Piano Faculty
Teresa Yu, Director
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Teresa Yu is the Founder & Director of Amabile School of Music in San Francisco & Moraga, California. She enjoys her life-long career as a musician, an educator, an entrepreneur and a mother of two beautiful children. Ms. Yu started playing the piano since she was 5 years old and never stopped. She had gone through rigorous musical training and program in Taiwan, Japan and throughout the US where she has won several competitions including first prize at the New England Piano Teachers Association, the San Francisco Young Pianists Competition, and the Berkeley Piano Club Competition, and the first prize in Mu Phi Epsilon Competition. Ms. Yu has performed the Bach Double Piano Concerto in Jordan Hall at the New England Conservatory of Music and Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 1 at the Colorado College Summer Music Festival. As the winner of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s Concerto Competition, she performed Saint-saëns Piano Concerto No. 2 with the Conservatory Orchestra. She was invited to perform the Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2 with Symphony of the Redwoods and the Liszt Piano concerto No. 1 with Redwood Symphony. She performed in many masterclasses that were conducted by world-famous artists such as Mstislav Rostropovich, Leon Fleisher, Richard Goode, Stephan Hough, Murray Perahia and more. She was invited to perform at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. as a part of the Conservatory Project. She also participated in Music@Menlo International Music Festival as a chamber music institute coach and the judge of Chopin Competition in San Francisco and the Hawai'i State Music Competition. Between 2010 to 2012, Ms. Yu toured Europe and America with her piano trio, The Aleron Trio, and gave numerous outstanding performances to people from all over the world. Previous teaching experiences including Notre Dome de Victoires, West Portal Lutheran, Old Mill School, and the Nueva School. Ms. Yu has earned her Master’s Degree in Piano Performance and the prestigious Artist Certificate in Chamber Music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music where she studied with Professor Paul Hersh.
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Ethan Lin, Assistant Director
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Dr. Ethan Lin earned his Master of Music degree in Percussion Studies from New York University and Professional Studies Diploma degree from San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where he studied with the prestigious principal percussion of the San Francisco Symphony, Jack Van Geem. In 2015, Dr. Lin earned his doctoral degree in Percussion Performance from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he studied with Ricardo Flores and William Moersch. Specializing in marimba playing, his doctoral thesis is on the unique six-mallet marimba techniques in selected works.
Dr. Lin’s concerto experiences include Alfred Reed’s Concertino for Marimba and Ming-Shong Li’s Chinese Drum Concerto with the school orchestras in Taiwan (2005 and 2007). As a soloist, he has performed numerous recitals and has been active in orchestra and ensemble performances. Recently, he was invited to perform Steve Reich's marimba ensemble work, Six Marimbas, with the San Francisco Symphony members for celebrating the composer's 80th birthday at Davies Symphony Hall. Dr. Lin had participated in various music festivals, such as Nancy Zeltsman Marimba Festival (2010 & 2015), Keiko Abe Marimba Academy (2013), and SoundSCAPE (2014). In 2007, he won the first prize in the percussion category of Taiwan Music Competition. In addition to performing, Dr. Lin enjoys teaching as well. Having plenty of experience coaching percussion ensemble and teaching private lessons, Dr. Lin recently teaches percussion lessons and group class in the bay area. His teaching philosophy is to make music enjoyable to students at all times! His wish for his students is to not only gain musical knowledge but also to feel the joy and peace which music brings to them. |
Hilary Thompson
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“My parents always had classical music blasting on the record player and we all went to lots of concerts,” Hilary says. “I loved singing in school and church choirs when I was young.” In grade school, Hilary’s grandmother gave her a tiny little electric organ with a book, and Piano lessons followed, continuing through high school. Hilary went on to UC Santa Cruz, receiving a Bachelor of Arts in Music, with an emphasis on piano and performance. She’s taught piano both privately and at the San Francisco Community Music Center for over 24 years. She was even a church music director for a number of years in Point Richmond.
Hilary offers an individualized approach, tailored to fit each student's learning style while building essential pianistic and musicianship skills. She loves fostering students' enjoyment of music-making by encouraging students to help select repertoire pieces. All genres of music are appreciated and added along with a steady mix of standard classical piano literature. |
Albert Vargas
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Mr. Vargas has been playing the piano since he was seven years old. He began teaching piano at a young age where he quickly discovered his passion in music and music education. He is currently pursuing his bachelor’s in Mathematics Education and a minor in Music. He has been teaching and tutoring for the last 9 years all around San Joaquin, Alameda, and Contra Costa County.
