Piano

In over twenty years at the Crestwood Music Education Center, Dennis Malone has seen his students win top awards in regional, national and international competitions. In 2008, three of his students were presented by the Abby Whiteside Foundation in its prestigious concert series at Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall. Mr. Malone himself was selected to perform as part of the same series in 2004. In addition to his work as a piano soloist and teacher, he has composed and performed music for film scores by director Joan Grossman. Mr. Malone has remained active as a chamber musician, currently in a piano duo with colleague Oxana Mikhailoff.

Dennis Malone holds a Master’s degree from Yale University and a Bachelor’s degree from Indiana University. His teachers include Marion Hall, Donald Currier, and Sophia Rosoff. He is a certified Suzuki teacher with students ranging from four-year-old beginners learning together with their parents to students at a very advanced level.

Cynthia Caggiano holds a Master of Music from the Manhattan School of Music and a Bachelor of Music from the Boston Conservatory of Music. She has also studied at The Juilliard School, Mannes College of Music, and Il Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia in Rome. Her teachers include Murray Perahia, Claude Frank, Artur Balsam, Lilian Kallir, Jeananne Dowis, Guido Agosti, Vincenzo Vitale, Joseph Seiger, Maria Bono, John Goldmark, and others.

Ms. Caggiano has participated in the Aspen Summer Music Festival, the Waterloo Summer Chamber Music Festival, the Meadow Brook Summer Music Festival, and the Vacanze Musicale in Venice. She has also served on the faculties of the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music, the Diller-Quaille School of Music, the Long Island School of Music and Art, the Bronx House Music School, the Bronx School of Music, and the USDAN Summer Music Festival. In addition, she has taught at the Marymount School of New York, the Hebrew Arts School, the Hackley School, and the Cathedral School in New York City.

As an accompanist, Ms. Caggiano has collaborated in the studios of such luminaries as Eleanor Steber, Lillian Fuchs, Dorothy Delay, Paul Doktor, Lois Wann, John McCollum, Gabor Carelli, Ellen Faull, and others. She has also given solo recitals throughout the United States and abroad.

Hailed for having “established herself as a very fine interpreter…” (NYCR), the Russian-born pianist Yelena Grinberg is highly regarded for her intellectual depth, keen musical insight, and passionate performances as both a chamber musician and a solo lecture-recitalist with a strong preference for unusual and innovative programming.

As a winner of the Artists International Competition (2005), she has performed her sold-out New York Debut recital of the Baroque Reflections program at Carnegie’s Weill Hall and was highly acclaimed for her “grand performance in a grand tradition” (NYCR).

Dr. Grinberg has been a regular guest lecture-recitalist at The Harvard Club, where she has showcased a wide array of thematic programs, such as The Bach Project, The Art of Chaconne, Humor in Music, and Music and Dance, as well as a series of thematic solo and chamber lecture-performances in celebration of 200^th birthdays of Mendelssohn, Schumann, Chopin, Liszt, and Alkan, 300^th birthday of C.P.E. Bach, 175^th birthday of Tchaikovsky and, currently, 225th birthday of Carl Czerny and 150^th birthday of Ferruccio Busoni.

Dr. Grinberg is an Adjunct Professor at Fordham University, where she instructs music history, piano, and serves as a chamber music coach. She is also on the piano faculty at the Crestwood Music Education Center in Eastchester, New York. In addition, she is a highly passionate private piano instructor, coordinating regular student recitals at The Steinway Hall. Dr. Grinberg is the founder and the artistic director of the sold-out Grinberg Classical Salon Series – an intimate and enlightening series of Classical home salons on the Upper West Side, having presented such renowned artists as pianists Jerome Lowenthal, Oxana Yablonskaya, Madeline Bruser, and clarinetist Julian Milkis.

Previously, at Juilliard, Dr. Grinberg has been a faculty member in the Piano Minor Department and taught the undergraduate course on Piano Topics. She has also coached piano duo and chamber music in Columbia University’s Music Department and was the organizer of the Barnard-Columbia-Juilliard concert series at Columbia’s Miller Theater. Born in Moscow, Dr. Grinberg began her professional piano studies at The Gnessin School of Music for Gifted Children at the age of five. As a student in the joint degree program, she graduated from Barnard College at Columbia University summa cum laude, and as a member of Phi Beta Kappa, with a major in English Literature and a minor in Philosophy. She holds both her M.Mus and DMA degrees in Piano Performance from The Juilliard School, where she studied jointly with Jerome Lowenthal and Oxana Yablonskaya, as well as privately with Richard Goode.

