Clark and Louise Goss. Melissa has published three articles in Keyboard Companion, a journal for piano teachers, and has had a videotape of her teaching featured at the 1998 MTNA National Convention. She also co-teaches an undergraduate piano pedagogy course at Northwestern College in St. Paul.
Susan Genaw, piano
Chris Granias received his master of music degree in piano performance from Northwestern University. He also received a master of music degree from Drake University. His Ph.D. in composition was from the University of Minnesota where he studied with Dominik Argento. His works are published through Eagan Press, Herald Press, Star Press and over 50 works published by ReallyGoodMusic.com. He was composed over 300 works, been on the board of directors of the new music ensemble Zeitgeist. Composed works for a variety of venues and performers including the Basilica of St. Mary’s, St. Mary’s Greek Orthodox Church, poet J. Otis Powell, Carei Thomas, The Bakken Trio, the Minnesota Sinfonia and others.
Jeremy Hanson – keyboard, theory, composition. Jeremy recently completed his Masters Degree in Music Theory at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He received his Bachelor of Music in Choral/General Music Education from Lawrence University Conservatory of Music in Appleton WI in 1996. Prior to attending UNL, Jeremy was an instructor for three years at Rochester Community and Technical College in Rochester, MN, where he maintained a private piano studio. In addition to teaching, Jeremy enjoys composing and arranging. Jeremy has two choral compositions published: An Irish Blessing with Augsburg Fortress Publications and To My Little Baby Dear with Boosey and Hawkes.
Susan Hellerud is completing her fortieth year as a member of the MacPhail piano faculty, and still enjoys teaching piano students of all ages and levels. Previously, while pursuing graduate studies in applied piano at the University of Minnesota, she taught classes in Dalcroz eurhythmics to pre-school children, and has also taught adult class piano and keyboard harmony at MacPhail. She was named Outstanding MacPhail Teacher in 1994 by the University of Minnesota.
Susan's major piano teachers include Ebba Trampe Launsby, Cleo Hiner, Lili Kraus, Gunnar Johannson, Frank Mannheimer, and Bernhard Weiser. Throughout her extensive teaching career, she has continued to perform frequently as a soloist and chamber musician, and in joint appearances with her twin sister, author Sara De Luca She is organist at First Church of Christ Scientist in Excelsior, Minnesota.
Ignacio “Nachito” Herrera is an award-winning pianist and musical director, composer, and arranger. Originally from Cuba, his primary focus is Latin American music, having studied with Cuban masters such as Chu Chu Valdez, Ruben Gonzales, Frank Fernandez, and Ignacio Herrera, Sr. He received his music degree from Alejandro Garcia Caturla Conservatory of Music in Havana, Cuba and a master of music degree from the Superior Institute of Art, also in Havana. Herrera has directed the Naval Academy Band of Cuba, Tropicana Orquestra, and was director and pianist of Cubanismo Orquestra before immigrating to the United States. A faculty member at MacPhail Center for Music since 2002, Herrera has extensive experience in teaching, recording, and musical theater and currently teaches and gives clinics in area schools. His quintet, Puro Cubano, performs regularly throughout the Twin Cities.
Janet Wood Holdorf recently moved back to the United States after some years in Germany where she, after completion of two years as a Fulbright Scholar, earned the bachelor of music degree in vocal accompaniment from the Hochschule fuer Musik in Cologne. She performed widely as a vocal coach and accompanist as well as a solo pianist and chamber music partner with many performance broadcasts. One highlight of vocal accompanying was working with the famous tenor Jean Cox for six years in the Wagner Interpretation Courses held successive summer just outside Bayreuth and the world-renowned Bayreuth Wagner Festival. Janet holds bachelor and master of music degrees in piano from the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana, and has taught at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and was a faculty member teaching piano at the Robert Schumann Hochschule fuer Musik in Duesseldorf until her move to the Twin Cities. She became a member of the MacPhail teaching faculty in the fall of 2002.