His true passion is in piano and helping others in subjects such as Math, English, and Music. He is very excited to be a part of the educator team at Amabile! |
Eleana Baskouta
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Eleana is a classically trained pianist, originally from Greece. She holds a B.A. in Ethnography & Cultural from the National & Kapodistrian University of Athens and a Classical Piano Performance Degree from Kodaly Conservatory, obtained in 2012. She is a highly skilled pianist, having won the 1st Prize and Praise at the 17th Greek National Piano Competition organized by the UNESCO & Piraeus "Youth Choir and Orchestra" in 2003 and having attended Piano Master Seminars with renowned soloists such as Gergely Boganyi and France Glidat. Eleana has 4 years of teaching experience both as a private piano instructor and an Ethnomusicology Educator at the Museum of Greek Folk Instruments where she conducted the educational program for schools visiting the museum.
Eleana's approach to teaching piano is centered on fostering a love of music in her students and unlocking their full creative potential. She believes that by integrating multiple learning styles and incorporating play and fun into lessons, children can develop a strong foundation in technique while also building a deep connection to their musical identity and non-verbal communication skills. Eleana is passionate about working with children and helping them to unravel their full creativity through an integral approach to teaching that encourages exploration and discovery. Whether working with beginners or advanced students, Eleana's goal is to create a supportive and engaging environment where students can choose their repertoire and explore different learning modalities while also being exposed to the standard classical piano literature. |
Shulamite Chung
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Shulamite Chung is a classical pianist and a dedicated piano teacher. She began playing the piano at the age of five and has been in love with the instrument ever since. Shulamite holds B.M. in Piano Performance from UC Irvine and M.M in Piano Pedagogy from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She has also performed in master classes conducted by renowned pianists, such as Julian Martin, Ian Hobson, and Claude Cymerman. Over the years, she has received training from renowned instructors in Taiwan, China, and the United States, which has broadened her musical perspective and shaped her teaching philosophy to be open-minded and inclusive. Under the guidance of Professor Nina Scolnik, Shulamite received extensive training in the Taubman Approach, a technique that emphasizes injury prevention and fosters artistic expression without technical limitations. She has many successes in helping students achieve technical proficiency and artistic mastery.
Shulamite firmly believes that music enriches the soul and is dedicated to helping her students discover the transformative power of music in their lives. Her teaching approach emphasizes individualized instruction that nurtures the unique talents and aspirations of each student, helping them to achieve their full potential on their musical journey. |
Sungmin Lee
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Sungmin Lee is a classical guitarist from South Korea who is currently based in San Francisco, California. He started piano training when he was four years old and his passion for music grew at a young age of 12, when he grew interest in finger style guitar. Sungmin then discovered his love for classical music, sparking his interest in studying classical guitar.
Sungmin has received several prizes and wide recognitions in competitions during his guitar career—highlights include the Great Lakes Guitar Festival, Eastman Guitar Concerto Competition, Lone Star Guitar Festival and SF Bay Classical Guitar Competition. He has also performed in several reputable master classes with Jorge Caballero, Carlos Barbosa Lima, Manuel Barrueco, and Matthew McAllister. A graduate of the Eastman School of Music, Sungmin received his Bachelor of Music in Guitar Performance in addition to the Performer’s Certificate. By May 2020, he will receive his Master of Music degree at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. At SFCM, his primary teacher is Judicaël Perroy and prior teachers include Nicholas Goluses, Thomas Viloteau, and Leighann Narum. |
Madeline Belknap
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Madeline Belknap (she/her) is a musician, actor, and educator based in San Francisco. As a music teacher, Madeline has worked with students of all ages as a private piano, voice and flute teacher, choir instructor, and music director. She is trained in classical and collaborative piano, classical flute, and musical theatre and pop voice. Her music directing credits include The Aristocats Jr, Frozen Jr, The Magic Tree House: Pirates Past Noon, and Seussical The Musical Jr. She also is a composer for Theatre for Young Audiences, and her previous compositions include Fantastagirl and the Math Monster at Adventure Theatre (nominated for a Helen Hayes in Washington, DC), and The Seaside Adventures of Zoey Brine at the Bowie Center for the Performing Arts. She earned a BA in Music and a BA in Drama from the Catholic University of America.
