As a most accomplished pianist he is a welcome sight on any concert stage and should be ranked among the best pianists of our time." Arkady Aronov gained a reputation throughout Russia as an outstanding interpreter of baroque, classical, romantic and contemporary music for the keyboard. He has a vast repertoire, including more than forty five complete recital programs and twenty four piano concerti. In addition to playing literally hundreds of recitals (over 1000), appearing as guest soloist with numerous orchestras and on radio and television throughout Russia's major cities, he presented four historic series of twenty concerts, embracing the music of three centuries in the Leningrad Concert Hall. Arkady Aronov was the first to perform the music of leading contemporary Russian composers and many of them wrote some works in consideration of his artistic individuality. He also debuted some Western compositions in Russia; his performance of Aaron Copland's Sonata won the praise of the composer, for whom Mr. Aronov gave a special performance in Leningrad. Dr. Aronov has written numerous scholarly works, including "Dynamics, Articulation and Tempi in Beethoven's Piano Compositions," and edited two collections of piano works by the Russian avant-garde. He was also the founder and editor of a series of volumes for students, "Contemporary Composers for Youth." Arkady Aronov studied piano with the renowned Savshinsky at the Rimsky-Korsakov State Conservatory of Music in Leningrad. In 1960 he was appointed Professor of Piano at the same Conservatory and held the position until 1977. In 1977 Arkady Aronov emigrated to the United States where he has received unanimous critical acclaim for his appearances in major concert halls in New York. The distinguished member of the Piano Faculties at the Mannes College of Music since 1977 and Manhattan School of Music since 1984, he conducts two big piano studios. More than two hundred of his students from twenty five countries graduated the schools with Bachelor, Master and Doctoral Degrees. Many of them won top prizes at various international and national piano competitions, successfully work at the prestigious music schools and universities both in United States and abroad. In addition to his full time positions in New York Dr. Aronov also conducts Piano Master Classes in USA, Italy, France, Spain, Russia, People Republic of China, India, Taiwan, The Philippines, Hong Kong.

After emigrating to the USA in 1979, Mr. Briskin continued to pursue an active performing career. As a soloist and a member of the Emelin Trio he has performed in the U.S., Canada, Italy, Germany, France, Belgium, Venezuela and S. Africa. Mr. Briskin is a founder and artistic director of the Summit Music festival. Presently he serves on the faculty of the Manhattan School of Music and the Music Conservatory of Westchester.

...Ms. Boguslavsky has been recording and performing extensively, both with orchestras and in solo recitals in major cities of the Soviet Republics. Among her many honors and awards are the Byelorussian Government’s Honorable Award, the Superior Teaching Award from the Queens College Cultural Heritage Competition in New York, and top prizes at the Byelorussian National Competition and the Soviet All-State Competition. A major advocate of contemporary music, Ms. Boguslavsky has premiered and recorded many works by leading Russian and Byelorussian composers and many of them wrote some works in consideration of her artistic individuality. Her passion for collaborative work resulted in a highly successful partnership with the celebrated Metropolitan Opera soloist, Dimitri Kavrakos. Lydia Boguslavsky began her distinguished teaching career early, becoming a piano professor at the Byelorussian State Conservatory upon receiving her Doctorate at the age of 25. Among her students are many competition winners who actively perform and teach both in Russia and in the United States. She has presented master classes in St. Petersburg, Moscow, New York City, as well as cities in Lithuania, Latvia, California, and New Jersey, and has acted as a judge for various competitions, including the MTNA State Competition and The Young Pianists Competition in New Jersey. Ms. Boguslavsky holds degrees from the Moscow Gnessin Pedagogical Institute (DMA), the Moscow Conservatory, and the Byelorussian State Conservatory. She studied piano with such renowned professors as Yakov Milstein, Alexander Yoheles and Eugene Malinin. A highly sought-after pedagogue, Ms. Boguslavsky has published numerous scholarly works, including Working on New Repertoire and The Art of Legato, where she presented her own methods that reflect on the celebrated Russian school of piano playing. Since moving to the United States, Ms. Boguslavsky has taught in New York at the College of Staten Island, the Conservatory of Music at SUNY Purchase, and Wagner College. For the past three years, she has served on the faculty of the International Summer Music Festival in Aurora , MN and Rowan University , NJ.

...He subsequently performed extensively in recitals and with orchestras throughout ex-USSR.

Sergei Edelmann came to the United States in 1979. Within his first year here, he quickly established himself as a significant and highly acclaimed pianist of his generation. Not long after his debut performance in the United States, one of Los Angeles's major concert critics described the excitement generated by Sergei's performance: "Music reviewing, as a profession has its perils, but one of its rewards is the shock of unexpectedly stumbling onto great talent. That happened last night when this young pianist, Sergei Edelmann, gave a recital to our full house audience". And, after his debut recital in Chicago’s Orchestra Hall, one of the most respected and feared musical critics, Claudia Cassidy, wrote in the Chicago Magazine: “Sergei Edelmann walked in the Orchestra Hall a stranger and out of it one to be cherished”.