Reiko Imrie, pianist and native of Osaka, Japan, holds a B.A. degree and finished the extended master course from Soai University in Osaka. She has extensive performance experience in Japan as both a soloist and chamber musician, and has performed with a number of orchestras, including the Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra (now led by former Minnesota Orchestra Music Director Oue Eiji). Reiko was named Best New Artist in the 1987 Naniwa New Artist Competition sponsored by the Sankei News Group. She also won both the Osaka Prefectural Governor’s Award and the Osaka Mayor’s Award. The Sankei Newspaper music critic wrote of Reiko’s “exceptional expression informed in her music.” In 1988 Reiko won First Prize in the French Music Competition, sponsored by the French Embassy and Air France, held in Osaka. Reiko taught several years at Okayama’s Women College and gave frequent master classes at several music schools in Osaka. Reiko moved to Minnesota in 1999 and this is her sixth year as a faculty member of MacPhail. She resides in St. Louis Park with her husband Rob and their cats, Scabbers and Hana-chan.
Jon Michael Iverson, Pianist, composer and teacher completed his Master of Music degree in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from Westminster Choir College of Rider University, Princeton, NJ. While at Westminster he was afforded the opportunity to study piano pedagogy with the top pedagogues in the field, including Phyllis Alpert Lehrer, Ingrid Jacobson Clarfield, Dr. James Goldsworthy and Jean Stackhouse. He completed his undergraduate work at the University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, MN, where he studied piano with Katherine Faricy and theory, composition, and orchestration with Dr. James Callahan. As a pianist, Iverson performs regularly as soloist, accompanist and chamber musician around the Twin Cities area and has been heard with local Minnesota orchestras in performances of Beethoven’s Fifth Piano Concerto and the Liszt E-flat Piano Concerto. His private piano instructors have included Phyllis Alpert Lehrer, J. J. Penna, Katherine Faricy and Kenneth Huber; he has performed in numerous master classes with distinguished pianists and teachers including Seymour Bernstein and Paul Sheftel. As a composer, Iverson’s String Quartet No. 01 was featured on Essays of Note – a now syndicated Minnesota radio show hosted by Dr. William ‘Bill’ Banfield – on the program “Young Lions: Up and Coming Young Composers.” His Overture to an Unwritten Tragedy was premiered under the baton of Dr. Matthew George and his Prelude, Passacaglia and Recitative for solo violin and In Memoriam for solo viola have been taken on tour throughout Europe with English violinist Peter Sheppard Skærved. As a teacher, Iverson started teaching at the age of fourteen under the guidance of his mother, Mary Lou Iverson, NCTM. Shortly after being awarded first prize in the Westminster graduate piano competition, he was granted a teaching position at the Westminster Conservatory and completed an intensive internship co-teaching Ingrid Jacobson Clarfield’s wunderkind. Iverson has served on faculty at the University of St. Thomas, his undergraduate alma mater, and is now teaching exclusively for MacPhail Center for Music, Minneapolis, MN. In addition to giving master classes and clinics, he is an active adjudicator for contests and competitions around Minnesota. His students regularly participate in recitals and contests. His website can be found at www.jonmichaeliverson.com.
Miroslava Kisilevitch completed her D.M.A. & M.M. degrees in piano performance at the University of Minnesota where she studied with distinguished pianist Lydia Artymiw. She received a B.A. and M.M. and doctoral/Aspirantura degree at the State Music Academy, Lviv, kraine. Her schooling has been eclectic; her professors had diverse piano training backgrounds from countries such as Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Hungary, and the United States. Her extensive performance experience includes solo and chamber performances and as soloist with many orchestras throughout the Ukraine, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Hungary and the United States. In 1999, Ms. Kisilevitch won First Prize in the Thursday Musical Competition and made her Chicago debut in a concert sponsored by the Ukranian Museum of Chicago. In 2000, she was invited to perform a chamber recital as part of the Smithsonian Institution Recital Series by the Embassy of the Ukraine in Washington, D.C. She currently teaches at North Central University as well as MacPhail Center for the Arts.
B.M. (high distinction) in piano performance, teaching, accompanying,
Drohobych State College, Ukraine; M.M. (high distinction) in piano
performance, ensemble, pedagogy, Lviv Higher State Music Institute, Ukraine;
M.M. piano performance, University of Minnesota; D.M.A. piano performance,
Lviv Higher State Music Academy, Ukraine; D.M.A. piano performance,
University of Minnesota.