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Isabelle Otillio
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Since 2020, Isabelle has been teaching piano to students ranging all ages. As a passionate music educator, Isabelle hopes to inspire the next generation of musicians by fostering a supportive and engaging learning environment. Her aim is to not only impart technical skills but also to ignite a lifelong love for music in her students. Through her guidance, she hopes to empower them to explore their creativity, develop their musical abilities, and discover the joy of self-expression through music.
Isabelle has been playing the piano as long as she could sit at the piano bench. She took classical piano lessons for over 10 years, dedicating her later years studying the colorful compositions of Debussy, George Winston, Yann Teirsen, and Vince Guaraldi to name a few. Isabelle attended Cal Poly Humboldt where she pursued a Minor in Music in addition to her degree focused in Education. She had the opportunity to perform in several ensembles including the renowned Calypso band, Jazz band, University Singers, and the World Percussion ensemble. If you or your child is ready to embark on a musical journey, Isabelle welcomes you to join her in a collaborative and inspiring musical experience. Isabelle focuses on teaching classical music curriculum but is also capable of preparing students who are interested in or already working on ABRSM exams through grade 6. Get in touch to schedule a lesson and embark on an exciting path of musical discovery together. |
Sarah Jaegers
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Originally from Holland, Michigan, Dr. Sarah Korneisel Jaegers teaches piano, clarinet, and saxophone at Amabile. Dr. Jaegers’s first instrument was the piano, which she began learning at the age of 10. Her primary instructors include Mary Van Voorst and Dr. Wan-Chin Chang. She began performing in solo recitals and accompanying for church services shortly thereafter. She strongly believes that each student has a unique voice to contribute to the world of music. As a teacher, Dr. Jaegers instills in her students a deeper love and understanding of music, guides them toward the achievement of their aspirations, and aids them in the discovery of their own distinctive voice through the development of confident self-directed learning, critical thinking, and healthy performance practices. Her studio is a fun, welcoming environment that engages students and encourages them to grow as musicians. She believes that music enriches lives and communities and aims to inspire joy and creativity and cultivate musicianship in her students.
Dr. Jaegers earned her DMA degree from The Ohio State University, her MM from Michigan State University, and her BM and BA in Spanish from Iowa State University. |
Fiona Cheng
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Originally from Hong Kong, Fiona is a pianist and a singer. She studied piano at the age of twelve and completed her ABRSM grade 8 exam. Fiona holds a Bachelor of Music Degree from San Francisco State University and a Master Degree of Music Education from Holy Names University.
Fiona has been teaching piano and music to students from preschoolers to adolescents. In addition to teaching music, she sings in local community choruses including the San Francisco Choral Society and the San Francisco City Chorus. As a piano teacher, Fiona teaches music theory, piano technique and musical expression. She believes that these are the basic skills that her students should have as pianists. |
Matthew Gaspar
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Matthew started playing the piano at the age of five. After graduating from U.C. San Diego with a degree in General Biology, he soon discovered his passion and joy in piano teaching and has been pursuing this career since.
Through his 14 years of teaching piano to students ages 5 and above, he decided to guide his students to discover the fun of playing the piano by focusing on creating a solid foundation of the fundamentals of note reading, rhythm, and finger and hand positions. By building his students’ confidence by constantly encouraging them, he aims to help his students find their own passion for playing the piano in the genre of music that inspires them. |
Jennifer Gapasin
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Jennifer is a musician/actress based out of the SF Bay Area. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Music from Sacramento State. She was choir director, piano accompanist and vocalist for St. Anthony Parish in Winters, St. Peter Catholic Church in Dixon and St. George Episcopal Church in Carmichael. She played drums and piano for Holy Spirit Church in Fairfield. Jennifer taught piano and voice at Natomas School of Music in Sacramento and Music Works in El Cerrito (now Rockin' Robbies). She taught preschool group music classes at Young World Preschool in Daly City and Gymboree Play & Music in San Francisco. She was drummer for the Beatles cover band, the Peptones, and she enjoys singing in many genres, including opera, jazz, funk and R&B.