A passionate classic pianist, Kanako Koyama performs throughout the United States – as well as in her native country of Japan – as a soloist, accompanist, and chamber musician. Her venues include the Carnegie Hall in New York, Steinway Hall in New York, Yamaha Salon in New York, Steinway Salon in Tokyo, Liszt Museum in Weimar, Hochshule fur Musik und Theater in Leipzig etc. Given the depth of insight in her interpretation and the rich color and expression that she commands, Kanako Koyama is highly acclaimed for her artistry, as evidenced by numerous international awards and scholarships that have been bestowed upon her. Kanako Koyama made her New York debut recital at Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall in 2009, as a recipient of the Artist International Award and the Special Presentation Winner’s Series Performance that ensued. Kanako Koyama received both her Bachelor’s degree and Master’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music where she studied with Dr. Marc Silverman.

Kanako Koyama is also known for her passion for teaching. She has worked with hundreds of students who are from many different countries, and many of her students appreciate music and succeed in recitals, auditions, and competitions etc. She has also experienced in helping students for Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM), Royal Conservatory Music Development Program (RCM), and New York State School Music Association (NYSSMA). Kanako Koyama received several awards in Excellence in Music Teaching in New York.

Ed Baker has been active on the New York music scene for many years as a composer, arranger, producer, keyboardist, and educator. His compositions have been featured in films, television, and theatre. One of his featured songs in the Rysher Entertainment film, “Let It Be Me”, has been recorded by artists for EMI and Sony/BMG. As a producer, arranger and keyboardist he has worked on jingles, recordings, and documentaries. Among them is the closing theme for Spike Lee’s “4 little girls,” numerous projects with Lucy Simon, and recording the “Stranger Than Fiction” CD with Oscar Hijuelos. He has been the musical director for several Off-Broadway productions, performed in many clubs around NYC and is currently performing the pre-show at the Signature Theatre in Times Square. Ed is an educator who teaches privately and who was a faculty member of the Guitar Study Center/New School University for over 20 years. In addition to teaching and performing, Ed records and produces sessions for numerous artists in his studio. He is the author of “Blues Riffs for Piano” (Hal Leonard, publisher) for which he also recorded the CD. Currently, he is a member of the group, “The Transponders,” which consists of top session musicians/composers/songwriters from the United Kingdom and Los Angeles. The group composes and records music in a wide range of genres for several international music production houses.

David Tsang has had a varied career in music in both piano performance and composition. As a pianist with a special interest in contemporary music, he has performed works by Toru Takemitsu, Chou Wen-Chung, John Harbison, and Samuel Adler, among others. He has performed at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts, the Ethical Society of Philadelphia, and Swarthmore College, and has taught piano privately for well over two decades. Mr. Tsang’s teachers include Boris Berman, Evelyne Crochet, and Edith Stearn.

As a composer, Mr. Tsang has garnered such honors as the ASCAP Award and the Malloy Miller Prize. He has served as a fellow at the Bowdoin Summer Music Festival, the Pacific Music Festival in Sapporo, Japan, and the First International Conference on Chinese Music in Boston. His composition teachers include Chou Wen-Chung, George Crumb, and David del Tredici. In addition, Mr. Tsang has extensive experience as a choir director and church pianist. Since 1996, he has been the assistant music director of the Early Music Series at St. Peter’s Church in New York City.

Olga Vinokur’s performance career as a soloist and chamber musician has taken her across North America, Israel, Russia, France, Spain, Italy, and Portugal. She was the featured performer at the Young Artist Festival in Russia and the “Music in Galilee” Radio Music Festival of Israel and has also performed at Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall, Alice Tully Hall, and Merkin Hall. Dr. Vinokur participated in Tel-Hai International Piano Festival, where she was awarded a prize in honor of Ada Caspi. Her performances have been broadcast live on the Israeli “Voice of Music” radio station and Russian National Public Radio.

Dr. Vinokur is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including First Prize in the Prokofiev Piano COmpetition and major prizes in the Torrefranka International Piano Competition, the Koussevitzky Piano Competition, and the Rubin Academy Competition. She is an annual scholarship recipient of the America-Israel Cultural Foundation.

Dr. Vinokur received her Bachelor’s Degree and Artist’s Diploma with honors from the Rubin Academy of Music in Tel-Aviv University under the tutelage of Victor Derevianko and Natasha Tadson. She went on to earn her Master’s and Doctorate degrees from the Manhattan School of Music under Solomon Mikowsky.

New York native, Pierre Piscitelli has been performing in his hometown, as well as abroad since his early teenage years. Initially trained as a classical pianist, he began to study jazz during his youth and also studied the guitar with Ethan Mann (CMEC faculty). Throughout the years, Pierre has had the chance to study with greats such as Gil Goldstein, Andy Milne, Billy Drewes, Edmund Niemann, Jon Vercesi and Wayne Krantz. He developed an interest for arranging while earning his B.M. at NYU Steinhardt and frequently arranges for large ensembles and big bands. Pierre is a member of and NYC based band called The Bailen Brothers. Together the group has toured all across the U.S. and Europe since 2010. Pierre is also on the faculty of the Hoff Barthelson Music School in Scarsdale, NY.