Sergei Edelmann has since become a leading artist both in the concert hall and in the recording studio. His BMG Classics/RCA Red Seal CDs with the Bamberg Symphony under the baton of Claus Peter Flor and the Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra with Paavo Berglund include both Mendelssohn concertos and the Strauss Burlesque, and his series of solo recordings of Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Chopin, and Prokofiev, have gathered enthusiastic critical acclaim. In the fall of 2008 Mr.Edelmann has embarked on new series of recordings for the japanese label “Triton”, first of which, with works of J.S.Bach, was released in February 2009 and the second, dedicated to R.Schumann came out in June. Next to be released, in September 2009, is F.Chopin CD, which includes 4 ballades.

His solo recitals in the United States have included Chicago’s Orchestra Hall, New York’s 92nd Street “Y” and Metropolitan Museum of Arts, Pasadena’s Ambassador Auditorium among numerous others. In Europe he has performed in Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, Madrid, Munich, Detmold, Frankfurt, Milan, Turin, Ferrara, Siena, Florence and in Asia he regularly appears in Tokyo, Taipei and Seoul. Mr.Edelmann has appeared with the Cleveland Orchestra, American Symphony Orchestra at the Carnegie Hall, the London Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestre de Paris, the Washington National Symphony Orchestra (at the invitation of Mstislav Rostropovich), the Toronto Symphony, the Dallas Symphony, Jerusalem Symphony, Haifa Phiharmonic Orchestra, Mexico Philharmonic, Orchestra National de Buenos Aires in Teatro Colon, Saint Louis Symphony, Buffalo Philharmonic, Seattle Symphony, Orchestra Verdi in Milano with Vladimir Yurovsky, the Rotterdam Philharmonic with Valery Gergiev, the Maggio Musicale Festival of Florence, tour of Italy with Moscow Soloists under Yuri Bashmet, the National Symphony of Johannesburg and the Cape Town Philharmonic in South Africa and other major orchestras across Europe, the Far East, and North and South America.

A true collaborator Mr. Edelmann enjoys festival appearances that afford him the opportunity to work with friends and colleagues. Among his chamber music partners: violinists Philip Hirshhorn, Victor Tretyakov, Dora Schwarzberg, Sergei Stadler, Alissa Vaitsner, clarinetists Michel Portal, Pascal Moragues, Julian Milkis and Paul Mayer, violoncellists Mario Brunello, Dmitri Yablonsky and Sviatoslav Zagursky. In France he has appeared in La Rocque d’Antheron, Tours, Dinard, Poitiers, Nancy, Sully and Radio France Montpelier music festivals.

He is a regular guest at the Elba International Music Festival in Italy where, over several summer seasons Mr. Edelmann has collaborated with violist Yuri Bashmet, violinist Victor Tretyakov and cellist Mario Brunello. They premiered in Italy Gya Kantcelli's Piano Quartet and K.Penderezky Sextet. In September of 2006, at the opening of 10th anniversary Festival, he performed the Schumann piano concerto with “New Russia” Symphony Orchestra conducted by Yuri Bashmet. Following that concert, Mr.Edelmann performed in the Mozart celebration concert with Moscow Soloists at the famed Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory in December 2006.

In January 2008 Mr.Edelmann was invited to be a soloist in J.Brahms Piano concerto No.2 with Sinfonia Warsovia under the direction of Peter Csaba for the tour of Italy.

Other leading artists he has collaborated with include conductors Franz Paul Decker, Valery Gergiev, Claus Peter Flor, Lawrence Foster, Hans Graf, Gunther Herbig, Raymond Leppard, Yoel Levi, Vladimir Yurovsky, Eduardo Mata, Gerard Schwarz, Peter Csaba, Saulus Sondeckis, Lawrence Leighton Smith, Semyon Bychkov, Catherine Comet and Maxim Shostakovich.

Sergei Edelmann is a winner of the Young Concert Artists International Auditions, the Gina Bachauer Memorial Scholarship at Juilliard, and a major prizewinner of Belgium's Queen Elizabeth International Competition. Mr. Edeimann is also the recipient of the prestigious 92nd Street YM-YWHA's Shura Cherkassky Recital Award.

In addition to his concert activities, Mr. Edelmann devotes a considerable amount of his time to teaching. He was a Professor of the Piano Faculty at New York University from 1996 to 2001 and, from 2002 to 2009, a Guest Professor of Piano at the Musashino Music Academy in Tokyo.