In her own words: Music is a great outlet to express oneself and develop practical skills such as focus, listening, coordination and timing. There is nothing quite like music that combines fun, complexity and discipline all at once. I am happy to share that experience with others as a teacher and performer. |
Jake Margulis-Kessel
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Jake is excited to be a music instructor at Amabile and has been teaching and playing music for over 20 years. He teaches all levels and styles of guitar, voice, congas and percussion, songwriting, production, composition, and artist identity development/branding. He also teaches drum set, piano, ukulele and electric bass. Additionally, Jake enjoys leading band direction for developing musicians.
Jake has an M.A. in Music Composition and has been a music instructor with Bay Area music schools such as Village Music School, School of Rock San Ramon, COVA, Star Power Music, Art and Soul Music Studios, Hayward Music Center, and ALMA. He was also Music Program Director at Mission Hills Middle School in Union City for three years where he designed and taught all music program classes to grades Pre-K through 8. Prior to that, he was the guitar and percussion instructor at St. Paul's Episcopal School in Oakland. Jake began studying jazz guitar at age 14 and majored in jazz guitar as an undergrad. His primary teachers were Steve Erquiaga, Dave Creamer, and Jack Wilkins. Jake also studied AfroCuban percussion for many years under the instruction of Josh Jones, as well as with Maestro Regino Jimenez, Sandy Perez and in Cuba with Grupo AfroCuba de Matanzas and Daniel Rodriguez of Yoruba Andabo. He also studied traditional AfroCuban singing with Lazaro Galarraga and classical voice with Jane Sharp. Jake has performed or recorded with musicians such as Boots Riley, Kent Nagano, Ambrose Akinmusere, Thomas Pridgen, Dayna Stephens, Josh Jones, Michael Aaberg, and The Hogan Brothers. He has played at jazz festivals including Montreux, North Sea, Vienne and Umbria. Jake has also performed at venues such as Yoshi’s, Zellerbach Hall, Cleopatra's Needle and Small’s. He is also a songwriter, composer, and music producer. In his spare time, Jake enjoys writing comedy, reading, and the great outdoors. |
Eri Hoshina
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Eri began studying piano at age 3 in Japan. After her piano study in 2002 at Diablo Valley College, she very quickly developed as a pianist through working with many wonderful musicians in the area and
taking lessons with wonderful teachers with her main teacher being Dr. Dale Tsang for the past decade. In 2007 she studied with John McCarthy at the SF Conservatory to prepare for a performance of the Sanit-Saëns G minor concerto with the DVC Philharmonic. In 2008, she performed Sanit-Saëns “Les Carnival des Animaux” with Contra Costa Chamber Orchestra at Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek. In 2009, she was invited to audition to become a member of the Berkeley Piano Club where she has been performing regularly as one of their performing members since then. She started piano teaching in 2005 and has maintained a busy studio in the bay area since. Her unique path in her own piano study has given her strong empathy for each piano learner’s struggles, insight into finding the challenges, and creativity in finding ways to overcome them. Through her 15 years of piano teaching experience, she has become a firm believer in teaching with a personalized approach, and she finds joy in bringing the musical, creative, and curious soul out of each student. She aims to serve as an experienced tour guide and a compassionate cheerleader for each of her piano student’s piano journeys. She enjoys her piano journey so much that she wants her students to share the same experience. She is also a mother of two grown sons of aged 22 and 19. Starting this fall, she will begin her graduate study in piano performance at the San Francisco State University under Dr. Victoria Neve’s tutelage. |
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Jonathan Kirby has been composing, conducting, music directing, and teaching piano in the
Wasington, DC area since 2013. Jonathan taught general music to grades 5 through 8 in Georgetown for five years, taught private piano lessons for 6 years, and has been a freelance accompanist and church cantor for 11 years. He earned his BM in Music Composition in 2016 and MM in Orchestral Conducting in 2018 from Catholic U in Washington, DC. Jonathan studied piano with Dr. Ivo Kaltchev, choir with Dr. Leo Nestor, and conducting with Maestro Murry Sidlin. In 2013 and 2014, Jonathan premiered two large works for 7 right hands (on one piano) at the Lancaster International Piano Festival. In December of 2012, he performed an original work at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Hall. Jonathan has written 5 original musicals which premiered at Imagination Stage in Bethesda, MD from 2017-2022. Jonathan composed original works for and conducted the choir of the Franciscan Monastery of the Holy Land in Washington, DC for 7 years, arranging service music for organ, brass quintet, winds, and percussion. Jonathan attended the Mostly Modern Festival in 2019, where he premiered his piano quintet The Snows of Iceland, which won a professional recording. Most recently, Jonathan accompanied and music directed summer performances of Newsies Jr. with students ages 8-13 at Imagination Stage’s Musical Production Summer Camp. Jonathan is excited to continue inspiring musicians of all ages in their piano lessons. Jonathan now lives in the east bay with his wife Madeline, and his cats Pterodactyl (Ptery) and Megalodon (Meg). |