Srebrenka (Seni) Igrec is a nationally certified music teacher with Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Doctoral degrees in piano performance. Prior to moving to New York Seni taught and worked as an accompanist in the Boston Metrowest area, and in Mandeville and Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Her students are frequent winners of local and state piano competitions. She studied at the Zagreb University’s Academy of Music in Croatia, Stony Brook University, and Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. Her teachers include Branko Sepcic, Jack Guerry, Jonathan Bass, and Gilbert Kalish.

Seni has performed as soloist and chamber musician in Croatia, Italy, New York, Texas, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Georgia, Massachusetts, and Louisiana. She accompanied in master classes given by violinists Josef Gingold and Glenn Dicterow, flutist Bonita Boyd, and cellist Janos Starker; and worked as studio accompanist in studios of Martina Arroyo (soprano), Robert Grayson (tenor), Penny Kemler (flute), Bill Ludwig (bassoon), Dennis Parker (cello), and Camilla Wicks (violin). She has performed with Baton Rouge Symphony and played keyboards in musical productions of West Side Story, Fiddler on the Roof, Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods, and Elton John’s Aida.

Seni wrote and self-publishes TheoryBuilder music theory workbooks which help her students learn music theory and prepare for written music theory tests. She has also written reviews for American Music Teacher.

Seni Igrec is a Permanent Professional Certified Teacher of Music in Piano, the highest certification level given by the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA). She is a member of MTNA, NYSMTA (New York State Music Teachers Association) District 4, and Westchester Musicians Guild. Seni has adjudicated numerous competitions and served as an evaluator for the Louisiana Department of Education Talented Program.

Seni is also on the faculty of Music School of Westchester and teaches piano at her independent music studio in Mamaroneck.

Dr. Sándor Szabó  is actively engaged as conductor, organist, pianist, harpsichordist, vocal coach, arranger, and adjudicator. Choirs and orchestras under his leadership have toured throughout Europe, Canada, and the United States, and he has performed in major concert halls and cathedrals in Europe and North America. Dr. Szabó began his musical education in Yugoslavia. He graduated from the University of Novi Sad in 1984 with the diploma “Academic Musician in the Piano Art” and received a Master’s degree from the University of Music Arts, Belgrade. From 1983 until his immigration to Canada in 1988, Dr. Szabó carried on a performing career while teaching piano at the University of Music Arts, Novi Sad, and working as Assistant Conductor/Accompanist at the Serbian National Opera. Dr. Szabó has studied with many distinguished musicians, including conducting with Stanko Šepić, Ann Howard Jones and Joseph Flummerfelt; piano with Bordás Lajos, Jokuthon Mihajlović, Nevena Popović, Anthony di Bonaventura and Tong Il Han; organ with Max Miller, Eugene Roan and McNeil Robinson; and harpsichord with Mark Kroll. Dr. Szabó holds Master’s degrees in organ performance and sacred music from Westminster Choir College, where he was awarded the full-tuition Currin scholarship, and earned a DMA in piano performance at Boston University. He also holds the Fellowship Certificate (FAGO) from the American Guild of Organists and is a member of Phi Beta Delta, an honor society for international scholars, as well as Pi Kappa Lambda, a national music honor society. Dr. Szabo has held the post of Music Director in prominent churches in Ontario, Canada, MA, NJ, and NY.

Dr. Szabó is the interim Choir Master and Organist at Christ’s Church, Rye NY, Music Director and Conductor of the Oratorio Society of New Jersey and Organist/Choir Director at Temple B’nai Abraham, Livingston, NJ.

Rikako Asanuma is a private piano instructor.  Rikako has attended the Manhattan School of Music in NY earning a Master of Music in Piano Performance and the Musashino Academia Musicae in Tokyo, Japan earning a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance. Rikako has been a music-based educated for almost three decades. Rikako has vast experience as an accompanist for a variety of companies including professional choirs, symphonies, and independent projects.

In addition, Rikako has had solo recital performances at Carnegie Hall, Steinway Hall, Bishopsgate Hall in London, UK, Glinka Choir College Hall in St. Petersburg, Russia, and Iwate Prefectural Hall, Morioka, Japan.

Giocille Shaw enjoys bringing authentic musical experiences to young musicians, through piano study.  As an active music educator in the New York area,  she is eager for her students to develop a deep appreciation and understanding of all the attributes music has to offer.  We are all born vocalists, instinctively using our voices to communicate as infants.  As instrumentalists, we are forever emulating the contour of our vocal line as we bring melodies to life.  By first experiencing musical ideas in the whole body through singing, movement and their uses of energy, we connect these experiences to our instrumental study. While this can come quite naturally to young children, it requires continual fostering as we grow through adolescence and into adulthood. A firm believer in training the eyes, ears and hands and in so, also training the heart, her Kodály background allows for full engagement in piano study, including sight singing, improvisation, composition, and performance.