...She has conducted master classes at the San Francisco Conservatory, the Atlanta Music Teachers Association, University of Mississippi, San Diego State University, Florida Atlantic University, OpusFest in Manila and the Middle School attached to the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, China, among others. She adjudicated national and international piano competitions at the International Keyboard Institute in New York City, the New England Conservatoryconcerto competition, the Los Angeles Liszt International Piano Competition, the Garrison Liszt International Piano Competition in Baltimore, the Aviv piano competition in Israel, the Ultimate Pianist Competition in Manila and the Music Schools' festival in Hong Kong.

Ms. Goldstein has performed as a solo artist and a collaborative pianist throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Asia, Europe and Israel. Her most notable performances included the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra, Orquesta Da Camera in Mexico City and the Lincoln Symphony Orchestra in Nebraska, as well as recitals and concerts at Progetto Martha Argerich in Lugano, Beijing Concert Hall, China, Lincoln Center and Merkin Hall in New York City, the Purcell Room at the South Bank Center in London, Konzerthaus in Berlin, Musée de Louvre and Cité des Arts in Paris, Liszt Museum in Budapest, Roy Thomson Hall in Toronto, Kennedy Center in Washington DC, Old First Church and Temple Emanuel in San Francisco, Pittsburgh Jewish Music Festival (with members of the Pittsburgh Symphony), University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, University of California in Santa Barbara, University of Florida, Steinway Gallery in Miami, Gardner Museum in Boston, Dame Myra Hess concert series, Ravinia's "Rising Stars" Series and Symphony Hall in Chicago, "Great Performances" series in St. Louis, Henry Crown Hall in Jerusalem and the Tel Aviv Museum.

A Board member of the American Liszt Society (ALS) and the Founder-President of its NY/NJ Chapter since 1992, Ms. Goldstein is a frequent guest performer at the ALS annual festivals and at the Great Romantics International Festival in Hamilton, Ontario (Canada).

A champion of the music of Israel's leading composer Paul Ben-Haim (1897-1984) in the past decade as a performer and recording artist, Ms. Goldstein has recorded two volumes of his entire piano works and three chamber works on the Centaur label: Piano Works of Paul Ben-Haim, (2001) and Paul Ben-Haim, Volume 2: Piano and Chamber Works (2005). Among the rave reviews the recordings have received worldwide, the American Record Guide wrote: "Goldstein is a charismatic performer who plays with great flair, delicate nuances, fluid tempi and brilliance". PIANIST magazine in London wrote: "Goldstein has a technique as fierce and fiery as the color of her hair". These recordings mark a significant addition to the few commercial releases of Israeli classical music, in particular piano music, and therefore meaningful for the understanding of this genre and for increasing its international recognition. They are also an important addition to 20th century’s recordings of piano and chamber music in general. Gila Goldstein, holds a Master of Music from the Manhattan School of Music where she studied with Mrs. Nina Svetlanova and a Bachelor of Music from the Tel-Aviv University's Academy of Music, where her teacher was Prof. Victor Derevianko. Both her teachers were disciples of the legendary Russian pianist and pedagogue Heinrich Neuhaus.

...Appearing on many of the world's leading stages such as Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, the Kravis Center, Philadelphia's Kimmel center, LG Arts Center in Korea, Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory among others, Ms. Goncharova performed extensively throughout the continents of the Americas, Europe and Asia. Ms. Goncharova's artistry has taken her to such renowned venues as the Aspen Music Festival, Japan’s Miyazaki Music Festival, the Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center, National Hall in Taipei, Colden Center for the Arts, Singapore Sun Festival, Caramoor and Ravinia music festivals, Montpellier Music Festival in France, as well as the Appalachian Summer Music Festival and the Great Composers Festival in Canada, to name a few. Her many collaboration with artists of international statue include the celebrated violinist Pinchas Zukerman with whom she has performed extensively, including a special duo recital in May of 2003 in Tokyo for the Empress of Japan. Her performances have been broadcast by Radio France, New York's WNYC and WQXR, nationally on PBS and NPR’s Performance Today, and in Japan.

Highlights of Ms. Goncharova’s recent seasons include a recital with Pinchas Zukerman in Mumbai as part of Mehli Mehta Centenary concerts as well as a performance on Svyatoslav Richter's December Nights festival in Moscow. As a soloist, she has been invited to return to the Long Island Mozart Festival for a series of five concerto performances with the Orchestre de Chambre Francais that included a world premiere of David Winkler's Concerto Green for violin and piano under the direction of Daniel Boico, assistant conductor of the New York Philharmonic, which is scheduled to be released on the Naxos label. In addition, Ms. Goncharova has recently been presented by the Lyric Chamber Music Society in performance of Felix Mendelssohn's Piano Concerto in E minor with the Lyric Chamber Ensemble, marking the work’s American premiere. Other recent performances include Chamber Players International, Big Arts and Ridotto Series, New York’s Merkin Hall, Bar Harbor and Newport Music Festivals, recital tours of Brazil, Uruguay, Peru, Spain, as well as duo-recitals with Pinchas Zukerman in Taiwan, India, Japan, Russia , Korea and Singapore.