Leana Mangubat
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Leana is a pianist, percussionist, and school teacher. She began piano lessons at the age of five, and percussion at the age of eleven, when the school’s band needed a mallet percussionist. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Music from San José State University, where she studied under Bryce Leafman, Assistant Principal Timpanist for the San Francisco Symphony, and Galen Lemmon, Principal Percussionist for the San José Symphony, and the Symphony Silicon Valley. She has been private and group teaching for over eight years, with students aged 5-70; and has been performing around the Bay Area throughout her educational path, as a pianist and percussionist. She currently works as a band director in South San Francisco.
Leana’s teaching philosophy highlights the importance of a student’s goals. Her intention is to create a learning environment in which she can combine the needs of a student with their own unique academic interests. She believes that a proper learning environment begins with the preparedness of a teacher and that learners will choose to do well when good work is done for them too. She welcomes students eagerly to music and performance. |
Olga Korolev
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Olga Korolev is a classically trained singer, pianist and theater artist. Coming from a musical
family, she officially started her musical journey by beginning to learn the piano at 8 years old. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music with a voice concentration and a Theater and Biblical Studies Minor from Biola University. While at Biola, she sung with the Biola Chorale at the 2016 Western Division ACDA Conference and continued her piano studies as well. She has served as a choir accompanist for church and was a Conservatory Fellow at the American Conservatory Theater working with the Young Conservatory and Studio A.C.T. programs. Before moving back to the Bay area, she taught Suzuki piano to students ranging from 3 years to adult in the Sacramento region. She is certified with the Suzuki Association of Americas in the ECC (Every Child Can) course and Book 1 where she received her training under Caroline Fraser and Annette Lee. She is also a member of the Suzuki Association of Americas. She is passionate about building up students as well-rounded musicians and also as individuals where ever they go in life. |
Alex Rutter
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Alex is a multi-instrumentalist songwriter who loves nothing more than sharing his passion for music with others. He graduated from Saint Mary’s College of California with a Bachelor’s Degree in music, and since graduating has continued to sing in choir, write/produce his own songs, and play with others often. While at Saint Mary’s College, he participated in the jazz band, multiple student-led groups, and all three choirs. He also started learning to teach by tutoring students.
Alex has been playing guitar and drums since he was in elementary school and took to learning bass guitar in high school. Around this time he started writing his own songs and listening to a wide variety of musical genres to better understand how music exists not only in his life but in others' lives and in other parts of the world. He adores music theory and always loses himself talking about anything music-related. Alex believes that learning music should be about technique and theory as much as it should be about feeding your curious and creative mind. He always wishes to impart knowledge just as much as he hopes to inspire and expand one’s perspective on the world of music and what it can do for you. |
Yea-Ming Chen
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Ms. Yea-Ming is a singer-songwriter, musician, actor and composer based in Oakland, California. A classically trained pianist and a graduate of the music program at the University of California Berkeley, Yea-Ming fell in love with rock music along the way and began writing songs as a young adult and has never stopped. She has released 7 studio-recorded albums and is featured in 20+ more. Most recently, her music and acting is displayed prominently in the feature film I Will Make You Mine (2020) which premiered at SXSW.
As a piano teacher, Yea-Ming recognizes the uniqueness of each student and takes the time to understand their learning style, musical tastes, and personality. She approaches her lessons in a fun and creative way while expanding a student’s appreciation for music as well as instilling a solid foundation in music theory. |