Shannon Loehrke, DMA piano, a versatile pianist and teacher, has presented solo and chamber music programs throughout the United States, performed for musical theatre, worked in church music ministry and served as principal keyboardist with the San Angelo (TX) Symphony. She holds BM and MA degrees in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Iowa, and the DMA degree in Piano Performance, where she studied with renowned pianist Lydia Artymiw, from the University of Minnesota. Recipient of numerous awards and nominations for teaching excellence, she has successfully prepared students for college music programs, graduate degrees and top prizes in local and regional competitions. Dr. Loehrke has served on the faculties of St. Cloud State University, the College of St. Benedict/St. John’s University and Angelo State University in San Angelo, Texas. She is a Nationally Certified Teacher of Music (NCTM) and an active member of the Music Teacher’s National Association (MTNA), the Minnesota Music Teachers Association (MMTA) and the St. Paul Piano Teachers Association (SPPTA). In addition to performing and teaching, she is also in demand as a clinician and adjudicator of competitions and festivals. Dr. Loehrke joined MacPhail’s piano faculty in June 2007.
Judy Lin has performed solo recitals in Chicago, Los Angeles and Pittsburgh and has appeared with the Minnesota Chamber Symphony, the Singapore Symphony Orchestra and the Indianapolis Symphony. She received degrees from Indiana University and is on the keyboard faculty at MacPhail Center for Music. Her awards include the Kimball Bosendorfer Piano Competition and the Young California Competition. The 1998-99 season is Judy's l3th with the Trio.
Sarah E. Miller currently teaches piano, theory and composition at the MacPhail Center for Music in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and is coordinator of composition activities. An active accompanist and solo performer, she holds B.A., B.M. and M.M. degrees as well as a Ph.D. from Michigan State University. Her teachers include Ralph Votapek, Albertine Votapek, John Perry, Brooks Smith, Gwendolyn Koldofsky and Samuel Sanders. In 1995 Sarah Miller received the Outstanding Woman Graduate Award by the Faculty-Professional Women’s Association and fellowships from the Michigan State University College of Arts and Letters. Dr. Miller was named the Lansing Capital Area Music Teachers Association Teacher of the Year in 1996. As a composer she has received numerous commissions, including Fanfare and Dances in Mixed-Up Lydian. The latter was premiered by the MacPhail Suzuki Tour Group Orchestra at the 2002 National Suzuki Convention. Her most recent commissions include Kinda Blue-Green for the Stillwater Area High School Orchestra and Pentastic Dance for the MacPhail Suzuki Orchestra. Both were premiered in the spring of 2005.
Bryan Nichols, jazz pianist, recently moved back to his home state of MN after receiving education at the University of Iowa – Ames and living in Chicago. Bryan has performed at the Kennedy Center for the Arts in Washing ton D.C., the South Shore Jazz Festival, Hothouse, Ritz-Carlton in Chicago and the Dakota in Minneapolis. He has played with David Boyki, Ari Brown, Maurice Brown, Chicago Jazz orchestra, Ernest Dawkins, Von Freeman and others. He joins the faculty of MacPhail after years of teaching private students in the Chicago area.
Gail Olszewski has been heard in solo and chamber recitals as a player of piano, forte piano, harpsichord, organ, harmonium, celesta and synthesizer in the United States, Canada, Europe, Central America and Australia. In the Twin Cities she has a varied free-lance career as a collaborative keyboardist, concertizing with members of the Minnesota Orchestra and St. Paul Chamber Orchestra. She has played harpsichord and organ continuo for such groups as the Phipps Oratorio Society, Minnesota Sinfonia and Minnetonka Chorale, and has appeared as a synthesizer player with the Plymouth Music Series, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, and Buffalo Gal Productions. She has served as music director, rehearsal and show pianist for Ordway Productions, Nautilus Music Theater, Illusion Theater, Minnesota Opera, Northstar Opera, and Opera Twin Cities. Gail is a founding member of The WolfGang, dedicated to authentic instrument performance, who will be releasing its first CD in Fall 2006. She is also a member of womenperformhers, dedicated to the performance of works by women composers. Gail is a founding member of The WolfGang, dedicated to authentic instrument performance, who will be releasing its first CD in Fall 2006. She is also a member of womenperformhers, dedicated to the performance of works by women composers. . Gail has the degrees Doctor of Musical Arts in Accompanying and Coaching from the University of Minnesota, Master of Music in Piano Performance from Boston University and Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and Music History/Harpsichord Performance from the University of New Hampshire. She has been on the faculty of the MacPhail Center for the Arts since 2000 where she teaches piano, harpsichord, and chamber music.