A resident artist of the Lyric Chamber Music Society of New York, Ms. Goncharova is a founding member of the acclaimed TAGI ensemble comprised of the internationally renowned clarinetist Igor Begelman, violinist/violist Grigory Kalinovsky and cellist Sophie Shao. The ensemble, which has been proclaimed as "second to none" by London's Music Web, has performed to great praise from critics and audiences alike throughout the US, with recent performances and master classes at the Chamber Music Monterrey Bay, Utica Chamber Music Society, Chamber Music Des Moines, as well as the Asheville Chamber Series, Universities of South and Western Carolina, Lukas Foss’s Festival of the Hamptons, Bentley College, Los Alamos Concert Series, Howland Music Center, EMMA series in Florida, and the Lyric Chamber Music Society.

Tatiana Goncharova's recording debut for Centaur Records of Dmitriy Shostakovich's Violin Sonata and 24 Preludes with violinist Grigory Kalinovksy was released to great acclaim, having been praised by the International Record Review for its “emotional intensity” and “overwhelming mastery” while the Fanfare magazine labeled it as “one of the best.”

Ms. Goncharova is currently on the faculty of Pinchas Zukerman’s National Arts Center Young Artists Program in Canada, Precollege division of the Manhattan School of Music in New York, Zukerman Performance Program, and formerly at the Perlman Music Program, Fordham University and Illona Feher Festival in Israel.

Ms. Goncharova is a winner of numerous prizes and awards, including Olga Koussevitzky Piano Competition, Bergen Philharmonic Concerto Competition, Moscow Conservatory Concerto Competition and Byelorussian National Competition. She has studied with such renowned musicians as Leon Fleisher, Yoheved Kaplinsky and Eugene Malinin at the Moscow State Conservatory, the Manhattan School of Music and The Juilliard School.

…as a competition juror and is in demand for master classes on campuses across the country. Marian Hahn has been a top prizewinner in national and international competitions including the Leventritt, Kosciuszko Foundation Chopin Competition (first prize), Busoni, and University of Maryland. She gave her New York debut and "encore" recital as a Concert Artists Guild winner. The St.Paul Pioneer Press and Dispatch has hailed her playing as "passionate, poetic, and quite breathtaking." According to the New York Times, she "is able to draw lovely, glowing tone from her instrument." The Washington Post has praised her "finely balanced technique and thorough musicality."

Ms. Hahn has appeared on prestigious recital series in major cities across the United States. In addition, three critically acclaimed European tours included recitals in Frankfurt, London, Paris, Milan, Brussels and The Hague. In New York she has performed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Merkin Concert Hall and Weill Recital Hall. She has given several recitals at the Phillips Collection in Washington D.C. and the Gardner Museum in Boston. As soloist with orchestra, she has appeared with the Cleveland Orchestra, the Boston Pops, North Carolina, Roanoke and Winston-Salem Symphonies and was re-engaged five times with the Jacksonville Symphony.

Chamber music has been an equally important part of Ms. Hahn’s career. She toured nationally for 10 years as the pianist in The Amadeus Trio and was a founding member of the Amabile Piano Quartet and the Wave Hill Trio. She has been a participant in the Marlboro, Sedona, Grand Canyon, Music Mountain and Aria festivals, among others. Her recordings with the Amabile Quartet and Amadeus Trio appear on the Summit and Helicon labels, respectively. She also served as a faculty member for 16 years at the Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival in Blue Hill, Maine.

Ms. Hahn received her B.A. from Oberlin College, Phi Beta Kappa with a major in Comparative Religion, and her M.M. from the Juilliard School. Her teachers have included John Perry, Ilona Kabos, Leon Fleisher and Benjamin Kaplan.

His teachers have also included Gary Graffman, Artur Balsam, and John Perry. Professor Kawin has taught master classes throughout the U.S., Taiwan, Hong Kong, Korea, China, and Australia. His recent concerts in Australia, under the auspices of Master Performers, are his sixth tour of that country. He was twice guest professor at the Moscow Conservatory International Summer School and the London Piano Festival, and for the past eight years, has been in residence at the PianoSummer international institute at SUNY-New Paltz. His most recent classes/lectures include the Cliburn Institute, Seoul National University, International Academy of Music in Italy and Russia, and at the World Piano Pedagogy Conference in Las Vegas. He is a Steinway artist.

...a recipient of the Arthur Rubenstein Prize and the Harold Bauer Award. Mr. Kent made his New York recital debut at Weill Hall in 1989 and has been featured on radio stations WQXR, WNYC, and WFUV.Chamber music has been an important part of Mr.Kent ’s concert life, most recently with the Damocles Trio which he co-founded in 1996 with violinist Airi Yoshioka and cellist Sibylle Johner.
 

Ms. Kim also completed a Masters Degree in Music Therapy at New York University. Ms. Kim’s performances include concerts with a number of symphony and chamber orchestras in Seoul, New York and Philadelphia, including the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, and numerous recitals in East Asia, Europe and the U.S. While attending the Julliard School, Ms. Kim won numerous competitions including the Landstown Piano Competition. She has performed at Sarasota Music Festival in Florida, Nice Music Festival in France, Bowdoin Music Festival in Maine and the Salzburg Mozartium Music Festival in Austria. She taught at the Bloomingdale School and the School for Strings in New York City. Ms. Kim currently teaches at the Inje University, University of Ulsan, Baeksok Conservatory and the Seoul Christian University.

... Angeles Philharmonic, Hudson Valley Philharmonic, New York Symphony Orchestra, Virginia Symphony, Round Top Festival Orchestra, Korean Broadcasting Symphony, Buchon Philharmonic, Taipei National Philharmonic, Hudson Valley Philharmonic, and International Sejong Soloists. Collaborations with conductors such as Yoel Levi, Heichiro Oyama, and Vladimir Feltsman.

Recitals at Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie Recital Hall, Merkin Concert Hall, the 92nd Street Y, Amnesty International at Mannes, and in Kuala Lumpur, under the auspices of his royal highness Sultan Salahuddin of Malysia. First prize, Virginia National Competition. Recipient, Artists International Distinguished Artists Award and Uris Brothers Foundation award.

Appearances at Aspen Music Festival, Taos Chamber Music Festival, Round-Top Festival, Shandelee Music Festival, Merano Festival (Italy). Collaborations with pianists Oxana Yablonskaya, Vladimir Feltsman and David Oei, violinists Kyung Wha Chung and Victor Danchenko, cellist Suren Bagratuni, and regular concert partner of tenor Nils Neubert.

Received National Public Radio Recording Award for Beethoven: Works for Piano on Well-Tempered Productions, which was praised as "simply ravishing" (American Record Guide), and for its "power, clarity and poetic sensibility" (Billboard).

TV appearances on Emmy Award- and Peabody Award-winning feature on Channel 13’s City Arts and on NBC’s Today Show, as well as concert broadcasts on KBS in Korea. Radio appearances on NPR and WQXR, as well as in Korea, Malaysia and Russia. Keynote Speaker, 2009 Korea Daily News Education Symposium.

Has taught at the New Paltz Piano Institute, Special Music School of America, Summit Music Festival, Festival de Musica Clasica in Puigcerda (Spain), Bizier Music Festival (France), and Duxbury Music Festival. Faculty, International Academy of Music (Italy and Russia), Burgos International Music Festival (Spain), and the Beethoven Institute at Mannes.

Faculty, Mannes College of Music since 1999, and Aaron Copland School of Music, Queens College, since 2010.

As a pianist and chamber player, Flora Lu Kuan has appeared as soloist with the Denver Symphony and the Portland Symphony and has collaborated with the Colorado Quartet and members of the New York Philharmonic. She has been featured on the Connecticut and Maine Touring Artists Programs, the Arcady International Music Festival in Maine, and is cited in Who’s Who of American Keyboard Artists. She has performed in Lincoln Center, the Wadsworth Atheneum, and in colleges throughout the Northeast. She received her Doctorate of Musical Arts degree from the University of Colorado and holds a Masters of Music from Peabody Conservatory and a B.A. from Cornell University. Her principal teachers include Nadia Reisenberg, Walter Hautzig, and Malcolm Bilson. She has served as Associate Director of the Arcady International Music Festival in Maine and as National Vice President of the College Music Society.
 

...studied with Morey Ritt and Arkady Aronov. She holds Bachelor of Music degree from Queen’s College, CUNY and MM from the Manhattan School of Music. Additional studies were with George Pappastavorro and Ledia Dvorgetz. Fang Luo is the winner of Anna Bernstein Memorial Award, and has appeared in concerts in USA and China, solo recitals, as well as a soloist in chamber music and orchestra events. Besides teaching at the China Conservatory, she has been visiting professor of piano at Shandong University at Weihai since year of 2002 and been adjudicator in national competitions and festivals. Her students have top honors at many national piano competitions. She is a cofounder and Secretary General of Goodway National Piano Competition in Hangzhou.
 