Karen Pieper has been a jazz piano teacher at MacPhail for twenty years. She is currently a music director at All Saints Lutheran Church in Cottage Grove. Her theater credits include being the music director of Dudley Riggs' Brave New Workshop, Illusion Theater, SteppingStone Theater, Theatre de la Jeune Lune and playing original improvised piano music for dozens of silent movies at the Oak Street Cinema and Walker Art Center. She and her husband, Tom Pieper, are the leaders and founders of the jazz quintet, SpiritJazz which has played for concerts and private venues.
B.S. in music education, University of Minnesota; M.A., in music education, University of Minnesota
Susana Pinto's extensive teaching experience includes class piano and individual piano instruction at the Colegio Sagrado Coracao de Maria (Lisbon, Portugal), the St. Paul Conservatory of Music, and the Central Michigan University. She is an active adjudicator, collaborative and solo performer and is the current recipient of the Iowa Arts Performance Fellowship. Susana holds a B.M. from the Escola Superior de Musica de Lisboa in Portugal, a M.M. from Central Michigan University, and is currently pursuing a D.M.A. piano performance and pedagogy at the University of Iowa
B.M., Lisbon, Portugal; M.M., Central Michigan University
Tom Pletscher has been teaching and performing jazz in the Twin Cities for the past 20 years. As a jazz pianist/keyboard player, he has been heard at virtually every jazz club in the Twin Cities performing everything from mainstream acoustic jazz to accompanying singers to original electric jazz. His recordings as well as live performances (Live from the Dakota, Jazz at the G) have been played regularly on area jazz radio stations.
B.A. in studio art with a concentration in music, Macalester College
Ginger Reynolds has served on the faculties of the University of Michigan at Interlochen, Olivet College and Hamlin University as a lecturer, private/class piano instructor and coach/accompanist, and has been a faculty member at MacPhail since 1995. She has also been a collaborative pianist with many instrumentalists and singers, including Patty McCarty and Fred Ormand. Also a composer, Ginger’s composition “Three Blake Songs” was performed at the 2004 MENC national convention by District Chorus 279 (soundwaves recording SW04019), and the piano solo “Vielen Dank” will be available in 2008 on the CD produced by Unity Unitarian (St. Paul). She is the founder of gingermusicforall.com. Ginger holds a B.M from Converse College and a M. M. from the University of Michigan. She has also studied with Margo Garrett and Carol Barnett.
Sue Ruby
B.M. with a piano pedagogy emphasis, University of Minnesota-Duluth; M.M. in piano pedagogy, Columbus State University.
Dan Sabo, piano , studied at St. Olaf College, in Minnesota, and did graduate work at the University of Colorado, before spending two years with renowned pianist Yvonne Loriod-Messiaen, in Paris. These studies were financed with a Fulbright “Debussy” Scholarship. While in Europe, Dan and his wife, Victoria, concertized extensively as duo-pianists and were awarded the Higher Diploma in Chamber Music, with great distinction, by the Royal Conservatory of Music, Brussels. Returning from Europe, Mr. Sabo taught for sixteen years at MacPhail Center for Music, continuing to concertize as a soloist and as a duo-pianist. His interest in the music of Alexander Scriabin and Olivier Messiaen has led to the performance of several all-Scriabin and all-Messiaen recitals. Dan is also an avid outdoorsman; having hiked, climbed, bicycled and backcountry skied, with Victoria, on three continents.
Gary Sipes came to teach at MacPhail in 1962 and therefore holds the dubious distinction of being the longest employed MacPhail faculty member. As professor of piano, music history and music theory for the then MacPhail College, Gary had a hefty schedule. The piano and theory teaching schedule continued through the earliest years of the affiliation with the University of Minnesota Extension division. Having been awarded outstanding Teacher of the Year by the Schubert Club and a MacPhail Service Award, Gary has enjoyed seeing many of his exceptional students go on to a professional career in music. Many of his students have graduated from such prestigious music schools as Juilliard, Eastman, Manhattan, Oberlin, Peabody, New England Conservatory and Cleveland Institute. Gary still enjoys performing either as a soloist, accompanist or in an ensemble performance, but his greatest love still is teaching.