First Prize winner of several International Piano Competitions, he made his solo recital debut in at Carnegie Recital Hall (1996). As a soloist and chamber musician he has performed throughout Europe and the United States.  Mr. Mainolfi recent performances include recitals in Geneva, Bern, Munich, Hamburg, Milan, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Oslo, Brussels, Stockholm, Stuttgart and Cologne.  In April 2003 he made his Berlin Philharmonic Debut in duo with cellist Mattia Zappa which was broadcast live.  He records for Ducale, Lyra Classica, Deutschland Radio, DRS, Rai 3, Radio Espace 2 labels.   Currently he is Program Director of the International Academy of Music in Italy and he is Chamber Music Supervisor at the Summit Music Festival.  Starting in 2009 he is Associate Professor of the Oxana Yablonskaya Piano Institute in Italy.
 

... Symphony, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. She has appeared live on WQXR, WFMT, Connecticut Public Radio, Belgian National Radio, BBC Television and in major concert halls such as Carnegie Hall, Diligentia Hall in the Hague, and Henry Wood Concert Hall in Scotland’s National Orchestra Center. Merdinger received her formal education at Yale University, the Yale School of Music, the Manhattan School of Music, the Westchester Conservatory of Music, the Ecole Normale de Musique in Fontainebleau, France, and at the Yale-Norfolk, Chautauqua and Fontainebleau Music Festivals.

Ms. Merdinger currently lives in Highland Park, IL, where she maintains a private teaching and accompanying studio and is also a faculty member of The New Music School of Chicago, and joins the faculty of Summit Music Festival for 2011. She is represented by Price Rubin and Partners.
 

Vadim Monastyrski received his musical education from the Moscow Gnesin Institute under the guidance of Theodor Gutman ( pupil of the legendary Henrich Neihaus).

He is a Bronze medallist of Liszt - Bartok International Piano Competition in Budapest, Hungary in 1976, and a winner of a Gold medal at the Haendel International Festival in Halle, Germany in 1979. “His performance of the Sonata in B - Minor by Liszt left us astounded. We were as though hypnotized. This masterpiece is the top of Liszt’s creative work. The canvas of music woven by the pianist seemed to consist of many intermitted picturesque images. His perfect technical skills allowed him to fulfill all his intentions. “
Jerusalem Post, Jerusalem, Israel.

The extraordinary acclaim for Vadim Monastyrski’s recording of Liszt’s transcriptions won him the “Grand Prix du Disque” in 1980 at the International Competition of Recordings in Hungary.
“… understandable, and interesting, without interpreting himself…”
Frankfurter Neue Press, Frankfurt, Germany.

A former professor at the St. Petersburg Conservatory (Russia), Vadim Monastyrski is an Honoured Artist of Russian Federation. He served as a member of many juries of national and international competitions.

Since 1991, Vadim Monastyrski has been a professor at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance in Israel, and his students are consistently winners of many international competitions. He is performing widely and conducting master classes throughout Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa, and North America.

Monastyrski’s engagements with orchestras include performances with such symphony orchestras as Budapest Philharmonic, Moscow Philharmonic, Leningrad Symphony, Lugano Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana, Jerusalem Symphony, Tel-Aviv Philharmonic, Johannesburg National Symphony, Cape Town Symphony Orchestra.

He performed under the button of such renowned conductors as Jan Ferencik, Veronika Dudarova, Sergei Provatorov, Dmitri Serov, Dudu Shalon, Jose Serebrier, and Isaac Karabtchevsky. “The combination of virtuoso accomplishment and an artistic personality of remarkable stature is what places Monastyrski in a class all by himself.”
Jerusalem Post, Jerusalem, Israel

 

...Competition in Vienna in 1985, the Paloma O ’Shea Competition and the Tokyo Competition. Since his childhood he has always been in touch with the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory. He was a pupil of the famous Central Music School of the Conservatory, where his teacher was Yu Levin, and later he was a student of the Conservatory under Prof.S.Dorensky. He graduated from the Conservatory in 1987 and is a professor there now; he also frequently teaches in the USA, Ireland, and Germany.
 

...South Hampton Chamber Music Festival, Amati Festival and Bard Festival in New York State. He also performed at the Moscow Conservatory Rachmaninov Hall and Sviatoslav Richter Museum. He has been featured in Russian and American radio and TV stations and premiered compositions by Hayes Biggs and Alexander Zhurbin. Mr. Pakman has been on the faculty of the Manhattan School of Music working as an associate teacher with M-me Nina Svetlanova and teaching at the Pre-College Division. He is also on the faculty at the Montclair State University, where he initiated the MSU-Moscow Conservatory study abroad program. He has judged numerous auditions and competitions. Several of his students have won piano competition awards.
http://www.msmnyc.edu/precollege/faculty/#Pakman
 

His recordings of the three Liszt Piano Concerti, Totentanz, Hungarian Fantasie, Wanderer Fantasie etc. was nominated for the 23rd International “F. Liszt” Record Grand Prix du Disque/National Culture Foundation of Hungary, 1998. During his 30-year association with the late John Cage, Pierce made the landmark recordings: John Cage, Works for Prepared Piano Volumes I, II, III, IV on the WERGO Critical Edition Series. In 2004 Mr. Pierce won the IBLA Foundation Award for Contemporary Music. He has adjudicated numerous piano competitions and served on the board of the International Fulbright Commission. In May 2007, Mr. Pierce was the assistant music director for the American premiere of the new opera “The True Last Words of Dutch Schultz” by composer Eric Salzman and librettist Valeria Vasilevski at Symphony Space’s Wall-to-Wall Opera Festival.
 