B.M. in music, University of Illinois-Champaign; M.M., University of Oklahoma-Norman, Doctoral work at University of Minnesota
Guna Skujina joined MacPhail Center for Music in 1974. She has taught "Introduction to the Keyboard" to 5 year olds, "MMTA Theory for Teachers," Group Piano Class for beginning adults, and piano and theory to aspiring high school students in MacPhail’s Prelude program. She continues to teach all ages and levels in her private studio. An active member of MTNA, MMTA and MTF, she also has performed with the Schubert Club Metropolitan Artist series, the MacPhail new music series "sfz", the MacPhail Chamber Series at Walker Art Center and the Latvian Concert Association of Minnesota on whose board she is an active member. Currently she holds the post of Director of Music at the Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church of Minneapolis and St. Paul.
Cathy Lynn Smetana has been a faculty member at MacPhail since 2000. She graduated from Goshen College in Indiana with a B.A. in music and received her M.M. in piano performance and pedagogy from Westminster Choir College of Rider University in New Jersey. Before joining MacPhail’s faculty, Cathy taught at the Sonatina School of Music in Bennington, Vermont, where she had a private studio and taught group piano classes for children and college students, as well as early childhood music classes. She also taught at Frances Clark’s New School for Music Study in Kingston, New Jersey. At MacPhail Cathy teaches private lessons, Music Tree classes, and piano classes for the Whittier Community School for the Arts.
B.A. in music, Goshen College; M.M. in piano performance pedagogy, Westminster Choir College
Gregory Theisen, B.A. St. John's University, is a pianist, composer, arranger and member of the piano faculty at MacPhail Center for Music. His works include Gentle Sonnets (composer & pianist) Christmas Passages (arranger) an album nominated for a Grammy Award for Independent Distributors: IPB-TV special: The Greg Theisen Quintet (composer & performer) and a PBS documentary: Frederick Manfred (composer & performer). Gregory has toured the US, Europe, as Music Director for Tony Sandler, as well as a former member of Zeitgeist. He has performed in numerous Broadway productions, which have included Phantom of the Opera and the world premiere of The Lion King. Most recently he was the assistant music director for Into The Woods which was produced at the Ordway. He also has contributed to the various theaters as a composer / music director / pianist, including the Children's Theatre, Minnesota Dance Theater, and the Great North American History Theater.
Jose D. Uriarte, DMA, piano received his Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Minnesota, Master of Music in Piano Performance from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and Bachelor of Music and Artist Diploma, with honors, from the PWU PhilippineCollege of Music and Fine Arts. An active performer in the Twin Cities, he as given solo and collaborativeperformances in the United States, Canade, Hongkong, People's Republic of China, and the Philippines with Philensemblia and the PhilippinePhilharmonic Orchestra.
Dr. Uriarte has taught at the University of Minnesota, the Conservatory of the Universityof St. Thomas, St. Joseph's School of Music, East Metro Music Academy, and the PhilippineWomen's University. His DMA Thesis: " The Piano Works of Lucrecia Roces Kasilag" wonFirst Prize, the Marian Davidson Award in the recent Mu Phi Epsilon International Music Fraternity's Musicological and Research Contest.
Megan Monahan Wallace, a native of Butte, MT, received her bachelor of music degree from the Eastman School of Music, where she studied with Dr. Nelita True. She received her master and doctor of musical arts degrees from the University of Minnesota where she studied with Lydia Artymiw. She enjoys performing both solo and chamber music, as well as collaborating with her husband, Chris. She is a member of Thursday Musical and has taught piano at MacPhail since 1997. Next weekend, Megan will be performing the “Emperor” concerto in its entirety with the Mayo Orchestra in Rochester, MN.
Ling-Ya Wang , a native of Taiwan, completed the Doctoral of Musical Arts (DMA) Degree in piano performance and the Mater of Music (MM) Degree in piano pedagogy at the University of Minnesota. She also holds an Artist diploma from Luebeck Conservatory of Music in Germany and a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Piano Performance from Tunghai University in Taiwan. Dr. Wang has taught students of all ages at both the East Metro Music Academy and the St. Joseph's School of Music in St. Paul. A member of the Minnesota Music Teachers Association (MMTA) and the St. Paul Piano Teachers Association (SPPTA), Dr. Wang encourages her students to participate in various music festivals, state piano/theory examinations and piano competitions.
Dr. Wang is an active performer in the Twin Cities area. Her performance experiences include solo and chamber recitals, and piano concerto recitals. She has also performed with non-profit organizations, including Tzu-Chi foundation, one of the largest Buddhist associations, at various charitable benefits and cultural events.