...Yakov Flier (at his time) was studying with professor Konstantin Igumnov, who was studying with Alexander Ziloti, who was a student of Franz Liszt and a cousin of Sergey Rachmaninoff. This way, Dmitri Ratser’s artistry reveals a unique combination of European pianistic style of Liszt and Russian pianistic traditions of the Great Rachmaninoff.
Shortly after he was awarded his second diploma, as Concert Artist and Teacher, Mr.Ratser was awarded the First Prize in Moscow's All-Soviet union Rachmaninoff Competition.
Three years later he received First Prize in Budapest's Liszt International Jubilee Competition. For several years, Mr. Ratser performed, both in recital and with symphony orchestras, across the Soviet Union, as well as on Soviet radio and television. He attained recognition as one of the few pianists to include in his regularly performed repertoire the complete works for piano and orchestra of Sergei Rachmaninoff. So highly regarded was Mr.Ratser as an interpreter of Rachmaninoff that he was selected to perform in the ceremony opening the composer's homeplace in the Russian village of Ivanovka.
In 1990, Mr.Ratser formally was added to the roster entitled "Soloists of the Moscow Philharmonic", and in the same year he first performed outside the former Soviet Union, with the Austin, Texas Symphony Orchestra. He was returned to perform in the United States each season since his American debut. In the United States, he has performed at Kennedy Center three times with the National Symphony Orchestra under Mstislav Rostropovich, in solo appearance at Carnegie Hall in New-York, and with symphony orchestras in over thirty-five cities.
He has been heard in repeated appearances, by popular demand, on such prestigious recital series as that at the Ambassador Auditorium in Pasadena, California where he joined the only other stellar pianists being reinvited in consecutive seasons: Andre Watts and Ivo Pogorelich. In fact, Dmitri Ratser has been consistently re-engaged to perform in consecutive seasons in over three-quaters of the venues in which he was appeared in the United States.
In recent seasons he has performed in Mexico, Puerto Rico, Germany, the Dominican Republic, South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong.
The reasoning for this popularity can perhaps be found in the words of the Los Angeles Times: "Ratser's performance took one's breath away with its mesmerizing single-mindedness, its inexorable force, its stunning virtuosity". Dmitri Ratser is a Steinway Artist (from 1992) and currently is a Professor at the faculty of Moscow Conservatory’s Central Music School. During 2009 one of his student was awarded twice at the International piano competition in the US (1st and 2nd places) and another was successfully concertizing in Brazil with San Paulo Symphony Orchestra.
 

... the Abbotsford Symphony Orchestra and the Orchestre Philharmonique de Nice, among others. His performances have been aired in New York City on WQXR radio, on the National French program "France Musique" in other major centers in the U.S. and on the C.B.C. in Canada.

His teachers include Juliette Audibert-Lambert (herself a student of Gabriel Fauré and of Alfred Cortot ), Pierre Sancan, and renowned pianist and master teacher John Perry.

Honors and teaching history
Henri-Paul Sicsic is also an inspired pedagogue with a tremendous following. He was appointed to the Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto in July of 2007. In 2005 he received the Killam Teaching Prize, one of the highest academic honours awarded in Canada.

Sicsic taught at Rice University from 1986 to 1992 as the associate of eminent artist-teacher John Perry. He was a member of the piano faculty at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver for thirteen years. His strong commitment to teaching and ability to enrich and inspire young talents is legendary, and his students have distinguished themselves at the national and international levels, earning prestigious Fulbright and Canada Council grants and winning top prizes and awards at major competitions.

At the Conservatoire de Nice, France, Sicsic was awarded a first prize with honours in piano, a first prize in chamber music, and a conducting diploma. As a pianist, he also received a first prize at the Grand Prix de la Ville de Nice Competition and top prize at the Royaume de la Musique National Radio Competition in France.

Henri-Paul is a proponent of the Alexander Technique and also studies Tai Chi Chuan. He enjoys French cuisine and is an avid runner.

…Pittsburgh Symphony, New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, Toledo Symphony, Florida Philharmonic, Shreveport Symphony, New York Chamber and many other ensembles.A frequent guest at festivals worldwide, Ms. Smolina has performed at the Salzburg Festival, Hollywood Bowl Festival in Los Angeles, Ravinia Rising Stars Festival in Chicago, White Nights Festival in St. Petersburg, Maggio Musicale in Florence, Mikkeli Festival, Ruhr Festival, Easter Festival in Moscow, Rotterdam Phillips Gergiev Festival in Holland, International Gilmore Keyboard Festival, Settimane Musicali di Stresa, Festivale di Bologna, Michelangeli Festival in Brescia, Hennessy Artists Series at Hanoi Opera House, Vietnam, festivals in Greece, Philadelphia International Festival, and many others.

As recitalist she performed in prestigious halls such as Royal Covent Garden Opera, Mariinsky 3 Concert Hall, Tchaikovsky Moscow Conservatory Hall, Kravis Center in West Palm Beach, Lincoln Theater in Miami, NJPAC Hall in New Jersey, Gulbenkian Foundation in Lisbon, Grand Artists Series in Tel-Aviv, Academia Santa Cecilia in Rome, Vienna’s Sacher Hall, and many others.

Recent recordings and broadcasts include Stravinsky’s Les Noces ( Valery Gergiev, conductor on Decca/Phillips and on Mariinsky Label which received ICMA award for Best Choral Work in 2011), a recording of solo works for the Chopin Project, a recital with violinist Vadim Repin for Deutsche Grammophone in Berlin and many broadcasts for NPR, BBC, PBS, RAI, Cultura TV and other networks.

Dr. Smolina is DMA graduate from the University of Michigan, a recipient of "New Names" Scholarship program in Russia and has been a prizewinner of many international competitions, including Citta di Senigalia International Piano Competition (Italy), Kingsville International Piano Competition, Wideman Piano Competition and the Murray Dranoff International Duo Piano Competition in Miami, Florida. Svetlana‘s principal teachers include Alexander Toradze, Arthur Greene, Natalia Fisch, Evgeny Mogilevsky, Monique Duphil. In the summer of 2011 Svetlana joined  iPalpiti Festival of International Laureates in Los Angeles, making her debut at Walt Disney Concert Hall with iPalpiti Orchestra (Eduard Schmieder, conductor) and in solo and chamber concerts, won Beverly Hills Auditions and joined piano faculty at Philadelphia International Summer Festival and collaborative faculty at Mozarteum Summer Academy. In May 2012 Svetana will record James Whitbourn's "Annelies" for Naxos with Arianna Zukerman.

As of Fall 2011, Svetlana Smolina was appointed as the Samuel Barber Artist-In-Residence at West Chester University of Pennsylvania's School of Music in The College of Visual and Performing Arts. Ms. Smolina is also on the piano faculty at Lucy Moses School at Kaufman Center in New York and at Nelly Berman School of Music in Philadelphia.

...from Queen’s College, CUNY under the tutelage of Morey Ritt and Master of Music Degree from Manhattan School of Music where he studied with Constance Keene and Solomon Mikowsky. He also studied and coached with other eminent artists such as Arkady Aronov, Ledia Dvorgetz, George Pappastavorro, Gyorgy Sandor, Martin Canon, Geoffrey Simon and Tamas Ungar. Winner of numerous awards at competitions held in China and U.S, he has appeared in many concerts both in the U.S. and China in solo recitals and as soloist with orchestra. Besides teaching at China Conservatory, Mr. Sun also served as a frequent adjudicator in national competitions and festivals. His students have top honors at many national and international competitions. He has been visiting professor of piano department at Shangdong University at Weihai since 2002 and offering master classes around country. He is a cofounder and Chief Inspector of Goodway National Piano Competition in Hangzhou.
 

...Harvard Music Association, and in many Concert Series in libraries and Colleges. She has appeared on concerts throughout China, Taiwan, Johannesburg, and in Baxter Concert Hall in Cape Town. Ms. Tatulian toured with South Africa’s National Orchestra, the Bavarian Symphony and Bavarian Radio-Television Orchestra, Moscow Philharmonic and Moscow Symphony Orchestra, Cape Town Symphony orchestra, Bilbao Symphony Orchestra and the Queensboro College Orchestra; playing Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No.3 and Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No.4&5. Her musical festival appearances include the Third Annual Beethoven Festival, Festival Internazionale di Musica in Camerino Italy. Winner of the 1967 ARD Competition, the most prestigious piano competition in Germany. As a sought after teacher, Ms. Tatulian has given master classes all over the World. Currently, she’s teaching privately in New York City.
 

Although Viardo represents the “Russian School,” he clearly is not a typical Russian musician, a fact recognized even in his homeland. Born in the Caucasus Mountains near the Black Sea, he studied at the Moscow Conservatory with Lev Naumov. Soon after, vying with sixty-six of the best pianists from twenty-one different countries, Viardo carried off the top prize in the Fourth Quadrennial Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. He now holds the position of Artist-in-Residence at the University of North Texas where he has established the Viardo Fellows Foundation, committed to providing the highest quality musical artist training.